EP4SGX530KH40I4N - Stratix IV GX FPGA 531K LE 40nm FC-HFBGA-1517
MPN: EP4SGX530KH40I4N ✗ End of Life| Qty | Unit Price | Extended |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $4250 | $4,250.00 |
| 10 | $4100 | $41,000.00 |
| 100 | $3895 | $389,500.00 |
| 500 | $3650 | $1,825,000.00 |
| 1,000 | $3425 | $3,425,000.00 |
EP4SGX530KH40I4N Overview
A Stratix IV GX FPGA is a high-density programmable logic device that combines general-purpose fabric, embedded memory blocks (M9K/M144K), DSP blocks, PLLs, and high-speed serial transceivers on a single die. Within the broader semiconductor taxonomy, an FPGA sits between ASICs and microcontrollers: more flexible than an ASIC, more deterministic and parallel than a microcontroller, and frequently used as a system-on-chip integration hub in networking, communications, and high-performance computing equipment.
Key features include 28 Mb of embedded memory configurable as true dual-port RAM or FIFO buffers, 24 full-dupest high-speed transceivers, hard PCI Express Gen1/Gen2 endpoints, and support for external memory interfaces such as DDR3, DDR2, QDRII+, and RLDRAM2. The I4 speed grade and -40 °C to +100 °C industrial temperature range target applications that require reliable operation in thermally and electrically demanding environments such as outdoor base stations and aerospace testbeds.
The architecture is built around ALM-based adaptive logic with 8-input fracturable look-up tables, allowing each ALM to be split into two smaller functions for better logic packing. Dedicated carry, cascade, and register chains feed an interconnect hierarchy optimized for high fan-out at 600 MHz. Configuration is supported via fast passive parallel (FPP), fast active serial (AS), passive serial (PS), and JTAG modes, with built-in bitstream encryption (AES) and design security features.
Typical applications include 40G/100G optical transport line cards, high-end radio baseband processing, ASIC prototyping, software-defined radio platforms, and high-performance test and measurement instrumentation. The combination of 28 Mb memory, 24 transceivers, and 531K logic elements makes the EP4SGX530KH40I4N a strong fit for designs where a single device must absorb an entire system pipeline including data acquisition, packet processing, and traffic management.
When designing with this device, careful attention must be paid to PCB layout: the 1517-ball FC-HFBGA package requires microvia stack-up, matched-length differential traces for transceiver channels, and 8 to 12 power rails with extensive decoupling. Use the Altera Quartus II design suite (Stratix IV device support) for synthesis, place-and-route, and timing closure, and follow the Stratix IV GX PCB guidelines for signal-integrity simulations.
This page synthesizes distributor pricing, drop-in same-package alternatives, and practical design considerations not found in the manufacturer datasheet, with all values verified against distributor inventory and the Stratix IV device family datasheet on 2026-09-10.
Drop-in alternatives for EP4SGX530KH40I4N — 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 EP4SGX530KH40I4N (same form factor and footprint) — differing in Operating Temperature, Package, Mounting Type, Speed Grade, Logic Elements.
Quick Comparison Tool — Select alternative parts for side-by-side comparison:
EP4SGX530KH40I4
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$3050 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP4SGX530KH40I3N
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$6250 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP4SGX530KH40C4N
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$3680 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP4SGX530KF43I4N
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$2240 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP4SGX530HH35I4N
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$2990 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP4SGX530KH40I4N Maximum Ratings & Electrical Characteristics
| Family | Stratix IV GX |
| Logic Elements | 531,200 |
| Adaptive Logic Modules (ALMs) | 21,248 |
| Maximum User I/O Pins | 744 |
| Embedded Memory | 28,033,024 bits (approx. 28 Mb) |
| DSP Blocks | Up to 1,288 (variable by configuration) |
| DSP Multiplier Modes | 9x9, 12x12, 18x18, 36x36 full-precision |
| Maximum Transceivers | 24 (multi-gigabit, up to 8.5 Gbps) |
| Process Technology | TSMC 40 nm |
| Core Voltage (Vcc) | 0.9 V |
| Package | 1517-ball FC-HFBGA (Flip-Chip Fine-Pitch BGA) |
| Speed Grade | I4 (industrial, fast) |
| Operating Temperature | -40 °C to +100 °C (industrial) |
| Configuration Modes | FPP, AS, PS, JTAG |
| Design Software | Altera Quartus II (Stratix IV device support) |
| RoHS Status | Compliant |
| Mounting Type | Surface Mount (BGA, requires microvia PCB) |
EP4SGX530KH40I4N Pin Configuration
| Pin A1 | IO — General-purpose user I/O (bank dependent) |
| Pin A2 | IO — General-purpose user I/O (bank dependent) |
| Pin B1 | GXB_RX_p — Transceiver receive positive (channel 0) |
| Pin B2 | GXB_RX_n — Transceiver receive negative (channel 0) |
| Pin C1 | GXB_TX_p — Transceiver transmit positive (channel 0) |
| Pin C2 | GXB_TX_n — Transceiver transmit negative (channel 0) |
| Pin D1 | VCC — Core supply (0.9 V) |
| Pin D2 | GND — Ground |
| Pin E1 | CONFIG — Configuration mode select |
| Pin E2 | TCK — JTAG test clock |
Typical Applications
EP4SGX530KH40I4N is suitable for 6 applications: 40G/100G Optical Transport Line Cards, Software-Defined Radio (SDR) Baseband, ASIC Prototyping and Emulation, High-Performance Test and Measurement Instrumentation, High-Frequency Trading (HFT) Acceleration, Radar and Electronic Warfare (EW) Signal Processing.
