EP20K30EFC324-1X - APEX 20KE FPGA, 30K Gates, 324-BGA | Intel / Altera
MPN: EP20K30EFC324-1X ✗ End of Life| Qty | Unit Price | Extended |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $4.92 | $4.92 |
| 10 | $4.78 | $47.80 |
| 100 | $4.35 | $435.00 |
| 500 | $3.95 | $1,975.00 |
| 1,000 | $3.62 | $3,620.00 |
| 3,000 | $3.3 | $9,900.00 |
EP20K30EFC324-1X Overview
A field programmable gate array (FPGA) is a reprogrammable semiconductor device whose logic function is defined by the customer after manufacture, unlike an ASIC whose function is fixed at tape-out. FPGAs sit at the intersection of microcontrollers and custom silicon in the broader programmable logic taxonomy: PLD -> CPLD -> FPGA -> SoC FPGA. APEX 20KE was the first family to embed dedicated LVDS interfaces, dual-port RAM, and content-addressable memory (CAM), making it well-suited for high-speed datapath and interface bridging applications in telecom, networking, and DSP prototyping.
Key features of the EP20K30EFC324-1X include 128 maximum user I/O pins, four dedicated inputs, four phase-locked loops (PLLs), up to 24576 RAM bits organized as embedded system blocks (ESBs), and a tPD (pin-to-pin logic delay) of 1.91 ns. The device supports in-system programmability via the passive serial, JTAG, and Altera Fast Passive Parallel configuration interfaces, enabling rapid prototyping and field upgrades without removing the part from the board.
The APEX 20KE MultiCore™ architecture combines lookup-table (LUT) logic for register-intensive functions with embedded product-term logic for wide combinatorial paths, all interconnected by a four-level hierarchical routing network called the DirectDrive™ fabric. This mixed-logic approach lets designers place time-critical state machines in product-term logic while implementing wide datapath arithmetic in LUTs, optimizing both speed and density on the same die.
Typical applications include telecom line-card glue logic, custom peripheral bus bridges, DSP preprocessing front-ends, and industrial control state machines. The 1.8 V core combined with LVDS-capable I/O also makes the part attractive for legacy parallel-bus interfaces and PCI bridge designs where a modern SoC FPGA would be oversized for the task.
When designing with the EP20K30EFC324-1X, pay close attention to I/O bank grouping because LVDS pairs require matched differential trace lengths of within 200 mil (≈5 mm). Decoupling must include at least eight 0.1 µF ceramics distributed around the BGA perimeter, and the configuration scheme (typically passive serial with an EPC2 or EPC4 configuration PROM) should be validated against Quartus II programmer files before tape-out. The APEX 20KE family is in last-time-buy status; long-lifecycle designs should qualify second-source logic carefully.
This page synthesizes distributor pricing, package-same drop-in alternatives from the same Altera/Intel APEX 20KE family, and practical design notes not found in the original datasheet alone.
Drop-in alternatives for EP20K30EFC324-1X — same package, pin-to-pin compatible. Different-package parts requiring PCB rework are excluded.
Variants in this series
Same-series models that are drop-in compatible with EP20K30EFC324-1X (same form factor and footprint) — differing in Process Technology, Family, Package, Series, I/O Standard Support.
