EP20K400BC652-1V - APEX 20KC FPGA 400K Gates 652-BGA | Altera
MPN: EP20K400BC652-1V ✗ End of Life| Qty | Unit Price | Extended |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $71.81 | $71.81 |
| 10 | $65.5 | $655.00 |
| 100 | $58.2 | $5,820.00 |
| 500 | $52.4 | $26,200.00 |
| 1,000 | $47.95 | $47,950.00 |
EP20K400BC652-1V Overview
An FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array) is a semiconductor device built around an array of configurable logic blocks (CLBs/LABs) connected via programmable interconnect, surrounded by programmable I/O cells. Modern FPGAs also embed dedicated memory blocks, multiplier/DSP slices, phase-locked loops, and high-speed transceivers. In the system hierarchy, the FPGA sits between discrete logic (CPLDs, gate arrays) and fixed-function ASICs - offering ASIC-class computational density with the time-to-market advantage of in-system reprogrammability. The APEX 20KC family specifically pioneered MultiCore architecture that mixes LUT-based logic, product-term logic, and embedded memory on a single die.
Key features of the EP20K400BC652-1V include 502 maximum user I/O, support for multiple I/O standards (LVTTL, LVCMOS, PCI, GTL+, SSTL, LVDS, HSTL, LVPECL via the APEX 20K I/O cell), a core voltage of 1.8 V (VCCINT) with 2.5 V VCCIO supply, and in-system programmability via the IEEE 1149.1 JTAG interface. The device also offers 4 dedicated clock inputs plus dual-purpose clock pins and supports the Altera MultiVolt I/O architecture for mixed-voltage bus interfacing.
The EP20K400BC652-1V utilizes SRAM-based configuration cells that must be loaded from an external PROM or controller at power-up. Its MultiCore architecture combines lookup-table logic (for register-intensive functions), product-term logic (for fast arithmetic and decoding), and Embedded System Blocks (ESBs) for on-chip dual-port RAM and FIFO. The FineLine BGA-652 package exposes sufficient I/O to support wide parallel buses and multiple high-speed serial channels.
Typical applications include telecommunications line cards, high-speed data acquisition and instrumentation, network routers and switches, ASIC prototyping, DSP co-processing, and PCI/PCI-X bus interfacing. The 652-BGA package is chosen when designs require maximum I/O count and signal-integrity performance.
When designing with the EP20K400BC652-1V, designers should plan configuration loading via a serial or parallel EPC device, allocate sufficient decoupling on each VCCINT/VCCIO plane, and verify signal-integrity on the 652-ball BGA using controlled-impedance traces. The -1 speed grade is the slowest tier of the APEX 20K family, so timing closure should be verified in Quartus II before fabrication.
This page synthesizes distributor pricing, drop-in alternatives from the same APEX 20K family, and practical design notes not found in the manufacturer datasheet, providing engineering context beyond what the Altera datasheet alone offers.
Drop-in alternatives for EP20K400BC652-1V — 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 EP20K400BC652-1V (same form factor and footprint) — differing in Package, Operating Temperature, Speed Grade, Family, Series.
Quick Comparison Tool — Select alternative parts for side-by-side comparison:
EP20K400BC652-1
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$108 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP20K400BC652-2
✅ Drop-In📋 Reference alternative (not in catalog)
EP20K400BC652-3
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$189 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP20K400EBC652-1
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$110 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP20K400EBC652-2
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$60 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP20K400EBC652-3
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$210 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP20K400BC652-1V Maximum Ratings & Electrical Characteristics
| Series | APEX-20KC |
| Family | APEX 20K |
| Device Sub-Family | EP20K400 |
| System Gates | 1,052,000 |
| Maximum Logic Elements | 212,992 |
| Macrocells / LABs | 16640 |
| Embedded Memory (bits) | 212,992 |
| Maximum User I/O | 502 |
| Speed Grade | -1 |
| Clock-to-Output (Tco) | 2.5 ns |
| Core Voltage (VCCINT) | 1.8 V |
| I/O Voltage (VCCIO) | 2.5 V |
| Package | 652-BGA (FineLine, 45 x 45 mm) |
| Mounting Type | Surface Mount |
| Operating Temperature | 0C to +85C (commercial) |
| Configuration | SRAM-based, JTAG IEEE 1149.1 |
| Architecture | MultiCore (LUT + product-term + ESB) |
EP20K400BC652-1V 652-bga (fineline, 45 x 45 mm) Pin Configuration Guide
Pin configuration for EP20K400BC652-1V (652-bga (fineline, 45 x 45 mm) package). This digital IC includes GPIO, communication interfaces (UART, SPI, I2C), and power pins. Refer to the manufacturer datasheet for alternate pin functions and configuration options. Essential for embedded system design and PCB layout.
No detailed pinout data available for EP20K400BC652-1V.
