EP2SGX90FF1508C4 - 90K LE Stratix II GX FPGA, 650 I/O FBGA-1508 | Intel
MPN: EP2SGX90FF1508C4 β End of Life| Qty | Unit Price | Extended |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $1850 | $1,850.00 |
| 10 | $1750 | $17,500.00 |
| 100 | $1620 | $162,000.00 |
| 500 | $1495 | $747,500.00 |
| 1,000 | $1390 | $1,390,000.00 |
EP2SGX90FF1508C4 Overview
A Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) is a semiconductor integrated circuit composed of configurable logic blocks (CLBs/LABs), programmable interconnect, I/O cells, and embedded hardware resources such as RAM blocks, DSP blocks, and transceivers. FPGAs belong to the broader hierarchy of programmable logic devices (PLDs) within digital logic ICs, occupying the high-performance tier above CPLDs. The Stratix II GX family specifically targets communication, signal-processing, and protocol-bridging designs where hard-wired transceiver physical attachment group (PMA) and physical coding sublayer (PCS) blocks reduce BOM cost and PCB area.
Key features of the EP2SGX90FF1508C4 include 90,960 logic elements, 4,548 LABs/CLBs, integrated transceivers supporting multi-gigabit serial protocols, 650 user I/Os distributed across 8 I/O banks, on-chip memory, embedded DSP blocks, and Phase-Locked Loops (PLLs) for clock synthesis. The device is fabricated on a 90 nm CMOS process, balancing logic density with low static and dynamic power consumption.
The device supports a commercial operating temperature range of 0C to 85C. It is supplied in a surface-mount FBGA-1508 package. The 'C4' speed grade positions this part in the mid-range of Stratix II GX speed options; faster C5/C6 and lower-power I-grade variants exist for different design priorities. The design uses Quartus II development software for HDL synthesis, place-and-route, timing closure, and bitstream generation.
Typical applications include high-speed serial protocol bridging (PCI Express, Serial RapidIO, Gigabit Ethernet, XAUI), telecom baseband processing, ASIC prototyping, and high-performance digital signal processing systems. The integrated transceivers eliminate the need for external PHY chips, simplifying board layout and reducing overall system cost.
When designing with the EP2SGX90FF1508C4, pay particular attention to power distribution network design, as the FPGA's high logic density demands substantial decoupling (typically 100 nF + 10 uF per power rail, with bulk capacitance at the regulator). Thermal management is essential: the FBGA-1508 package's exposed-die BGA balls require a properly designed PCB land pattern and adequate airflow. Signal-integrity on the transceiver channels requires controlled-impedance routing and length matching per Intel's Stratix II GX handbook.
This page consolidates distributor pricing, drop-in same-package alternatives from the Stratix II GX family, and practical PCB-layout notes not present in the standalone datasheet, enabling faster design-in and sourcing decisions.
Drop-in alternatives for EP2SGX90FF1508C4 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 EP2SGX90FF1508C4 (same form factor and footprint) β differing in Operating Temperature, Speed Grade, Package, RoHS Status, Package Type.
Quick Comparison Tool β Select alternative parts for side-by-side comparison:
EP2SGX90FF1508C3
β Drop-Inβ In Stock
$1380 / Unit
View Datasheet βEP2SGX90FF1508C3N
β Drop-Inβ In Stock
$1295 / Unit
View Datasheet βEP2SGX90FF1508
β Drop-Inβ In Stock
Contact for price
View Datasheet βEP2SGX90FF150834
β Drop-Inβ In Stock
$895 / Unit
View Datasheet βEP2SGX90FF150834N
β Drop-Inβ In Stock
$580 / Unit
View Datasheet βEP2SGX90F1508C5N
β Drop-Inβ In Stock
$195.5 / Unit
View Datasheet βEP2SGX90F1508C3
β Drop-Inβ In Stock
$1350 / Unit
View Datasheet βEP2SGX90FF1508C4 Maximum Ratings & Electrical Characteristics
| Family | Stratix II GX |
| Logic Elements (LEs) | 90,960 |
| Number of LABs/CLBs | 4,548 |
| Number of I/O | 650 |
| Internal Clock Frequency (max) | 717 MHz |
| Operating Temperature | 0C to 85C |
| Package Type | FBGA-1508 (MS-034AAU-1) |
| Package Dimensions | 40 mm x 40 mm |
| Ball Pitch | 1 mm |
| Process Technology | 90 nm CMOS |
| Mounting Type | Surface Mount |
| Speed Grade | C4 |
EP2SGX90FF1508C4 Pin Configuration
| Pin 1 | VCC β Core supply voltage (see datasheet for exact rail) |
| Pin 2 | GND β Ground |
| Pin 3 | IO β User I/O (general purpose) |
| Pin 4 | IO β User I/O (general purpose) |
| Pin 5 | IO β User I/O (general purpose) |
| Pin 6 | GND β Ground |
| Pin 7 | VCCIO β I/O supply voltage |
| Pin 8 | IO β User I/O (general purpose) |
| Pin 9 | IO β User I/O (general purpose) |
| Pin 10 | GND β Ground |
Typical Applications
EP2SGX90FF1508C4 is suitable for 6 applications: PCI Express Gen1 Endpoint, Serial RapidIO Switch / Endpoint, ASIC Prototyping Platform, Telecom Baseband Signal Processing, High-Speed Data Acquisition / Test Instrumentation, Industrial Control / High-Performance PLC.
