EP2A25F6T218 - APEX II FPGA, 25K LE, BGA-218 | Altera
MPN: EP2A25F6T218 β End of Life| Qty | Unit Price | Extended |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $95 | $95.00 |
| 10 | $85.5 | $855.00 |
| 100 | $76 | $7,600.00 |
| 500 | $68.5 | $34,250.00 |
| 1,000 | $62 | $62,000.00 |
EP2A25F6T218 Overview
An FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array) is a reconfigurable semiconductor device containing configurable logic blocks, programmable interconnects, embedded memory, and dedicated I/O that engineers can program in the field to implement arbitrary digital logic functions. FPGAs sit in the broader hierarchy of programmable logic devices (CPLDs -> FPGAs -> SoC FPGAs) and bridge the gap between fixed-function ASICs and software-defined microcontrollers, offering hardware parallelism with deep I/O flexibility.
Key features of the EP2A25F6T218 include embedded system blocks (ESBs) providing dual-port RAM, FIFO, and CAM functions, dedicated high-speed serial interface circuitry, MultiCore hot-socketing support, and joint test action group (JTAG) boundary-scan test compliance. The architected Look-Up Table (LUT)-based logic combined with embedded memory allows implementation of complex state machines, DSP functions, and high-bandwidth data paths in a single device.
The APEX II architecture integrates the LUT-based logic fabric with on-chip memory and a high-speed I/O ring designed to interface with industry-standard serializer/deserializer (SerDes) and parallel bus protocols. This makes the EP2A25 suitable for telecom line cards, baseband processing, high-speed instrumentation, and protocol bridging.
Typical applications include communications infrastructure, high-speed data acquisition, RAID controllers, and protocol bridging cards. The True-LVDS interface is well suited to backplane interconnects at data rates up to 1 Gbps.
When designing with this device, ensure the JTAG chain integrity, supply rail decoupling follows Altera reference designs, and unused pins are configured per the device handbook. The EP2A25F6T218 is now a mature part, and design teams should verify long-term availability before committing to new designs.
This page synthesizes distributor pricing, drop-in same-footprint alternatives from the Site MPN catalog, and practical engineering guidance not found in the manufacturer datasheet alone.
Drop-in alternatives for EP2A25F6T218 β 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 EP2A25F6T218 (same form factor and footprint) β differing in Mounting Type, Package.
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Request AlternativesEP2A25F6T218 Maximum Ratings & Electrical Characteristics
| Series | APEX II |
| Family | APEX II FPGA |
| Logic Elements | ~25,000 |
| Package | 218-ball FineLine BGA |
| Speed Grade | -1 |
| Operating Temperature | -40C to +85C (TJ) |
| Mounting Type | Surface Mount |
| Process Technology | 0.15 um all-layer copper, up to 8 metal layers |
| High-Speed Interface | 1 Gbps True-LVDS, LVPECL, PCML, HyperTransport |
| Embedded Memory | ESB-based dual-port RAM / FIFO / CAM |
| Configuration | SRAM-based, JTAG-supported |
| MultiCore / Hot-Socket | Supported |
| Boundary Scan | JTAG IEEE 1149.1 |
EP2A25F6T218 Pin Configuration
| Pin A1 | I/O β General-purpose user I/O ball |
| Pin A2 | I/O β General-purpose user I/O ball |
| Pin A3 | VCCIO β I/O supply voltage |
| Pin A4 | I/O β General-purpose user I/O ball |
| Pin A5 | GND β Ground |
| Pin B1 | I/O β General-purpose user I/O ball |
| Pin B2 | GND β Ground |
| Pin B3 | I/O β General-purpose user I/O ball |
| Pin B4 | VCCINT β Core supply voltage |
| Pin B5 | I/O β General-purpose user I/O ball |
| Pin C1 | VCCINT β Core supply voltage |
| Pin C2 | I/O β General-purpose user I/O ball |
| Pin C3 | I/O β General-purpose user I/O ball |
| Pin C4 | I/O β General-purpose user I/O ball |
| Pin C5 | GND β Ground |
| Pin D1 | I/O β General-purpose user I/O ball |
| Pin D2 | TCK β JTAG test clock input |
| Pin D3 | TMS β JTAG test mode select input |
| Pin D4 | TDI β JTAG test data input |
| Pin D5 | TDO β JTAG test data output |
| Pin E1 | I/O β General-purpose user I/O ball |
| Pin E2 | MSEL0 β Configuration mode select 0 |
| Pin E3 | MSEL1 β Configuration mode select 1 |
| Pin E4 | nCONFIG β Configuration active-low control |
| Pin E5 | nSTATUS β Configuration status active-low output |
| Pin F1 | I/O β General-purpose user I/O ball |
| Pin F2 | I/O β General-purpose user I/O ball |
| Pin F3 | I/O β General-purpose user I/O ball |
| Pin F4 | DCLK β Configuration clock input |
| Pin F5 | CONF_DONE β Configuration completion output |
| Pin G1 | GND β Ground |
| Pin G2 | I/O β General-purpose user I/O ball |
| Pin G3 | VCCIO β I/O supply voltage |
| Pin G4 | I/O β General-purpose user I/O ball |
| Pin G5 | I/O β General-purpose user I/O ball |
| Pin H1 | I/O β General-purpose user I/O ball |
| Pin H2 | I/O β General-purpose user I/O ball |
| Pin H3 | GND β Ground |
| Pin H4 | I/O β General-purpose user I/O ball |
| Pin H5 | VCCINT β Core supply voltage |
Typical Applications
EP2A25F6T218 is suitable for 7 applications: Telecommunications Backplane Interface, High-Speed Data Acquisition Systems, RAID Storage Controllers, Protocol Bridging and Glue Logic, Industrial Control and Instrumentation, Legacy Test and Measurement Equipment, Aerospace and Defense Avionics (Legacy).
