EP3C80F780C8 - Cyclone III FPGA 81K LE 780-FBGA | Intel | Altera
MPN: EP3C80F780C8 ✓ Active| Qty | Unit Price | Extended |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $325.66 | $325.66 |
| 10 | $308.5 | $3,085.00 |
| 100 | $275 | $27,500.00 |
| 500 | $245 | $122,500.00 |
| 1,000 | $220 | $220,000.00 |
EP3C80F780C8 Overview
What is an FPGA? A Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) is a type of programmable logic device (PLD) belonging to the semiconductor integrated circuit hierarchy. It contains an array of configurable logic blocks (CLBs), programmable interconnects, embedded memory blocks, multipliers, and I/O cells. After manufacturing, the FPGA's function is defined by a user-supplied configuration bitstream loaded into SRAM-based configuration cells. In the broader system hierarchy, an FPGA sits between standard programmable logic (CPLD) and full Application-Specific Integrated Circuits (ASIC) - offering ASIC-like performance and parallelism with the flexibility of in-system reprogrammability.
Key features include 81,264 logic elements arranged in a fabric of M9K memory blocks totaling 2,810,880 RAM bits, 244 embedded 18x18 multipliers, four general-purpose PLLs per device, and 429 maximum user I/O supporting multiple I/O standards (LVDS, LVCMOS, SSTL, HSTL). The device operates from a 1.2 V core supply and supports commercial temperature grades (0C to +85C), with industrial grade variants also available. Configuration is handled via active serial (AS), passive serial (PS), JTAG, or Fast Passive Parallel (FPP) modes using external or in-package configuration devices.
The Cyclone III architecture uses 65 nm TSMC process technology with low-k dielectric, achieving up to 50% lower dynamic power than the prior Cyclone II family at equivalent performance. The M9K memory blocks support true dual-port, simple dual-port, and single-port RAM configurations up to 36 kbits per block, while dedicated 18x18 hardware multipliers enable DSP functions without burning logic resources. The Quartus II / Quartus Prime design suite supports the entire Cyclone III family with synthesis, place-and-route, timing closure, and on-chip debug via SignalTap II.
Typical applications include industrial motor control and machine vision, video processing and display controllers, telecommunications line cards and protocol bridging, automotive infotainment prototyping, test and measurement instrumentation, software-defined radio (SDR), and low-cost ASIC prototyping. The combination of high logic density and embedded multipliers makes the EP3C80 particularly suited for mid-range DSP pipelines and parallel data acquisition.
When designing with this device, pay close attention to power supply sequencing - the 1.2 V core, 2.5 V PLL analog, and 3.3 V I/O rails must power up in the order specified by the datasheet to avoid latch-up. Use multiple decoupling capacitors (0.1 uF and 10 uF) near each power pin and keep configuration traces short to avoid bitstream loading errors.
This page consolidates distributor pricing snapshots, drop-in same-package alternatives, application examples, and practical design guidance that go beyond the raw datasheet, helping engineers select and integrate the EP3C80F780C8 with confidence.
Drop-in alternatives for EP3C80F780C8 — 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 EP3C80F780C8 (same form factor and footprint) — differing in Process Technology, Package, Speed Grade, Configuration Method, Mounting Type.
Quick Comparison Tool — Select alternative parts for side-by-side comparison:
EP3C80F780C8N
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$240.2 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP3C80F780C7N
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$260 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP3C80F780C7
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$298.75 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP3C80F780C6N
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$330.2 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP3C80F780C6
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$320.95 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP3C120F780C8N
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Contact for price
View Datasheet →EP3C80F780C8 Maximum Ratings & Electrical Characteristics
| Family | Cyclone III |
| Logic Elements (LE) | 81,264 |
| Embedded Memory Bits | 2,810,880 bits |
| Embedded Memory Blocks | M9K blocks (9 Kbit each) |
| Embedded 18x18 Multipliers | 244 |
| Maximum User I/O | 429 |
| General-Purpose PLLs | 4 |
| Global Clock Networks | 20 |
| Process Technology | 65 nm TSMC low-power |
| Core Voltage | 1.2 V |
| Package | 780-ball FBGA (FineLine BGA) |
| Temperature Grade (suffix C8) | Commercial 0C to +85C |
| Speed Grade | 8 |
| Configuration Modes | AS, PS, JTAG, FPP |
| Mounting Type | Surface Mount (BGA) |
EP3C80F780C8 780-ball fbga (fineline bga) Pin Configuration Guide
Pin configuration for EP3C80F780C8 (780-ball fbga (fineline 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 EP3C80F780C8.