PCI Express Gen1 Endpoint
The EP2SGX90FF1508C4's integrated multi-gigabit transceivers and 90,960 logic elements make it well suited for PCIe Gen1 (2.5 Gbps) endpoint designs in storage, add-in card, and embedded-compute applications. The hard PCIe hard-IP block (when configured via Quartus II) implements the transaction layer, data link layer, and PHY layer in silicon, freeing logic fabric for application processing. With 650 user I/Os and 4,548 LABs, designers can integrate endpoint logic plus DMA engines and memory controllers on a single device. Transceiver channels support x1, x4, and x8 lane widths; reference clock routing and 100 ohm differential impedance must follow Intel's Stratix II GX handbook.
Recommended
Serial RapidIO Switch / Endpoint
The Stratix II GX family supports Serial RapidIO (sRIO) at 1.25, 2.5, and 3.125 Gbps per lane, and the EP2SGX90FF1508C4's transceiver count and logic capacity fit sRIO endpoint and small-switch implementations in wireless baseband and DSP farm systems. Designers leverage the embedded transceiver PMA/PCS, hard FIFO buffers, and LVDS I/O for backplane interconnect. The 90,960 LE budget comfortably accommodates sRIO physical-layer wrappers plus RapidIO Logical and Transport layer state machines. Reference clock jitter must remain within the Stratix II GX specification; PCB layout requires matched-length differential pairs and AC-coupled interconnects per the RapidIO Interconnect Specification.
Recommended
ASIC Prototyping Platform
The 90,960-LE density and 1508-ball FBGA package of the EP2SGX90FF1508C4 make it a strong candidate for ASIC prototyping where the target ASIC has up to 5-10 million gates of equivalent random logic. Multiple FPGAs can be ganged together with high-speed LVDS or transceiver links to prototype larger ASICs; the device's on-chip TriMatrix memory and DSP blocks emulate embedded SRAM and MAC units. Quartus II supports design partitioning and multi-FPGA time-domain crossing. The FBGA-1508 40 x 40 mm footprint is compatible with standard prototyping board sockets, and the C4 speed grade provides timing headroom for design-for-prototype margin.
Recommended
Telecom Baseband Signal Processing
The EP2SGX90FF1508C4's embedded DSP blocks (each capable of 9-bit or 18-bit multiply-accumulate per cycle) and on-chip TriMatrix memory make it efficient for baseband signal processing in WCDMA, TD-SCDMA, and WiMAX base-station channel cards. Designers implement uplink/downlink channelization, crest-factor reduction (CFR), and digital predistortion (DPD) functions in fabric, while the transceivers handle CPRI or OBSAI links to the radio unit. At 717 MHz internal clock, each DSP block sustains hundreds of MMACs, and the 650 user I/O supports baseband data, control, and timing interfaces. Power and thermal design must follow Stratix II GX guidelines for full-utilization DSP-heavy designs.
Recommended
High-Speed Data Acquisition / Test Instrumentation
The integrated transceivers and 650 LVDS-capable user I/Os of the EP2SGX90FF1508C4 suit high-channel-count data acquisition systems used in automated test equipment (ATE), medical imaging, and scientific instrumentation. Designs use LVDS pairs to interface high-speed ADCs and DACs at hundreds of MHz sample rates, while transceivers offload serialized data to a host processor or storage array. The 90,960 LE budget supports on-FPGA FFT, FIR filtering, and channel aggregation; on-chip TriMatrix memory buffers sample bursts. The 1508-ball FBGA provides ample signal integrity for the dense LVDS routing required for these systems, but PCB stackup and length matching are critical.
Recommended
Industrial Control / High-Performance PLC
Although the EP2SGX90FF1508C4 is not AEC-Q100 qualified and is limited to 0-85C operation, it remains useful for non-automotive industrial control applications such as high-performance PLCs, motion controllers, and machine-vision preprocessing units. The 90,960 LE budget and 650 user I/Os handle multiple EtherCAT, PROFINET, or SERCOS III interface macros plus multi-axis motion-control state machines. The transceivers support industrial Ethernet backplane links at gigabit speeds, and the embedded DSP blocks accelerate encoder interpolation and PID loops. Designers must derate thermal output for fan-less enclosures and use industrial-grade DC-DC regulators with adequate decoupling per Stratix II GX guidelines.
Recommended
Recommended Products Summary
Engineering reference data for EP2SGX90FF1508C4 β comparison, design guidance, and compliance information.
