EP4SGX530HH35C4N - 531K LE Stratix IV GX FPGA | Intel | 1152-FCBGA
MPN: EP4SGX530HH35C4N ⚠ Last Time Buy| Qty | Unit Price | Extended |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $4850 | $4,850.00 |
| 10 | $4520 | $45,200.00 |
| 100 | $4180 | $418,000.00 |
| 500 | $3850 | $1,925,000.00 |
| 1,000 | $3490 | $3,490,000.00 |
EP4SGX530HH35C4N Overview
What is an FPGA? A Field-Programmable Gate Array is a semiconductor device containing configurable logic blocks (CLBs/LABs), programmable interconnect, and dedicated hard IP such as transceivers, multipliers, and memory blocks. FPGAs occupy a tier between general-purpose microcontrollers and fixed-function ASICs: they offer hardware-level parallelism for data-path acceleration while remaining re-programmable in the field, making them ideal for prototyping, low-volume production, and workloads where time-to-market outweighs per-unit silicon cost.
Key features of the EP4SGX530HH35C4N include a deep logic fabric (531K LEs) for parallel datapath implementation, abundant embedded RAM (28 Mb) for packet buffering and DSP coefficient storage, 24x 8.5 Gbps transceivers typical of Stratix IV GX, and dedicated DSP blocks for high-throughput fixed- and floating-point arithmetic. The 1152-ball FCBGA package exposes 564 user I/Os and provides the signal-integrity margin needed for DDR3 memory interfaces and multi-lane serial links running at full transceiver line rate.
Architecturally, the Stratix IV GX family uses adaptive logic modules (ALMs) paired with MLAB memory, 9-Kbit M9K blocks and larger M144K blocks, hardened PCI Express and serial RapidIO cores, and up to 36 transceiver channels per device. Compared with Stratix III, the IV generation refined the routing architecture, lowered static power, and increased the maximum transceiver data rate, while preserving Quartus II compatibility for design reuse.
Typical applications include high-end wired telecommunications line cards, 40G/100G Ethernet aggregation, military radar and signal-intelligence platforms, ASIC prototyping for compute accelerators, medical imaging pipelines such as CT and MRI reconstruction, and broadcast video processing. The combination of high logic density, abundant transceivers, and large embedded memory makes the EP4SGX530HH35C4N well-suited to throughput-bound designs where a CPU/GPU alone is insufficient.
Design consideration: the 1152-ball FCBGA requires a multi-layer PCB with controlled-impedance routing for the transceiver lanes, matched-length skew management for memory interfaces, and a substantial thermal solution. Engineers should plan for at least 8 PCB layers, high-decoupling-count power distribution, and a heatsink rated for the device's thermal-design-power envelope before committing to the package.
This page synthesizes Stratix IV GX die and package specifications, current distributor availability, drop-in and pin-compatible Stratix IV family alternatives, and practical PCB/thermal design guidance not aggregated on a single manufacturer page.
Drop-in alternatives for EP4SGX530HH35C4N — 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 EP4SGX530HH35C4N (same form factor and footprint) — differing in Package, Operating Temperature, Transceivers, Speed Grade, Mounting Type.
Quick Comparison Tool — Select alternative parts for side-by-side comparison:
EP4SGX530HH35C4
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View Datasheet →EP4SGX530HH35C4N Maximum Ratings & Electrical Characteristics
| Family | Stratix IV GX |
| Logic Elements | 531,200 |
| Logic Array Blocks (LABs) | 21,248 |
| Total RAM Bits | 28,033,024 (approximately 28 Mb) |
| User I/O Pins | 564 |
| Process Technology | 40 nm CMOS |
| Core Voltage (typical) | 0.9 V |
| Speed Grade | C4 |
| Temperature Grade | Commercial |
| Package | 1152-ball FCBGA (Flip-Chip BGA) |
| Transceivers | Up to 24 channels at up to 8.5 Gbps (family maximum) |
| Mounting Type | Surface Mount (BGA) |
| Lead-Free / RoHS | Yes (RoHS compliant per N designator) |
| Lifecycle Status | Last Time Buy (mature device, recommended for new designs migrating to Stratix 10 or Agilex) |
EP4SGX530HH35C4N 1152-ball fcbga (flip-chip bga) Pin Configuration Guide
Pin configuration for EP4SGX530HH35C4N (1152-ball fcbga (flip-chip 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 EP4SGX530HH35C4N.
Refer to the datasheet for full pin configuration.