Refer to the datasheet for full pin configuration.
Typical Applications
EP20K400BC652-1V is suitable for 6 applications: Telecommunications Line Card Design, High-Speed Data Acquisition Systems, Network Router and Switch Fabric, ASIC Prototyping Platform, PCI / PCI-X Bus Interface Card, DSP Co-Processor Acceleration.
Telecommunications Line Card Design
The EP20K400BC652-1V's 1,052,000 system gates, 502 user I/O, and 212,992 bits of embedded SRAM make it well-suited to telecom line cards where multiple high-speed serial channels, parallel bus interfaces, and on-chip FIFO buffering must coexist. The APEX 20K MultiCore architecture lets designers allocate LAB-based logic for ATM/SONET framing, product-term logic for fast bus arbitration, and ESB memory for cell buffering in a single die. Designers typically place the FPGA between a network processor and PHY devices, using LVDS-capable I/O at hundreds of MHz. The -1 speed grade supports common telecom clock rates while keeping cost lower than -2 or -3 bins. Power and thermal budgeting should account for roughly 1.5-2 W at typical switching activity in a 652-BGA.
Recommended
High-Speed Data Acquisition Systems
The EP20K400BC652-1V serves data-acquisition boards that aggregate multiple ADC/DAC channels, where its 502 I/O pins accommodate wide parallel LVDS buses from analog front-ends and 16640 LABs implement FIR filters, decimation stages, and timing control. The 212,992 embedded SRAM bits provide per-channel sample buffers without external memory for moderate windowing tasks, while 1.8 V VCCINT and 2.5 V VCCIO align with modern ADC supply rails. The 652-BGA package delivers the thermal mass and short bond wires needed for low-jitter clock distribution at 200+ MHz. Engineers typically pair it with a precision clock distribution IC and an external DDR SRAM bank for deep capture. Quartus II IP cores simplify NCO and FIR implementation, cutting board-level verification effort.
Recommended
Network Router and Switch Fabric
In router and switch designs, the EP20K400BC652-1V implements custom forwarding logic, header parsing, and quality-of-service schedulers that offload the network processor. Its 1,052,000 system gates handle full IPv4/v6 lookup tables and multi-queue arbitration, while 502 I/O lanes connect to multiple Gigabit Ethernet PHYs and switch fabrics. The APEX 20K I/O cell supports GTL+, HSTL, and LVDS standards required by high-speed backplanes. The MultiCore architecture lets routing tables live in ESB dual-port RAM while CAM-friendly product-term logic accelerates longest-prefix-match. Power and cooling design should target the upper end of the 652-BGA's thermal envelope when all I/O toggle simultaneously. The -1 speed grade is adequate for most 1 Gbps designs but is borderline for 10 Gbps aggregation fabrics.
Recommended
ASIC Prototyping Platform
Engineers use the EP20K400BC652-1V as an ASIC prototyping vehicle when targeting mid-complexity ASIC designs, because its 1,052,000 system gates and 502 I/O map directly to typical ASIC pin counts. Designers partition the ASIC RTL into APEX 20K MultiCore LABs and ESB blocks using Quartus II synthesis, validating the design at near-ASIC speed before committing to silicon. The 652-BGA exposes enough I/O for memory buses, peripheral interfaces, and test pins needed for ASIC bring-up. Speed-grade selection (-1 vs -2 vs -3) lets engineers trade-off prototyping cost against clock frequency. Reusability across projects is high - the same board can host multiple ASIC prototypes by reconfiguring the FPGA via JTAG.
Recommended
PCI / PCI-X Bus Interface Card
The EP20K400BC652-1V hosts PCI or PCI-X peripherals where its 502 I/O support 64-bit/66 MHz PCI-X with room left for secondary buses, GPIO, and on-card memory. The APEX 20K I/O cell is PCI-compliant out of the box, eliminating external transceivers on the 64-bit bus. MultiCore LABs handle transaction layer state machines while ESB memory implements scatter-gather DMA descriptors, accelerating throughput. The 652-BGA package provides the signal integrity required for 66 MHz parallel bus operation. Designers must follow PCI layout guidelines for trace length matching on the 64-bit data bus and place VCCIO decoupling adjacent to each PCI bank. Migration to PCIe requires a newer FPGA family since APEX 20K has no PCIe hard IP.
Recommended
DSP Co-Processor Acceleration
The EP20K400BC652-1V acts as a co-processor for DSP workloads such as FFTs, FIR filtering, and video preprocessing, where its 16640 LABs implement hundreds of parallel multipliers and accumulators. The 212,992 bits of embedded SRAM provide coefficient storage and intermediate sample buffers, while 502 I/O lanes shuttle data between the host DSP and the FPGA at LVDS or HSTL rates. Designers typically partition algorithms so that control flow runs on the DSP and arithmetic kernels map onto APEX 20K LABs, achieving 5-10x throughput improvement over DSP-only solutions. Quartus II IP cores for FFT and FIR accelerate development, while the -2 or -3 speed grade is recommended for high-sample-rate designs. Power consumption scales linearly with toggle rate and must be budgeted for thermal envelope.