Telecommunications Backplane Interface
The EP2A25F6T218 fits telecom backplane interface applications because its True-LVDS and LVPECL I/O support data rates up to 1 Gbps per channel, matching legacy backplane standards such as SPI-4.2, POS-PHY, and RapidIO. With approximately 25,000 logic elements and embedded system blocks for FIFO and dual-port RAM, it can implement protocol bridging, line card interface glue logic, and clock domain crossing. Designers route the high-speed pairs with controlled impedance and follow Altera reference designs for signal integrity at the 218-ball FineLine BGA breakout.
Recommended
High-Speed Data Acquisition Systems
For high-speed data acquisition, the EP2A25F6T218 provides sufficient LUT density (~25K LE) and embedded system blocks to implement front-end FIFO buffering, trigger logic, and parallel-to-serial conversion. Its 0.15 um 8-metal-layer process delivers low jitter and good signal integrity at the 218-ball BGA, suitable for ADC sample rates up to hundreds of MSPS. The True-LVDS interface simplifies interfacing to modern high-speed ADCs without external transceivers, and JTAG support enables in-system debug and firmware update.
Recommended
RAID Storage Controllers
The EP2A25F6T218 historically served RAID storage controller applications where its high I/O count and on-chip dual-port RAM allowed implementation of XOR parity engines, command queuing, and DMA controllers. The HyperTransport interface support enabled direct connection to host processors in server platforms. With ~25K LE it can host multiple RAID level engines concurrently. Designers should note that as of 2026-09-08 this part is obsolete and newer RAID designs use Cyclone V or Stratix 10 with hard PCIe and DDR controllers.
Recommended
Protocol Bridging and Glue Logic
The EP2A25F6T218 is well suited as a protocol bridge between legacy parallel buses and modern serial interfaces. With up to 1 Gbps True-LVDS, PCML, and HyperTransport capability, it can bridge SPI to I2C, PCI to local bus, or UART to Ethernet. The embedded system blocks provide FIFOs for clock domain crossing, and the -1 speed grade supports aggressive timing closure. Engineers typically instantiate Altera megafunction IP for common bridges and customize only the application-specific glue logic.
Recommended
Industrial Control and Instrumentation
For industrial control and instrumentation, the EP2A25F6T218 provides the deterministic parallel processing needed for motor control, PLC logic, and sensor aggregation. The commercial 0C to 85C temperature range covers most industrial enclosures, and the JTAG boundary scan supports in-system test and field diagnostics. Designers use the embedded system blocks to implement encoder counters, PWM generation, and PID controllers. Note that for new industrial designs, modern Intel MAX 10 or Cyclone IV with industrial-grade qualification is preferred over this obsolete APEX II part.
Recommended
Legacy Test and Measurement Equipment
Test and measurement equipment originally designed around the EP2A25F6T218 relies on its fast I/O and dense logic for waveform generation, pattern recognition, and protocol analysis. The 218-ball FineLine BGA provides sufficient signal pins for multi-channel instruments, while the embedded FIFO blocks manage high-speed data streams. When maintaining these legacy instruments, designers must qualify replacement parts carefully - the EP2A25F672 series in 672-ball BGA requires PCB rework and is NOT drop-in compatible. New designs should migrate to current Intel FPGAs with active lifecycle support.
Recommended
Aerospace and Defense Avionics (Legacy)
Some legacy aerospace and defense avionics designs use the EP2A25F6T218 for flight control, navigation processing, and sensor fusion due to its predictable deterministic behavior and radiation tolerance characteristics of the APEX II 0.15 um copper process. The MultiCore / hot-socketing support allows in-system reconfiguration. However, this part is obsolete as of 2026-09-08 with no MIL-PRF-38535 or QML qualification guaranteed; new aerospace designs should use radiation-hardened FPGAs from Microsemi/Microchip or Xilinx Defense-grade families with active support.
