EP2A40F1020I8N - APEX II FPGA 1.5M Gates FC-FBGA-1020 | Intel
MPN: EP2A40F1020I8N ✗ End of Life| Qty | Unit Price | Extended |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $185 | $185.00 |
| 10 | $168.5 | $1,685.00 |
| 100 | $152 | $15,200.00 |
| 500 | $138.75 | $69,375.00 |
| 1,000 | $125.4 | $125,400.00 |
EP2A40F1020I8N Overview
A Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) is a reprogrammable integrated circuit whose logic function is defined by user-loaded configuration data rather than fixed mask metallization. FPGAs sit within the broader taxonomy of programmable logic devices (PLDs), which also include CPLDs, PALs, and GALs, and they occupy the high-density end of that hierarchy. APEX II devices are positioned between classical gate-array ASICs and software-programmed microcontrollers, providing hardware-level parallelism for signal processing, glue logic, and accelerator functions where deterministic latency and high I/O count matter more than per-unit cost.
Key specifications of the EP2A40F1020I8N include a maximum internal operating frequency around 376 MHz, embedded memory in the form of embedded system blocks, multiple Phase-Locked Loops (PLLs) for clock synthesis, and 735 user I/O pins supporting a wide range of single-ended and differential I/O standards. The FC-FBGA-1020 package is a high-density surface-mount BGA designed for high-speed signal integrity through short, controlled-impedance traces and a large ball-count footprint. Because the FC-FBGA package exposes the silicon die directly to the PCB through flip-chip solder bumps, thermal performance and PCB stack-up planning are critical design considerations.
Typical applications for the EP2A40F1020I8N include telecommunications line cards, high-speed serial protocol bridging, ASIC prototyping, and high-performance DSP pipelines in industrial and test equipment. The high logic capacity and 735 I/Os make it well suited to system-on-chip prototyping where multiple interface controllers can be integrated into a single device. Designers frequently pair APEX II FPGAs with external SRAM, SDRAM, or DDR memory controllers and clock-generation PLLs to build complete system prototypes before committing to mask-programmed silicon.
When designing with the EP2A40F1020I8N, engineers should plan for the FC-FBGA-1020 land pattern using multi-layer PCB stack-ups with buried vias or microvias to fan out the dense BGA ball field. Power integrity requires multiple dedicated 1.5 V core and 3.3 V I/O decoupling capacitors placed as close as possible to the package balls, along with a separate PLL analog supply filtered to minimize jitter. Signal-integrity simulations are recommended for all high-speed differential pairs, and JTAG access must be brought out for in-system programming and boundary-scan testing.
This page synthesizes distributor pricing, same-family drop-in alternatives, and practical design notes not found in the original Altera APEX II datasheet, helping engineers evaluate the EP2A40F1020I8N for both new designs and legacy maintenance.
Drop-in alternatives for EP2A40F1020I8N — 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 EP2A40F1020I8N (same form factor and footprint) — differing in Package, Process Technology, System Gates, Operating Temperature, Configuration Modes.
Quick Comparison Tool — Select alternative parts for side-by-side comparison:
EP2A40F1020I7N
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$142 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP2A40F1020C8N
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
Contact for price
View Datasheet →EP2A40F1020C9N
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$175 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP2A40F1020C7N
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$198 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP2A40F1020I8
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$175 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP2A40B724I8N
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$138.75 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP2A40F1020I8N Maximum Ratings & Electrical Characteristics
| Family | APEX II (EP2A40) |
| Logic Elements | 38,400 cells |
| System Gates | 1.5 M (typical) |
| Process Technology | 0.15 um CMOS |
| Core Voltage | 1.5 V |
| Maximum Internal Frequency | 376 MHz |
| User I/O Count | 735 (maximum) |
| Package | 1020-pin FC-FBGA (Flip-Chip Fine-pitch BGA) |
| Mounting Type | Surface Mount (BGA) |
| Operating Temperature Grade | Industrial (-40 C to +100 C) / 'I' suffix |
| Speed Grade | 8 |
| Architecture | LUT-based with embedded system blocks (ESBs) |
| Configuration | SRAM-based, JTAG / passive serial / passive parallel |
EP2A40F1020I8N 1020-pin fc-fbga (flip-chip fine-pitch bga) Pin Configuration Guide
Pin configuration for EP2A40F1020I8N (1020-pin fc-fbga (flip-chip fine-pitch bga) 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 EP2A40F1020I8N.