Recommended
Recommended Products Summary
Engineering reference data for EP20K400BC652-1V — comparison, design guidance, and compliance information.
Selection Guide
Comparison with Alternatives
| Parameter | This Product | EP20K400BC652-1 | EP20K400BC652-2 | EP20K400BC652-3 | EP20K400EBC652-1 | EP20K400EBC652-2 | EP20K400EBC652-3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brand | Altera (Intel FPGA) | Altera (Intel FPGA) | Altera (Intel FPGA) | Altera (Intel FPGA) | Altera (Intel FPGA) | Altera (Intel FPGA) | Altera (Intel FPGA) |
| Package | 652-BGA (FineLine, 45x45 mm) | 652-BGA - same | 652-BGA - same | 652-BGA - same | 652-BGA - same | 652-BGA - same | 652-BGA - same |
| System Gates | 1,052,000 | 1,052,000 | 1,052,000 | 1,052,000 | 1,052,000 | 1,052,000 | 1,052,000 |
| Logic Elements | 212,992 | 212,992 | 212,992 | 212,992 | 212,992 | 212,992 | 212,992 |
| Macrocells / LABs | 16640 | 16640 | 16640 | 16640 | 16640 | 16640 | 16640 |
| Embedded SRAM (bits) | 212,992 | 212,992 | 212,992 | 212,992 | 212,992 | 212,992 | 212,992 |
| User I/O | 502 | 502 | 502 | 502 | 502 | 502 | 502 |
| Speed Grade | -1 | -1 | -2 (faster) | -3 (fastest) | -1 | -2 (faster) | -3 (fastest) |
| Core Voltage (VCCINT) | 1.8 V | 1.8 V | 1.8 V | 1.8 V | 1.8 V | 1.8 V | 1.8 V |
| Family Sub-Series | APEX 20KC | APEX 20KC | APEX 20KC | APEX 20KC | APEX 20KE (enhanced memory) | APEX 20KE (enhanced memory) | APEX 20KE (enhanced memory) |
Key Differentiators
- Pin-to-pin drop-in across six same-family variants (vs EP20K400BC652-1)
- Largest I/O count in the APEX 20K family within 652-BGA (vs EP20K200BC652-1X (smaller-density sibling))
- Higher capacity than mid-density APEX 20KC members (vs EP20K200CQ240C7 (smaller CQ240 package))
Design Notes
The EP20K400BC652-1V requires a 1.8 V VCCINT core rail and a 2.5 V VCCIO rail with separate decoupling networks. Estimate: typical ICCINT at 100 MHz toggle activity is approximately 0.8-1.2 A, so a switching regulator rated for at least 2 A is recommended with 22 uF + 0.1 uF + 10 nF decoupling per VCCINT region. VCCIO current scales with I/O usage and switching rate; budget 50-200 mA per I/O bank in worst-case. Power sequencing should bring VCCINT up before VCCIO to prevent latch-up. Estimated: above figures are typical, not datasheet-min/max - refer to APEX 20KE datasheet section 'DC Characteristics' for absolute limits.
The 652-BGA package uses 1.27 mm pitch balls on a 45 x 45 mm substrate, which requires microvia or via-in-pad PCB technology for reliable breakout. Designers should use at least 6 PCB layers with dedicated VCCINT, VCCIO, and GND planes, and place decoupling capacitors on the bottom side directly under each power ball. Trace impedance must be controlled (50 ohm single-ended, 100 ohm differential) for LVDS/HSTL signaling. Thermal vias under the center balls help dissipate the 1.5-2 W typical dissipation. Estimated thermal resistance theta-JA for FineLine BGA-652 is approximately 15-20 C/W with adequate thermal vias; verify with a thermal simulation in your stack-up.
Three pitfalls to avoid when designing with the EP20K400BC652-1V: (1) do not leave MSEL pins floating - they must be tied to VCCIO or GND to select the configuration mode, otherwise the device will not boot correctly. (2) The nCONFIG pin must be driven high after VCCINT is stable; a pull-up to VCCIO with a 10 kohm resistor is recommended. (3) The SRAM configuration memory is volatile, so design-in must include a configuration PROM (EPC16 or larger) or microcontroller-based bitstream loader - the FPGA will not retain its design on power-cycle without one. Always program the configuration PROM before first board bring-up.
Compliance Information
RoHS, REACH, and lead-free status not explicitly stated in the provided web data; mark as unknown per data authenticity rules. AEC-Q100 not applicable - APEX 20K is a commercial-grade FPGA family without automotive qualification.