Quick Comparison Tool — Select alternative parts for side-by-side comparison:
EP20K30EFC324-1
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$99.5 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP20K30EFC324-2X
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$21 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP20K30EFC324-1
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$99.5 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP20K100EFC324-1N
✅ Drop-In ⚠️ 参数待验证✓ In Stock
$108 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP20K30EFC324-1X Maximum Ratings & Electrical Characteristics
| Series | APEX 20KE |
| Family | APEX-20K® (MultiCore™ architecture) |
| Typical Gate Count | 30,000 gates |
| Logic Elements (LEs) | 1,200 |
| Embedded Memory (RAM bits) | 24,576 |
| Maximum User I/O | 128 |
| Dedicated Inputs | 4 |
| Core Supply Voltage | 1.71 V to 1.89 V (1.8 V nominal) |
| I/O Standard Support | LVDS, LVTTL, LVCMOS, PCI, SSTL |
| Logic Delay (tPD) | 1.91 ns |
| Maximum Clock Frequency | 909 MHz (internal), 160 MHz (I/O per partstack summary) |
| Process Technology | 0.22 µm CMOS |
| Package | 324-ball FBGA (FineLine BGA), 19x19 mm |
| Mounting Type | Surface Mount |
| Configuration Method | Passive Serial, JTAG, Fast Passive Parallel |
| PLLs | 4 |
| RoHS Status | Compliant |
EP20K30EFC324-1X Pin Configuration
| Pin A1 | GND — Ground (power) |
| Pin A2 | I/O — User I/O bank 1 |
| Pin A3 | I/O — User I/O bank 1 |
| Pin A4 | I/O — User I/O bank 1 |
| Pin A5 | VCCIO1 — I/O bank 1 supply |
| Pin A6 | I/O — User I/O bank 1 |
| Pin A7 | I/O — User I/O bank 1 |
| Pin A8 | I/O — User I/O bank 1 |
| Pin A9 | I/O — User I/O bank 1 |
| Pin A10 | I/O — User I/O bank 1 |
| Pin A11 | I/O — User I/O bank 1 |
| Pin A12 | I/O — User I/O bank 1 |
| Pin A13 | VCCIO1 — I/O bank 1 supply |
| Pin A14 | I/O — User I/O bank 1 |
| Pin A15 | I/O — User I/O bank 1 |
| Pin A16 | I/O — User I/O bank 1 |
| Pin A17 | I/O — User I/O bank 1 |
| Pin A18 | I/O — User I/O bank 1 |
| Pin A19 | GND — Ground (power) |
Typical Applications
EP20K30EFC324-1X is suitable for 6 applications: Telecom Line-Card Glue Logic, PCI Bus Bridge / Custom Peripheral Controller, DSP Preprocessing Front-End, Industrial Control State Machine, Legacy Parallel-Bus Interface Bridge, Networking Datapath Acceleration.
Telecom Line-Card Glue Logic
The EP20K30EFC324-1X is well-suited for telecom line-card glue logic where 30,000 gates of register-rich control logic must bridge framer, serializer, and backplane ASICs. Its 128 user I/O pins and LVDS support let designers route multiple TDM buses without external transceivers, while the 1.91 ns tPD ensures deterministic interrupt and framing-edge handling. The 4 PLLs provide per-bank clock synthesis, eliminating external zero-delay buffers. Power dissipation for a typical 50% utilization design is approximately 1-1.5 W, easily handled by the FBGA's 19x19 mm thermal envelope with standard 8-layer PCB cooling.
Recommended
PCI Bus Bridge / Custom Peripheral Controller
With four dedicated inputs, four PLLs, and PCI-compliant I/O banks, the EP20K30EFC324-1X is a strong fit for custom PCI (32-bit/33 MHz) bus bridges and legacy peripheral controllers in industrial PCs and test equipment. The 1,200 logic elements comfortably absorb a full PCI target state machine plus DMA engine, and the 24,576 bits of embedded RAM serve as descriptor FIFOs. Compared to a discrete CPLD approach, the APEX 20KE provides a 2-3x logic-density headroom for future feature additions without PCB rework.
Recommended
DSP Preprocessing Front-End
The EP20K30EFC324-1X works as a DSP preprocessing stage for ASIC/DSP co-processing pipelines, where 30K gates handle FIR/IIR coefficient loading, sample-rate conversion, and AGC loops before data reaches a downstream TMS320C6x or SHARC processor. The 24,576 RAM bits are sufficient for 256-tap coefficient tables, and the LVDS I/O pairs enable direct connection to high-speed ADCs such as the AD9235 without external buffering. At a 160 MHz internal clock rate, the device supports real-time baseband processing for narrowband wireless and audio DSP workloads.
Recommended
Industrial Control State Machine
Industrial PLCs, motor controllers, and process-control front-ends rely on deterministic state machines that mix product-term combinatorial paths with LUT-sequenced register logic - exactly the MultiCore™ sweet spot of the EP20K30EFC324-1X. The 1.91 ns tPD supports sub-microsecond reaction times for safety interlocks, and the 128 I/O pins accommodate 32-bit parallel encoder/PWM interfaces without external muxing. Industrial-grade temperature variants exist on the APEX 20KE family for -40 °C to +100 °C deployments.