Refer to the datasheet for full pin configuration.
Typical Applications
EP2A40F1020I8N is suitable for 7 applications: Telecommunications Line-Card Prototyping, ASIC Prototyping and Emulation, High-Speed Industrial Test and Measurement, Aerospace and Defense Signal Processing, Storage and RAID Controller Acceleration, Medical Imaging Pipeline Acceleration, Automotive ECU Prototyping and Networking.
Telecommunications Line-Card Prototyping
The EP2A40F1020I8N is well matched to telecommunications line-card prototyping because its 1.5 M system gates, 38,400 logic elements, and 735 user I/O pins provide the headroom needed to integrate multiple serializer/deserializer blocks, framer/mapper logic, and a management microcontroller interface in a single device. The 1.5 V core combined with 376 MHz internal Fmax supports OC-48/STM-16 (2.5 Gbps) datapath aggregation when paired with external serializer chips, while the embedded system blocks (ESBs) can be configured as dual-port RAM for cell or packet buffering. Compared to modern 28 nm FPGAs the EP2A40 consumes more power, but it remains the path of least resistance for legacy line cards whose firmware and PCB layouts are already APEX II-based. Designers typically add external SDRAM and a clock-generation PLL to complete the prototyping platform.
Recommended
ASIC Prototyping and Emulation
With 1.5 M system gates and 38,400 logic elements, the EP2A40F1020I8N is a strong candidate for ASIC prototyping and emulation, where multi-million-gate designs are partitioned across several APEX II devices. The 1020-pin FC-FBGA-1020 package exposes up to 735 user I/Os, providing the bandwidth needed for chip-to-chip hand-off in multi-FPGA emulation boards running at 50-150 MHz. The industrial -40 C to +100 C temperature grade allows the same part to be used in both lab-bench verification and pre-qualification environments. A practical limit is that the 0.15-micron process consumes roughly 4-6 W at full toggle rate, so stacked emulation boards require active cooling. Quartus II design flows support soft IP cores, embedded memories, and standard interfaces such as PCI, UART, and DDR.
Recommended
High-Speed Industrial Test and Measurement
Industrial test and measurement equipment benefits from the EP2A40F1020I8N because the FPGA can implement custom DSP pipelines, trigger logic, and parallel data-acquisition interfaces in a single chip. The 735 user I/Os accept multiple LVDS or LVTTL data streams from high-speed ADCs and sensors, while the 1.5 V core delivers deterministic logic delay at internal clock rates up to 376 MHz. The industrial temperature grade and FC-FBGA package meet the vibration and thermal cycling demands of factory-floor instrumentation. In typical bit-error-rate tester (BERT) or protocol-analyzer designs, the EP2A40F1020I8N handles pattern generation and error checking while external SRAM/DDR memories store captured data. JTAG boundary-scan simplifies board-level test and in-field firmware updates.
Recommended
Aerospace and Defense Signal Processing
The EP2A40F1020I8N is suitable for aerospace and defense signal-processing subsystems where high gate count, industrial temperature tolerance, and a hermetic surface-mount package are required. The 1.5 M system gates fit mid-sized radar front-end controllers, software-defined-radio (SDR) baseband blocks, and encryption pre-processors. The 376 MHz Fmax enables real-time FFT and channelization at sample rates up to ~200 MSPS. Defense customers typically procure the part through traceable channels with certificate-of-conformance and date-code documentation, and APEX II parts have established ITAR/EAR export classifications that designers must observe. The 1020-ball FC-FBGA package provides excellent signal integrity at multi-gigabit serial rates when laid out on low-loss PCB stack-ups.