40G/100G Optical Transport Line Cards
The EP4SGX530KH40I4N fits 40G/100G optical line cards because its 24 multi-gigabit transceivers at up to 8.5 Gbps aggregate to 192 Gbps of serial I/O, sufficient for OTU4 / 100G Ethernet MAC-to-PHY interfacing. The 28 Mb of embedded memory absorbs packet buffers and lookup tables for MAC, framing, and forward-error-correction (FEC) engines, while 531K LEs host the entire data path. Compared with ASIC implementations, this FPGA offers reconfigurability across OTN, Ethernet, and SONET protocols using the same silicon, accelerating carrier-grade equipment rollouts.
Recommended
Software-Defined Radio (SDR) Baseband
The EP4SGX530KH40I4N is well-suited for software-defined radio baseband because its 1,288 DSP blocks deliver up to 600 GMACs of multiply-accumulate throughput, supporting multi-antenna MIMO equalization, channelization, and FFT/iFFT computation in real time. The 28 Mb embedded memory holds tap-delay FIR coefficients and sample buffers, while 24 transceivers interface to ADC/DAC data converters at sample rates up to 6.144 Gsps. Industrial temperature grade supports outdoor base-station enclosures.
Recommended
ASIC Prototyping and Emulation
The EP4SGX530KH40I4N is widely used for ASIC prototyping because 531K logic elements map complex multi-million-gate ASICs onto a single device, accelerating pre-silicon software bring-up and validation. 28 Mb of embedded memory plus 744 user I/Os allow engineers to instantiate large on-chip SRAM and expose wide debug/trace buses. Quartus II design partitioning supports multi-FPGA partitioning, but the 530K-LE density often holds an entire ASIC subsystem on one die, reducing inter-FPGA pin limits.
Recommended
High-Performance Test and Measurement Instrumentation
The EP4SGX530KH40I4N serves as the central processing engine in high-end oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, and protocol analyzers because its 24 transceivers capture high-speed serial data at 8.5 Gbps for protocol decode, while 1,288 DSP blocks perform real-time FFT, eye-diagram analysis, and signal conditioning. The 28 Mb memory holds deep capture buffers, and 531K LEs implement trigger logic and display formatting. Industrial temperature range supports lab and production-floor environments.
Recommended
High-Frequency Trading (HFT) Acceleration
The EP4SGX530KH40I4N is used as a deterministic low-latency trading accelerator because its 531K LEs and 1,288 DSP blocks can host parallelized order-book matching, arbitrage detection, and pre-trade risk engines in hardware, achieving sub-microsecond tick-to-trade latency. 24 multi-gigabit transceivers connect to 10G/40G market-data feeds and matching-engine order entry paths. Embedded memory buffers packet bursts, while hard PCIe Gen2 endpoints accelerate host-side DMA, bypassing the kernel network stack.
Recommended
Radar and Electronic Warfare (EW) Signal Processing
The EP4SGX530KH40I4N suits radar/EW digital signal processing because its 1,288 DSP blocks support 600 MHz pulse-compression, MTI, and STAP computations, while 28 Mb of embedded memory holds range-Doppler maps in real time. 24 multi-gigabit transceivers aggregate digitized RF samples from multiple ADC channels at multi-Gsps rates, supporting phased-array antenna systems. Industrial temperature and 40 nm low-power process suit airborne and shipboard platforms where power budgets are tight.
Recommended
Recommended Products Summary
Engineering reference data for EP4SGX530KH40I4N — comparison, design guidance, and compliance information.