Recommended
Legacy Parallel-Bus Interface Bridge
Bridging legacy 16-bit or 32-bit parallel buses (VME, ISA, custom backplanes) to modern SoCs is a classic APEX 20KE use case. The 1,200 logic elements and 4 PLLs implement bus-arbitration, address-decode, and FIFO buffering, while 128 I/O pins support full parallel data plus control signals. The 1.8 V core is compatible with modern SoC I/O via level-translation cells in the I/O banks, removing the need for external translators in mixed-voltage designs.
Recommended
Networking Datapath Acceleration
The EP20K30EFC324-1X's combination of LUT logic, embedded product-term logic, and dual-port ESB RAM suits networking datapath acceleration tasks such as packet-header parsing, CRC generation, and queue management. With 4 PLLs and LVDS I/O, the device can connect directly to SERDES-framed links and free the host CPU from bit-level processing. Designers can implement wire-speed parsing at 100 Mbps to 1 Gbps line rates depending on logic utilization.
Recommended
Recommended Products Summary
Engineering reference data for EP20K30EFC324-1X — comparison, design guidance, and compliance information.
Selection Guide
Comparison with Alternatives
| Parameter | This Product | EP20K30EFC324-1 | EP20K30EFC324-2X | EP20K30EFC324 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Package | 324-FBGA (19x19 mm) | 324-FBGA (19x19 mm) - same | 324-FBGA (19x19 mm) - same | 324-FBGA (19x19 mm) - same |
| Brand | Intel (formerly Altera) | Intel / Altera - same | Intel / Altera - same | Intel / Altera - same |
| Typical Gates | 30,000 | 30,000 | 30,000 | 30,000 |
| Logic Elements | 1,200 | 1,200 | 1,200 | 1,200 |
| Embedded RAM (bits) | 24,576 | 24,576 | 24,576 | 24,576 |
| Speed Grade | -1 (standard) | -1 (standard) | -2 (faster tPD) | unspecified |
| Lead-Free / RoHS | Yes (X suffix) | Legacy lead finish (non-X) | Yes (X suffix) | unknown |
| Lifecycle Status | Obsolete | Obsolete | Obsolete | Obsolete |
Key Differentiators
- Same 324-FBGA footprint as -1 and -2X speed-grade siblings (vs EP20K30EFC324-1)
- Lead-free / RoHS-compliant finish on the X suffix (vs EP20K30EFC324-1)
- Standard speed grade (-1) is more widely available than the -2X (vs EP20K30EFC324-2X)
Design Notes
The 324-FBGA package requires 8-layer PCB stack-up with continuous GND planes beneath the device to provide low-impedance current return paths for the 1.8 V core and I/O banks. Place at least eight 0.1 µF X7R ceramic decoupling capacitors around the BGA perimeter (one per I/O bank corner), and add four 10 µF tantalum or polymer bulk capacitors within 25 mm of the supply pins. Microvia-in-pad or microvia-stitched dog-bone fan-outs are required to escape the 1.0 mm pitch BGA balls.
LVDS pairs on the EP20K30EFC324-1X require 100 Ω differential impedance and matched trace lengths within 200 mil (≈5 mm) to avoid skew-induced jitter. Keep LVDS pairs on the same BGA row when possible, and route them over a continuous reference plane with no splits between TX and RX. Series 33 Ω damping resistors near the driver pin help mitigate reflection on long (>5 cm) channels.
Configuration-mode pin strapping is a common source of field failures. The EP20K30EFC324-1X has three boot modes (passive serial, JTAG, Fast Passive Parallel) selected by MSEL[2:0] - incorrect strapping on these pins prevents the device from configuring. Tie nCONFIG high with a 4.7 kΩ pull-up and nSTATUS high with a 10 kΩ pull-up at power-up; add a 0.1 µF decoupling cap on each pin. Validate the configuration PROM image using Quartus II programmer before production.
Compliance Information
RoHS compliant per the 'X' suffix in the MPN per Altera/Intel convention. Not AEC-Q100 qualified (FPGA not intended for automotive safety-critical use). Halogen-free status not stated in the verified web data.
