Description

The EP4CE6F17C8N is a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) that belongs to the Cyclone IV FPGA device family. This family of devices is known for providing low-cost and low-power FPGAs. The Cyclone IV family of devices is aimed at fulfilling high-volume, cost-sensitive applications. With the addition of the Cyclone IV GX, the family now offers a transceiver variant which enables system designers to meet increasing bandwidth requirements while simultaneously lowering costs.

Specifications and features

The main features of the EP4CE6F17C8N are:

Low-cost, low-power FPGA fabric:
- 6K to 150K logic elements
- Up to 6.3 Mb of embedded memory
- Up to 360 18 × 18 multipliers for DSP processing intensive applications
- Protocol bridging applications for under 1.5 W total power
- Cyclone IV GX devices offer up to eight high-speed transceivers that provide:
- Data rates up to 3.125 Gbps
- 8B/10B encoder/decoder
- 8-bit or 10-bit physical media attachment (PMA) to physical coding sublayer (PCS) interface
- Byte serializer/deserializer (SERDES)
- Word aligner
- Rate matching FIFO
- TX bit slipper for Common Public Radio Interface (CPRI)
- Electrical idle
- Dynamic channel reconfiguration allowing you to change data rates andprotocols on-the-fly
- Static equalization and pre-emphasis for superior signal integrity
- 150 mW per channel power consumption
- Flexible clocking structure to support multiple protocols in a single transceiver block
- Cyclone IV GX devices offer dedicated hard IP for PCI Express (PIPE) (PCIe) Gen 1:
- ×1, ×2, and ×4 lane configurations
- End-point and root-port configurations
- Up to 256-byte payload
- One virtual channel
- 2 KB retry buffer
- 4 KB receiver (Rx) buffer
- Cyclone IV GX devices offer a wide range of protocol support:
- PCIe (PIPE) Gen 1 ×1, ×2, and ×4 (2.5 Gbps)
- Gigabit Ethernet (1.25 Gbps)
- CPRI (up to 3.072 Gbps)
- XAUI (3.125 Gbps)
- Triple rate serial digital interface (SDI) (up to 2.97 Gbps)
- Serial RapidIO (3.125 Gbps)
- Basic mode (up to 3.125 Gbps)
- V-by-One (up to 3.0 Gbps)
- DisplayPort (2.7 Gbps)
- Serial Advanced Technology Attachment (SATA) (up to 3.0 Gbps)
- OBSAI (up to 3.072 Gbps)
- Up to 532 user I/Os
- LVDS interfaces up to 840 Mbps transmitter (Tx), 875 Mbps Rx
- Support for DDR2 SDRAM interfaces up to 200 MHz
- Support for QDRII SRAM and DDR SDRAM up to 167 MHz
- Up to eight phase-locked loops (PLLs) per device
- Offered in commercial and industrial temperature grades

Application Scenarios

The EP4CE6F17C8N FPGA is suitable for a wide range of applications. It can be used in protocol bridging applications that require under 1.5 W power. It is also ideal for applications that demand high-level DSP processing, as it contains up to 360 18 × 18 multipliers. With Cyclone IV GX, it can be used in a variety of protocols such as PCIe (PIPE) Gen 1, Gigabit Ethernet, and many more, making it an excellent fit for applications that require high-speed communication. Additionally, the FPGA offers LVDS interfaces up to 840 Mbps transmitter (Tx), 875 Mbps Rx, making it a perfect fit for applications that require data transmission at a high speed.

Comparison

• Low cost and low power consumption
• 6K to 150K logic elements
• Up to 360 18 × 18 multipliers for DSP processing intensive applications
• Up to eight high-speed transceivers that provide data rates up to 3.125 Gbps and a wide range of protocol support
• Up to 532 user I/Os and LVDS interfaces up to 840 Mbps transmitter (Tx), 875 Mbps Rx, suitable for applications that require data transmission at a high speed
• Flexible clocking structure to support multiple protocols in a single transceiver block
• Support for DDR2 SDRAM interfaces up to 200 MHz and support for QDRII SRAM and DDR SDRAM up to 167 MHz
• Up to eight phase-locked loops (PLLs) per device
• Offered in commercial and industrial temperature grades.

• Not suitable for applications that require high FPGA fabric performance and more logic elements in the device
• The EP4CE6F17C8N is not ideal for applications that require low-power consumption, unlike the other members of the Cyclone IV FPGA device family