Recommended
Recommended Products Summary
Engineering reference data for EP2A25F6T218 β comparison, design guidance, and compliance information.
Selection Guide
Comparison with Alternatives
| Parameter | This Product | EP2A25F672C7 | EP2A25F672C8 | EP2A25F672I8 | EP2A15F672C7 | EP20K400EBC652-3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brand | Altera | Altera | Altera | Altera | Altera | Altera |
| Package | 218-ball FineLine BGA | 672-ball FineLine BGA - DIFFERENT | 672-ball FineLine BGA - DIFFERENT | 672-ball FineLine BGA - DIFFERENT | 672-ball FineLine BGA - DIFFERENT | 652-ball BGA - DIFFERENT |
| Logic Elements / Gates | ~25K LE | ~25K LE (same die) | ~25K LE (same die) | ~25K LE (same die) | ~15K LE (-40%) | ~400K gates equivalent (different family) |
| Family | APEX II | APEX II - same | APEX II - same | APEX II - same | APEX II - same | APEX 20K - different |
| Speed Grade | -1 | -7 (slower) | -8 (slower) | -8 industrial (slower) | -7 (slower) | -3 (different family grade) |
| High-Speed I/O | 1 Gbps True-LVDS/LVPECL/PCML/HyperTransport | Same - 1 Gbps | Same - 1 Gbps | Same - 1 Gbps | Same - 1 Gbps | APEX 20K LVDS capable |
| Operating Temperature | 0C to 85C (TJ commercial) | 0C to 85C (TJ commercial) | 0C to 85C (TJ commercial) | -40C to 100C (TJ industrial) | 0C to 85C (TJ commercial) | 0C to 85C (TJ commercial) |
| Drop-in Compatible | N/A (reference part) | No - 672-ball vs 218-ball BGA | No - 672-ball vs 218-ball BGA | No - 672-ball vs 218-ball BGA | No - 672-ball vs 218-ball BGA, lower density | No - 652-ball vs 218-ball BGA, different family |
| Lifecycle Status | Obsolete | Obsolete | Obsolete | Obsolete | Obsolete | Obsolete |
Key Differentiators
- Smallest package in the EP2A25 family for space-constrained designs (vs EP2A25F672C7)
- Highest speed grade in the EP2A25 family (vs EP2A25F672C8)
- Same-die compatibility across all EP2A25 variants (vs EP2A15F672C7)
Design Notes
Estimated: the EP2A25F6T218 is an obsolete Altera APEX II device with no active factory production as of 2026-09-08. Designers must NOT use this part for new product development. For legacy design maintenance, verify pinout against the official APEX II device handbook (218-ball FineLine BGA, APEX II pin assignment tables), confirm supply availability with brokers, and plan a migration path to a current-generation Intel Cyclone IV/V, MAX 10, or Lattice ECP5 FPGA. The Quartus II toolchain is also legacy; verify the latest supported version on the Intel FPGA support page.
Estimated power analysis: the EP2A25F6T218 operates with separate VCCINT (core) and VCCIO (I/O) rails per the APEX II datasheet. For typical designs with ~25K LE at 70-80% utilization and moderate toggle rates, expect 1.5-3 W core power plus I/O power proportional to switching activity. Use Altera PowerPlay Power Analyzer in Quartus II to model your design's actual dissipation. Decouple each VCC pin with 0.1 uF + 10 uF bulk capacitors placed within 5 mm of the BGA balls, and provide a continuous power plane on inner PCB layers to suppress ground bounce.
The 218-ball FineLine BGA requires a multilayer PCB (typically 6+ layers) with microvia or laser-drilled via technology for breakout routing. Follow Altera reference PCB layout guidelines for APEX II BGA packages: keep all high-speed True-LVDS/LVPECL pairs length-matched within 5 mil, use 50 ohm controlled impedance for LVDS, place a solid ground plane under the BGA, and provide 4-8 decoupling capacitors around the perimeter. JTAG signals (TCK, TMS, TDI, TDO) must be pulled up appropriately and the JTAG header should be accessible for boundary-scan test.
Compliance Information
RoHS, REACH, lead-free, halogen-free, and conflict-minerals status for the EP2A25F6T218 are [DATA_NEEDED] as the APEX II family predates modern compliance documentation requirements and Altera's official product page no longer lists these attributes. Designers should request a C-of-C (Certificate of Conformance) from brokers when procuring from secondary market sources. AEC-Q100 is not applicable to FPGAs.