Selection Guide
Comparison with Alternatives
| Parameter | This Product | EP2SGX90FF1508C3 | EP2SGX90FF1508C3N | EP2SGX90FF1508 | EP2SGX90FF150834 | EP2SGX90FF150834N | EP2SGX90F1508C5N | EP2SGX90F1508C3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Package | FBGA-1508 | FBGA-1508 - same | FBGA-1508 - same | FBGA-1508 - same | FBGA-1508 - same | FBGA-1508 - same | FBGA-1508 - same | FBGA-1508 - same |
| Brand | Intel | Intel | Intel | Intel | Intel | Intel | Intel | Intel |
| Logic Elements | 90,960 | 90,960 | 90,960 | 90,960 | 90,960 | 90,960 | 90,960 | 90,960 |
| LABs/CLBs | 4,548 | 4,548 | 4,548 | 4,548 | 4,548 | 4,548 | 4,548 | 4,548 |
| User I/O Count | 650 | 650 | 650 | 650 | 650 | 650 | 650 | 650 |
| Speed Grade | C4 | C3 (slower Fmax) | C3 + lead-free | unspecified | grade 34 | grade 34 + lead-free | C5 (faster Fmax) + lead-free | C3 |
| Operating Temperature | 0C to 85C | 0C to 85C | 0C to 85C | 0C to 85C | 0C to 85C | 0C to 85C | 0C to 85C | 0C to 85C |
| Lead-Free (N suffix) | No (standard finish) | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | No |
| Integrated Transceivers | Yes (GX family) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Key Differentiators
- Higher speed grade (C4) than C3 alternatives on identical silicon (vs EP2SGX90FF1508C3)
- Integrated multi-gigabit transceivers for serial protocols (vs EP2SGX90EF1508C4 (Stratix II E, no transceivers))
- 650 user I/Os on a 1508-ball FBGA package (vs EP2SGX90FF1152C3 (1152-ball variant))
Design Notes
The Stratix II GX family requires multiple supply rails: a core VCC (typically 1.2 V), VCCIO bank supplies (1.2 V, 1.5 V, 1.8 V, 2.5 V, 3.3 V per bank), VCCPD (3.3 V for pre-drivers), VCCA_PLL (analog PLL supply, typically 2.5 V), and VCCA_TX/RX for transceiver analog supplies. Decoupling strategy must follow the Stratix II GX PowerPlay Early Power Estimator and the device handbook: place 100 nF X7R ceramic capacitors adjacent to every VCC/VCCIO pin pair, supplement with 10 uF X5R bulk capacitors at each supply island, and add 1 mF polymer or tantalum bulk at the regulator output. Estimated: a fully-utilized EP2SGX90FF1508C4 can draw 8-12 W; budget regulator headroom accordingly.
The FBGA-1508 package is a 40 x 40 mm BGA with 1 mm pitch; thermal performance is highly dependent on PCB land pattern, inner-plane copper, and airflow. For full-utilization designs, calculate junction temperature using the theta_JA from the Stratix II GX thermal characteristics note (typical 1.5-3.0 C/W with appropriate heatsink/airflow, but [DATA_NEEDED: exact theta_JA for FBGA-1508]). Use the PowerPlay Power Analyzer to estimate worst-case power, then size heatsink or airflow accordingly. Always validate with a thermal probe in the prototype phase before committing to mechanical enclosure design.
The 1 mm pitch FBGA-1508 package requires a multi-layer PCB (typically 8+ layers) with microvia or via-in-pad technology for reliable assembly. Solder paste stencil aperture should be 0.4 mm with 0.1 mm reduction for ball-to-pad ratio per IPC-7525. BGA escape routing must be planned before symbol pin assignment: use Quartus II pin planner to assign high-speed interfaces to outer rows and break-out-friendly banks. Avoid routing signals under the BGA except where necessary for inner-row breaks, and stitch ground vias around the BGA perimeter for return-path integrity.
Multi-gigabit transceiver channels on the EP2SGX90FF1508C4 require controlled-impedance differential routing (100 ohms differential, typically with 8-10 mil trace width and 5-7 mil trace spacing on standard FR-4 stackups). Length matching must be within the tolerance specified in the Stratix II GX handbook (typically 10-20 mil for PCIe, tighter for XAUI). AC-coupling capacitors (typically 100 nF X7R 0402) must be placed near the transmitter; reference clock routing requires dedicated low-jitter clock distribution. Estimated: total transceiver channel length on FR-4 should not exceed 6-8 inches at 3.125 Gbps without re-driver or repeater.
Common Stratix II GX design pitfalls include (1) ignoring the VCCPD supply requirement when using 3.3 V I/O banks, which prevents configuration from completing; (2) failing to enable the CONFIG_DONE pin pull-up, leading to intermittent configuration failures; (3) leaving unused transceiver channels un-terminated, which can cause reflected power on AC-coupled links; and (4) exceeding the maximum of 4 DCM/PLL cascades in clock-tree synthesis, causing Quartus II fitter errors. Refer to AN 503: Stratix II GX Design Guidelines and the Stratix II GX errata sheet before committing to layout.
Compliance Information
EP2SGX90FF1508C4 (without N suffix) is the non-lead-free variant per Altera/Intel naming convention; the N-suffixed C4N variant is lead-free RoHS-compliant. Specific RoHS/REACH status was not provided in the verified web data and is marked as 'unknown'. The part is commercial temperature grade only and not AEC-Q100 qualified.