Typical Applications
EP4SGX530HH35C4N is suitable for 7 applications: 40G/100G Ethernet Line Card Aggregation, Military Radar and SIGINT Signal Processing, ASIC Prototyping for Compute Accelerators, Medical Imaging (CT / MRI Reconstruction), Broadcast Video Processing and Conversion, High-Performance DSP Test and Instrumentation, Storage Acceleration (SSD Controllers / NVMe-oF).
40G/100G Ethernet Line Card Aggregation
The EP4SGX530HH35C4N's 531,200 logic elements and 28 Mb embedded RAM let it aggregate multiple 10G/40G Ethernet links into a single 100G uplink while sustaining line rate. The 24 transceivers at up to 8.5 Gbps (CAUI-4 / 4x10G or direct 10G lanes) feed soft MAC IP and traffic-management blocks. Compared with a CPU/DPU-based implementation, this FPGA approach delivers deterministic latency below 1 microsecond and parallel lookup throughput that a sequential processor cannot match. The 564 user I/Os expose parallel DDR3/QSFP interfaces and CPU-side control planes.
Recommended
Military Radar and SIGINT Signal Processing
The EP4SGX530HH35C4N is well-suited to wideband radar and signal-intelligence platforms thanks to its 28 Mb embedded RAM (ample for windowed FFT coefficient storage), 18x18-bit multipliers in DSP blocks, and 564 user I/Os for ADC/DAC interfaces such as JESD204B. Its 24 transceivers connect directly to RF front-end ADCs and inter-card serial backplanes. The 40 nm Stratix IV process tolerates the sustained high toggle rates of beamforming and direction-finding pipelines, where a microcontroller-class DSP would be vastly underpowered.
Recommended
ASIC Prototyping for Compute Accelerators
With 531,200 logic elements, the EP4SGX530HH35C4N can prototype near-full ASIC workloads and validate RTL on real hardware months before tape-out. Multiple Stratix IV FPGAs can be bridged via their 8.5 Gbps transceivers to emulate multi-die SoCs, with the abundant embedded RAM acting as shared cache. Quartus II's incremental compile flow and multi-FPGA partitioning tools target this application directly. The 1152-ball FCBGA and high I/O count expose all prototype signals to validation probes and external logic analyzers.
Recommended
Medical Imaging (CT / MRI Reconstruction)
The EP4SGX530HH35C4N accelerates back-projection, FBP, and iterative-reconstruction pipelines in CT and MRI scanners where deterministic latency and parallel arithmetic are critical. Its DSP blocks process 18x18 multiplications at hundreds of MHz per slice, while the 28 Mb embedded RAM holds intermediate projection data without round-tripping to external memory. The 564 user I/Os accept parallel ADC inputs from detector arrays and push processed slices to display controllers via LVDS or embedded DisplayPort.
Recommended
Broadcast Video Processing and Conversion
The EP4SGX530HH35C4N performs format conversion, color-space transformation, and multi-stream upscaling/downscaling for broadcast studios. Its 24 transceivers accept SDI inputs at 3G/6G/12G rates, while the 564 user I/Os drive HDMI/DisplayPort outputs and SDRAM frame buffers. Compared with a GPU-based broadcast pipeline, the FPGA approach offers deterministic frame latency and stable jitter for live production environments where frame drops are unacceptable.
Recommended
High-Performance DSP Test and Instrumentation
The EP4SGX530HH35C4N is a strong fit for arbitrary-waveform generators, real-time spectrum analyzers, and protocol testers that demand parallel DSP at multi-GSPS rates. Its transceivers capture and emit digitized waveforms to ADCs and DACs running at the FPGA's full I/O rate, while the embedded RAM accumulates deep capture records for FFT processing. Designers benefit from Quartus II's DSP Builder toolchain, which translates MATLAB/Simulink DSP models directly into FPGA fabric.
Recommended
Storage Acceleration (SSD Controllers / NVMe-oF)
The EP4SGX530HH35C4N accelerates NVMe-over-Fabrics and high-endurance SSD controllers by parallelizing RAID parity, deduplication, and encryption across many NAND channels simultaneously. Its 564 user I/Os expose ONFI/Toggle NAND buses, while transceivers carry PCIe Gen2/Gen3 and 10/25/40 GbE uplinks. Embedded RAM buffers FTL lookups and write coalescing, dramatically reducing host-facing latency compared with a CPU-driven controller at the same throughput.