Refer to the datasheet for full pin configuration.
Typical Applications
EP3C80F780C8 is suitable for 6 applications: Industrial Motor Control, Video Processing and Display Controllers, Telecommunications Line Cards and Protocol Bridging, Software Defined Radio (SDR) Baseband, Test and Measurement Instrumentation, ASIC Prototyping and Emulation.
Industrial Motor Control
The EP3C80F780C8 is well suited for multi-axis industrial motor control and drives. Its 81,264 logic elements and 244 embedded 18x18 multipliers support field-oriented control (FOC), space-vector PWM, and encoder feedback processing for several motors in parallel. The 4 general-purpose PLLs generate the high-resolution clocks needed for PWM switching at 20-100 kHz with dead-band control. With 429 user I/O, the device can handle multiple encoder inputs, Hall sensors, and gate-driver interfaces while leaving headroom for safety logic and communication stacks such as EtherCAT, PROFINET, or CANopen. The 1.2 V low-power core plus Cyclone III's proven 65 nm process help meet industrial thermal envelopes without forced cooling.
Recommended
Video Processing and Display Controllers
With 2,810,880 bits of embedded M9K memory and 429 I/O, the EP3C80F780C8 handles mid-range video processing pipelines including deinterlacing, scaling, color-space conversion, and on-screen display (OSD) overlay. The M9K blocks can be configured as line buffers for 720p or 1080i resolutions without external SDRAM, reducing BOM cost. The 244 hardware 18x18 multipliers accelerate DCT/IDCT, motion estimation, and FIR filtering for compression pipelines. The 4 PLLs synthesize the pixel clock, memory clock, and output interface clocks needed for HDMI, LVDS, or RGB parallel displays from a single reference oscillator.
Recommended
Telecommunications Line Cards and Protocol Bridging
The EP3C80F780C8 fits telecom line cards requiring protocol bridging between legacy TDM (T1/E1) interfaces and modern packet networks, or for low-cost channelized processing at the network edge. Its 81,264 LEs handle framing, deframing, and HDLC processing on hundreds of channels simultaneously. The device's 4 PLLs support multiple telecom clock domains (8 kHz, 1.544 MHz, 2.048 MHz) while the 429 I/O accommodate parallel bus interfaces to network processors. Cyclone III's low static power suits the thermal constraints of sealed access enclosures.
Recommended
Software Defined Radio (SDR) Baseband
The EP3C80F780C8 supports SDR baseband processing up to ~80 MHz of instantaneous bandwidth thanks to its 244 embedded 18x18 multipliers enabling parallel polyphase filter banks, FFT/iFFT engines, and digital down/up-conversion stages. The M9K memory fabric supplies the buffering required for overlap-save and overlap-add convolution, plus symbol-rate-matched buffering. With 4 PLLs and 20 global clock networks, the device can manage separate sample-rate, IF, and baseband clock domains cleanly. Designers can pair the EP3C80 with external ADC/DAC and a host processor running GNU Radio or custom firmware.
Recommended
Test and Measurement Instrumentation
The EP3C80F780C8 is used as the timing engine in mid-range logic analyzers, pattern generators, protocol testers, and data acquisition front-ends. Its 429 I/O drive wide parallel buses to ADCs and DACs, while the 244 multipliers support digital filtering and correlation. SignalTap II embedded logic analyzer provides deep on-chip trace without external probing, ideal for protocol debugging. The 780-FBGA package's thermal performance supports continuous operation in benchtop and ATE environments with adequate airflow.
Recommended
ASIC Prototyping and Emulation
Engineers use the EP3C80F780C8 as a building block for ASIC prototyping and emulation platforms, often partitioning a target ASIC across multiple FPGAs. The 81,264 LEs emulate approximately 2-3 million ASIC gates, while the M9K memory fabric supports register files and FIFO buffers typical in CPU and SoC prototypes. With 4 PLLs and 20 clock domains, designers can emulate multi-clock-domain ASICs directly. Bitstream compatibility across the Cyclone III family enables rapid capacity scaling from EP3C40 up to EP3C120 using the same prototyping board layout.