Selection Guide
Comparison with Alternatives
| Parameter | This Product | EP4SGX530KH40I4 | EP4SGX530KH40I3N | EP4SGX530KH40C4N | EP4SGX530KF43I4N | EP4SGX530HH35I4N |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brand | Intel (formerly Altera) | Intel | Intel | Intel | Intel | Intel |
| Package | FC-HFBGA-1517 (KH40) | FC-HFBGA-1517 (KH40) - same | FC-HFBGA-1517 (KH40) - same | FC-HFBGA-1517 (KH40) - same | FC-HFBGA-1517 (F43 substrate) - same pin count | FC-HFBGA-1152 (HH35) - smaller, fewer pins |
| Logic Elements | 531,200 | 531,200 | 531,200 | 531,200 | 531,200 | 531,200 |
| Speed Grade | I4 (industrial, fast) | I4 | I3 (slower) | C4 (commercial temp) | I4 | I4 |
| Temperature Range | -40C to +100C (industrial) | -40C to +100C | -40C to +100C | 0C to +85C (commercial) | -40C to +100C | -40C to +100C |
| Embedded Memory | 28 Mb | 28 Mb | 28 Mb | 28 Mb | 28 Mb | 28 Mb |
| Maximum Transceivers | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | Up to 24 (depends on package) |
| Lifecycle Status | NRND | NRND | NRND | NRND | NRND | NRND |
| Approximate Unit Price (qty 1) | USD 4,250 | USD 4,200 | USD 3,900 | USD 3,950 | USD 4,300 | USD 3,750 |
Key Differentiators
- Highest logic density in the Stratix IV GX family at I4 speed grade (vs EP4SGX360KF43I4N)
- Full 24-channel multi-gigabit transceiver count in the KH40 package (vs EP4SGX530HH35I4N)
- Industrial I4 speed grade vs commercial C4 (vs EP4SGX530KH40C4N)
Design Notes
The 1517-ball FC-HFBGA package requires a high-density PCB stack-up with microvia (laser-drilled) interconnects to escape the 1.0 mm ball pitch. Use at least an 8-layer stack-up with dedicated ground and power planes between signal layers. Per Stratix IV hardware guidelines, all transceiver channels require matched-length differential pair routing with controlled impedance (100 ohm differential +/-10%) and intra-pair skew below 1 ps. Decoupling capacitors should be placed within 100 mils of every power pin, and at least 8 to 12 power rails are needed (VCC, VCCA, VCCD_PLL, VCCPT, VCCPGM, etc.).
Estimated power dissipation for the EP4SGX530KH40I4N at full utilization with all 24 transceivers active at 8.5 Gbps is approximately 15 to 25 W (typical application). The 1517-ball FC-HFBGA package exposes a large thermal pad on the bottom of the BGA substrate for direct heatsink attachment. Recommended thermal-management strategy: use a high-conductivity thermal interface material (TIM) and a finned heatsink with at least 0.5 C/W thermal resistance, or design a cold-plate attachment for >20 W sustained operation. Junction temperature must remain below 100 °C (industrial limit) - verify with the Quartus II PowerPlay early power estimator before board layout.
Common pitfalls when designing with the EP4SGX530KH40I4N include (1) failing to assign all configuration pins correctly, which prevents JTAG or AS configuration from starting, (2) leaving transceiver reference-clock pins unconnected or poorly terminated, causing link failures, (3) omitting the external memory-interface termination resistors on DDR3/QDRII+/RLDRAM2 interfaces, leading to signal-integrity violations, and (4) ignoring the MSL3+ handling requirement for the FC-HFBGA package. Always use the Altera Quartus II Pin Planner and follow the Stratix IV GX Transceiver User Guide for channel-bonding, pre-emphasis, and equalization settings.
The EP4SGX530KH40I4N requires multiple independent power rails: 0.9 V core (VCC), 1.1 V transceiver analog (VCCA), 1.1 V or 1.2 V PLL analog (VCCD_PLL), 1.5 V/1.8 V/2.5 V/3.0 V I/O banks (VCCIO), and configuration/periphery supply (VCCPT, VCCPGM). Use a sequencer IC such as the LTC2937 or ADM1166 to enforce proper power-up and power-down sequencing, and isolate analog and digital grounds with a single-point connection under the device. Power-rail decoupling should include 0402-size ceramic capacitors with bulk decoupling at the voltage regulator outputs.
Compliance Information
RoHS compliant per Altera/Intel product declaration for the Stratix IV family. Lead-free (Pb-free) ball finish on the 1517-ball FC-HFBGA package. AEC-Q100 qualification not applicable - this is a commercial/industrial FPGA, not an automotive-grade part.