Recommended
Recommended Products Summary
Engineering reference data for EP4SGX530HH35C4N — comparison, design guidance, and compliance information.
Selection Guide
Comparison with Alternatives
| Parameter | This Product | EP4SGX530HH35C4 | EP4SGX530HH35C3N | EP4SGX530HH35C3 | EP4SGX530HH35C2NES | EP4SGX530HH35C2N | EP4SGX530HH35C2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Package | 1152-ball FCBGA (HH35) | 1152-ball FCBGA - same | 1152-ball FCBGA - same | 1152-ball FCBGA - same | 1152-ball FCBGA - same | 1152-ball FCBGA - same | 1152-ball FCBGA - same |
| Brand | Intel (formerly Altera) | Intel | Intel | Intel | Intel | Intel | Intel |
| Speed Grade | C4 (slower mid-bin) | C4 (same) | C3 (faster) | C3 (faster) | C2 (slowest, ES) | C2 (slowest) | C2 (slowest) |
| Logic Elements | 531,200 | 531,200 - same | 531,200 - same | 531,200 - same | 531,200 - same | 531,200 - same | 531,200 - same |
| User I/Os | 564 | 564 - same | 564 - same | 564 - same | 564 - same | 564 - same | 564 - same |
| Embedded RAM | 28,033,024 bits (~28 Mb) | 28 Mb - same | 28 Mb - same | 28 Mb - same | 28 Mb - same | 28 Mb - same | 28 Mb - same |
| Process / Family | 40 nm Stratix IV GX | 40 nm Stratix IV GX - same | 40 nm Stratix IV GX - same | 40 nm Stratix IV GX - same | 40 nm Stratix IV GX - same | 40 nm Stratix IV GX - same | 40 nm Stratix IV GX - same |
| RoHS / Lead-Free | Yes (N designator) | Yes (lead-free) | Yes (N designator) | Yes (lead-free) | Yes (N designator, ES) | Yes (N designator) | Yes (lead-free) |
Key Differentiators
- C4 speed grade offers balanced cost-to-timing-margin for non-critical-path designs (vs EP4SGX530HH35C3N)
- Highest logic density in the Stratix IV GX family (vs EP4SGX290NF45I4N)
- 24 transceivers at up to 8.5 Gbps support modern serial interfaces (vs EP4SE530H35C4N (Stratix IV E))
Design Notes
Estimated: at 0.9 V core, ~22 W core power with 6 W transceiver power yields approximately 28 W total dissipation. With a typical FCBGA theta_JA of 8-10 C/W (still air), the junction temperature would exceed the 100 C commercial limit. A passive heatsink plus 200 LFM airflow, or a cold-plate for industrial use, is mandatory. Apply thermal interface material rated for BGA packages; avoid thermal pads exceeding 0.15 mm thickness.
Use a minimum 8-layer PCB stack-up with two solid ground planes adjacent to the BGA break-out layer. The 1152-ball FCBGA at 1.0 mm pitch requires laser-drilled micro-vias for inner-row escape routing. Matched-length skew tuning is mandatory for transceiver lanes (target within 5 ps) and DDR3 byte lanes (target within 25 ps). Follow Intel/Altera's Stratix IV GX High-Speed Design Guidelines for stack-up and de-coupling recommendations.
Do not use the EP4SGX530HH35C2N (slower C2 grade) as a drop-in for a C4 design without re-running timing closure - Quartus II will report negative slack on critical paths. Conversely, migrating up from C4 to C3 is usually a transparent timing-margin improvement. Always verify transceiver pre-emphasis and VOD settings after PCBA rework; reflow profile must stay within JEDEC J-STD-020 MSL3 or better, depending on storage history.
Place the configuration flash (EPCS64 or compatible) within 2 inches of the FPGA's MSEL/ASDATA0 pins with a short, impedance-controlled trace. Keep the JTAG chain off the high-speed serial lanes to avoid crosstalk. Decoupling strategy: at least 40 low-ESL 0402 capacitors around the BGA perimeter (0.1 uF and 1 uF mix), plus four 220 uF bulk capacitors on the 0.9 V and 1.1 V planes close to the VRM inductors.
Compliance Information
RoHS compliance indicated by N designator in MPN. REACH compliance inferred from Intel/Altera's standard declarations for Stratix IV family. Not AEC-Q100 qualified (commercial/industrial temperature grade only). Last-time-buy lifecycle status; new automotive designs should consider Cyclone IV or Cyclone V automotive variants.