Recommended
Recommended Products Summary
Engineering reference data for EP3C80F780C8 — comparison, design guidance, and compliance information.
Selection Guide
Comparison with Alternatives
| Parameter | This Product | EP3C80F780C8N | EP3C80F780C7N | EP3C80F780C6N | EP3C120F780C8N |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brand | Intel | Intel | Intel | Intel | Intel |
| Package | 780-ball FBGA | 780-ball FBGA (same) | 780-ball FBGA (same) | 780-ball FBGA (same) | 780-ball FBGA (same) |
| Logic Elements | 81,264 | 81,264 | 81,264 | 81,264 | 119,088 |
| Speed Grade | 8 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 8 |
| Embedded Memory Bits | 2,810,880 | 2,810,880 | 2,810,880 | 2,810,880 | 3,981,312 |
| 18x18 Multipliers | 244 | 244 | 244 | 244 | 288 |
| Maximum User I/O | 429 | 429 | 429 | 429 | 531 |
| PLLs | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Temperature Grade | Commercial (0C to +85C) | Commercial (0C to +85C) | Commercial (0C to +85C) | Commercial (0C to +85C) | Commercial (0C to +85C) |
| RoHS / Lead-Free | unknown | Yes (N suffix, Pb-free) | Yes (N suffix, Pb-free) | Yes (N suffix, Pb-free) | Yes (N suffix, Pb-free) |
Key Differentiators
- Highest speed grade in the EP3C80 family (vs EP3C80F780C7N)
- Lower unit price than the density-upgrade EP3C120F780C8N (vs EP3C120F780C8N)
- Same package and pinout across speed grades (vs EP3C80F780C6N)
Design Notes
The EP3C80F780C8 requires three rails: VCCINT 1.2 V (core), VCCA 2.5 V (PLL analog), and VCCIO 3.3 V (I/O banks). Power-up sequencing must follow the Cyclone III handbook - VCCINT and VCCA must ramp before or simultaneously with VCCIO within the datasheet-specified window. Use a dedicated LDO or switching regulator for VCCA to minimize PLL jitter; never share VCCA with digital loads. Bulk 100-470 uF plus 0.1 uF/10 uF ceramic decoupling near each power pin is required. Estimated core current at typical 60-70% utilization and 100 MHz operation is 0.8-1.2 A on VCCINT.
The 780-ball FineLine BGA package uses 1.0 mm ball pitch - route signals on internal layers using microvia or laser-drilled via-in-pad technology. Match length-matched traces within ±50 mil for DDR/parallel memory interfaces. Keep the JTAG chain (TCK, TMS, TDI, TDO) short and protected from switching signals to avoid configuration errors. Allocate at least 4 inner ground planes and 2 power planes, stitched with dense via arrays around the BGA perimeter to reduce inductance. Thermal vias under the package center improve heat dissipation into the inner copper.
Select MSEL[3:0] pin strapping for the desired configuration mode: AS (default for most designs), PS, JTAG, or FPP. For AS mode use an EPCS16 or EPCS64 serial configuration device; for FPP attach a parallel flash or processor bus. Add a 10 kohm pull-up on nCONFIG and a 10 kohm pull-down on nSTATUS. For multi-device chains, verify the bitstream ID matches the target device via Quartus - bitstreams are not interchangeable between EP3C80 and EP3C120 even at the same package.
Do not exceed the LVDS I/O count per bank or the simultaneous switching output (SSO) limits stated in the Cyclone III device handbook - violations cause bitstream errors and signal-integrity failures. Do not leave the JTAG chain unterminated - install 10 kohm pull-ups on TCK, TMS, and TDI to prevent spurious configuration triggers. Always generate the IO Assignment Analysis report and the Pin-Out File before tape-out; do not rely on default pin assignments for production. Estimated: an unterminated JTAG chain can corrupt configuration during EMI events.
Compliance Information
RoHS / lead-free status not directly confirmed in the verified web data; the N-suffix variants (e.g. EP3C80F780C8N) are Pb-free per Intel/Altera part-number convention. AEC-Q100 not applicable (commercial-grade FPGA).