A microcontroller is an integrated circuit that can be programmed to control electronic devices. It contains a processor, memory, and input/output ports on a single chip. Microcontrollers come in various sizes based on their word length and internal bus width, from 4-bit to 32-bit. They also differ based on their memory architecture and instruction set. A microcontroller allows easy programming to control devices in embedded systems and provides advantages like low cost, small size, and flexibility.