Recommended
Storage and RAID Controller Acceleration
RAID controllers, storage-area-network switches, and disk-array accelerators use the EP2A40F1020I8N to offload parity calculation, XOR engine, and DMA functions from the host CPU. The 1.5 M gates accommodate multi-channel SATA/SAS state machines, command-queue arbiters, and embedded dual-port RAM buffers in the ESBs. With 735 I/O pins designers can route multiple 3 Gbps SAS links through LVDS-capable I/O banks, and the 376 MHz internal clock supports command-completion latencies below 5 microseconds. The industrial temperature grade suits enterprise server backplanes that may operate at elevated ambient temperatures. ECC-protected external DDR2 SDRAM is typically paired with the FPGA to provide the read/write data buffering layer.
Recommended
Medical Imaging Pipeline Acceleration
Medical imaging modalities such as ultrasound, digital X-ray, and endoscopy benefit from the EP2A40F1020I8N's parallel processing fabric, which can implement beamformers, image reconstruction, and real-time filter pipelines without CPU intervention. The 1.5 M gates allow multiple ultrasound channels (typically 64-128) to be processed simultaneously, while the 376 MHz Fmax supports beamforming sample rates up to ~80 MSPS per channel. The industrial temperature range covers the warm operating environments of cart-based medical equipment, and the FC-FBGA package's short signal paths reduce EMI critical for IEC 60601-1 compliance. Designers pair the FPGA with high-speed LVDS ADCs, DDR2 memory, and a downstream host processor for user-interface rendering.
Recommended
Automotive ECU Prototyping and Networking
Automotive electronic-control-unit (ECU) prototyping and in-vehicle networking benefit from the EP2A40F1020I8N's high logic density, industrial temperature grade, and large I/O count for CAN, LIN, FlexRay, and Ethernet aggregation. Designers can implement multiple automotive communication stacks, sensor-fusion glue logic, and ECU-supervisory state machines in a single FPGA for prototyping before committing to production-grade silicon. The 735 user I/Os accommodate the multi-channel bus transceivers and ADCs typical of advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS). Although APEX II itself is not AEC-Q100 qualified, the industrial temperature rating supports under-hood ECUs in development fleets. Production programs typically migrate to AEC-Q100-qualified Cyclone or MAX 10 FPGAs after prototype validation.
Recommended
Recommended Products Summary
Engineering reference data for EP2A40F1020I8N — comparison, design guidance, and compliance information.
Selection Guide
Comparison with Alternatives
| Parameter | This Product | EP2A40F1020I7N | EP2A40F1020C8N | EP2A40F1020C9N | EP2A40F1020C7N | EP2A40F1020I8 | EP2A40B724I8N |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Package | FC-FBGA-1020 | FC-FBGA-1020 - same | FC-FBGA-1020 - same | FC-FBGA-1020 - same | FC-FBGA-1020 - same | FC-FBGA-1020 - same | BGA-724 - different footprint |
| Brand | Intel (Altera) | Intel (Altera) | Intel (Altera) | Intel (Altera) | Intel (Altera) | Intel (Altera) | Intel (Altera) |
| Speed Grade | 8 | 7 (slower) | 8 (same) | 9 (faster) | 7 (slower) | 8 (same) | 8 (same) |
| Temperature Grade | Industrial (-40 C to +100 C) | Industrial (same) | Commercial (0 C to +85 C) | Commercial (0 C to +85 C) | Commercial (0 C to +85 C) | Industrial (same) | Industrial (same) |
| Logic Elements | 38,400 cells | 38,400 cells (same) | 38,400 cells (same) | 38,400 cells (same) | 38,400 cells (same) | 38,400 cells (same) | 38,400 cells (same die) |
| System Gates | 1.5 M | 1.5 M (same) | 1.5 M (same) | 1.5 M (same) | 1.5 M (same) | 1.5 M (same) | 1.5 M (same) |
| Core Voltage | 1.5 V | 1.5 V (same) | 1.5 V (same) | 1.5 V (same) | 1.5 V (same) | 1.5 V (same) | 1.5 V (same) |
| User I/O Count | 735 | 735 (same) | 735 (same) | 735 (same) | 735 (same) | 735 (same) | approximately 400 (BGA-724 package) |
| Lead-Free (N suffix) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No (standard lead finish) | Yes |
Key Differentiators
- Speed grade 8 provides balanced Fmax margin without the cost premium of grade 9 (vs EP2A40F1020C9N)
- Industrial temperature grade covers -40 C to +100 C operation (vs EP2A40F1020C8N)
- Lead-free N-suffix finish supports RoHS-compliant builds (vs EP2A40F1020I8)
- Full 735 user I/O count in the FC-FBGA-1020 package (vs EP2A40B724I8N)
Design Notes
The 1020-pin FC-FBGA package requires a 1.0 mm or finer pitch PCB land pattern with microvias or staggered through-vias for signal fan-out. Use a 6- to 8-layer stack-up with continuous ground planes directly beneath the BGA to control impedance and provide a low-inductance return path for the high-speed LVDS and clock signals. Escape traces on the top layer should be length-matched within 25 mils across each differential pair, and all I/O banks should have dedicated decoupling capacitors placed within 100 mils of the corresponding balls. Per Altera AN 75 (High-Speed Board Layout), keep all high-speed traces on the top two layers with continuous reference planes to minimize via stubs.
Estimated: based on 0.15-micron APEX II typical figures, the EP2A40F1020I8N draws approximately 1.5-2.5 A from the 1.5 V VCCINT rail at 100 MHz toggle rate and 200-500 mA from each VCCIO bank depending on switching activity. Provide a low-dropout regulator with at least 25 percent headroom and place 100 uF bulk decoupling plus 0.1 uF and 0.01 uF ceramic capacitors on every power pin. The PLL analog supply (VCCA_PLL) must be filtered with a ferrite bead and a dedicated 10 uF + 0.1 uF network to minimize jitter. Power-rail sequencing is not required for APEX II because all rails may be ramped simultaneously within 100 ms.
Designers should run pre-layout and post-layout signal-integrity simulations on all LVDS, SSTL, and clock signals above 100 MHz. Use the Quartus II IBIS models to generate board-level waveforms; expect typical edge rates of 200-400 ps that can excite resonances in the FC-FBGA via stubs if the stack-up is poor. Differential-pair intra-pair skew must be held below 5 ps at speeds above 500 Mbps, and inter-pair skew on bus interfaces (DDR, parallel LVDS) should be matched within 50 ps across all bits. Place series-termination resistors within 200 mils of the FPGA output for LVTTL and LVCMOS signals driving backplanes longer than 2 inches.
Do not attempt to substitute EP2A40F1020C8N (commercial temperature) in place of the EP2A40F1020I8N (industrial temperature) in designs whose local ambient can exceed 85 C. Commercial-temperature parts may fail or exhibit timing degradation at sustained high temperatures. Do not omit JTAG signals (TCK, TMS, TDI, TDO, TRST); pull TRST to GND through a 1 kohm resistor if unused to avoid spurious boundary-scan resets. Always program the device through the dedicated nCONFIG/nSTATUS/CONF_DONE sequence, and tie MSEL pins according to the configuration mode selected (passive serial, passive parallel, or JTAG).
Estimated: with the FC-FBGA-1020 package and 1.5 V core, the EP2A40F1020I8N dissipates approximately 2.5-4 W in typical 70-80 percent utilization designs at 100 MHz toggle rate. The thermal pad on the underside of the FC-FBGA should be soldered to a 0.5-inch-square copper pour with at least 12 thermal vias to the inner ground plane to achieve theta-JA of approximately 12-15 C/W. For full-power industrial designs, attach a small heat spreader or provide 100 LFM of forced-air cooling to keep the junction below 100 C. Use the on-die thermal diode (where available) and the Quartus II PowerPlay estimator to validate thermal margins.
Compliance Information
RoHS compliance inferred from N suffix in MPN (lead-free finish) per Altera/Intel product numbering convention; original RoHS certificate not present in retrieved web data. AEC-Q100 not applicable - this is an industrial-temperature part, not automotive-qualified. REACH, halogen-free, and conflict-minerals declarations were not found in the verified web data and are marked unknown. Designers should request the manufacturer's full material declaration from the supplier of record before committing to production.
