EP4SGX70HF35I4G - Stratix IV GX FPGA 72.6K LE 488 I/O | Intel
MPN: EP4SGX70HF35I4G ✓ Active| Qty | Unit Price | Extended |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $1850 | $1,850.00 |
| 10 | $1620 | $16,200.00 |
| 100 | $1450 | $145,000.00 |
| 500 | $1280 | $640,000.00 |
| 1,000 | $1150 | $1,150,000.00 |
EP4SGX70HF35I4G Overview
A Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) is a semiconductor device built around an array of configurable logic blocks (CLBs), programmable interconnect, dedicated DSP blocks, high-speed transceivers, and on-chip memory that an engineer can reconfigure after manufacturing to implement custom digital logic. FPGAs sit between standard ASICs (custom silicon, high NRE, long lead time) and microcontrollers (fixed architecture, software-defined) in the system hierarchy: programmable logic device -> logic IC -> integrated circuit -> semiconductor. Modern high-end FPGAs like the Stratix IV GX family are used as system-on-chip integration platforms where hardware acceleration, parallel DSP, and multi-gigabit serial I/O must coexist on a single die.
Key features of the EP4SGX70HF35I4G include 8 integrated transceivers supporting data rates commonly used in PCI Express Gen1/Gen2 and Gigabit Ethernet, hard memory controllers for DDR3/DDR2 interfaces, dedicated 18x18 multiplier blocks for DSP, up to 488 user I/O pins supporting multiple I/O standards including LVDS, LVTTL, and LVCMOS, and configuration via JTAG or serial configuration devices. The device also provides up to 24 full-duplex CDR-capable transceivers and 4 hard PCIe Gen1/Gen2 IP blocks depending on the Stratix IV GX variant. The high-pin-count 1152-ball FCBGA package exposes both transceiver channels and high-bandwidth parallel I/O for communications and DSP line cards.
The Stratix IV architecture combines a hardened transceiver physical layer with partial reconfiguration, adaptive logic modules (ALMs), and TriMatrix embedded memory, enabling designers to pipeline parallel DSP workloads while keeping the device footprint small. Hard PCIe, SERDES, and memory controllers reduce soft IP overhead, allowing higher effective logic utilization for application code.
Typical applications include 10G/40G optical transport line cards, software-defined radio baseband processing, ASIC prototyping, high-performance DSP coprocessors, and PCIe accelerator cards. The combination of industrial temperature range and high transceiver count makes this part well-suited to carrier-grade networking equipment and military/aerospace signal processing.
When designing with this part, allocate PCB layer budget for the 1152-ball FCBGA escape routing, provide low-jitter reference clocks for the transceivers, and follow Altera/Intel power regulator guidelines for the Stratix IV device family (typically requiring multiple buck converters for core, I/O, and PLL supplies).
This page synthesizes distributor stock, lifecycle status, and drop-in Stratix IV family alternatives that share the same HF35 1152-ball FCBGA footprint, giving engineers a faster procurement decision than the manufacturer product page alone.
Drop-in alternatives for EP4SGX70HF35I4G — 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 EP4SGX70HF35I4G (same form factor and footprint) — differing in Package, Speed Grade, Process Technology, Operating Temperature, Logic Elements.
Quick Comparison Tool — Select alternative parts for side-by-side comparison:
EP4SGX70HF35I3G
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$1250 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP4SGX70HF35C4G
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$1650 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP4SGX70HF35C3G
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$1380 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP4SGX70HF35C2G
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$1490 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP4SGX70HF35I4G Maximum Ratings & Electrical Characteristics
| Family | Stratix IV GX |
| Series | EP4SGX70 |
| Logic Elements | 72,600 |
| Embedded Memory Bits | 7,564,880 |
| Total RAM Bits | 7,564,880 |
| Number of I/O | 488 |
| Package | 1152-BBGA, FCBGA |
| Mounting Type | Surface Mount |
| Operating Temperature | -40C to +100C (Industrial, -I4G grade) |
| Process Node | 40 nm |
| Voltage - Supply | 0.95 V core, 1.1 V/2.5 V/3.3 V I/O (Stratix IV family typical) |
| Configuration | JTAG / Serial |
| RoHS Status | Compliant |
| Lead Free | Yes |
| MSL Level | 3 (per JEDEC J-STD-020) |
| Speed Grade | -4 (I4G grade) |
| Temperature Grade | Industrial |
EP4SGX70HF35I4G 1152-bbga, fcbga Pin Configuration Guide
Pin configuration for EP4SGX70HF35I4G (1152-bbga, fcbga 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 EP4SGX70HF35I4G.
Refer to the datasheet for full pin configuration.
Typical Applications
EP4SGX70HF35I4G is suitable for 6 applications: 10G/40G Optical Transport Line Cards, Software-Defined Radio Baseband, ASIC Prototyping, PCIe Gen2 Accelerator Cards, High-Performance DSP Coprocessor, Industrial Test & Measurement.
10G/40G Optical Transport Line Cards
The EP4SGX70HF35I4G fits 10G/40G optical line cards because it integrates 8 multi-gigabit transceivers per device with hard PCIe Gen2 and hard SERDES capable of backplane-relevant data rates, while exposing 488 user I/Os through the 1152-ball HF35 FCBGA for parallel SFI/XFI bus interfaces. Designers place the FPGA between the optical module cage and the framer/ASIC, using the 72.6K logic elements to implement OTN framing, FEC, and GFP mapping. Compared with an ASIC + companion FPGA two-chip solution, the integrated transceiver count reduces BOM by 30-40% and the industrial -40C to +100C temperature range meets carrier-grade NEBS thermal envelopes without derating.
Recommended
Software-Defined Radio Baseband
The EP4SGX70HF35I4G is well-matched to software-defined radio (SDR) baseband processing because its 7.56 Mbits of TriMatrix memory holds multiple OFDM symbol buffers, and the dedicated 18x18 multiplier blocks combined with 72.6K logic elements deliver hundreds of GMACs for FFT/fir/modem datapaths. The integrated transceivers interface directly to RF ADCs/DACs and digital pre-distortion feedback paths, eliminating an external SERDES chip. The HF35 industrial-temperature grade supports outdoor base-station deployment; the 40 nm low-power process reduces DSP-block dynamic power by approximately 30% versus prior 65 nm Stratix III designs.
Recommended
ASIC Prototyping
For ASIC prototyping the EP4SGX70HF35I4G provides 72,600 logic elements that map directly from RTL after synthesis, with 7.56 Mbits of on-chip memory emulating embedded SRAM/ROM blocks and 488 user I/Os sufficient for full-pin-out ASIC bring-up. The hard PCIe Gen1/Gen2 controllers verify ASIC PCIe interfaces in real silicon, and the high transceiver count emulates multi-lane SERDES ASIC blocks without external soft IP. Quartus II synthesis supports gate-level netlist back-annotation, and the HF35 FCBGA industrial temperature range lets the same prototype board be used for both lab bring-up and field-trial deployments, eliminating a separate qualification cycle.
Recommended
PCIe Gen2 Accelerator Cards
The EP4SGX70HF35I4G suits PCIe Gen2 accelerator cards because it integrates hard PCIe Gen1/Gen2 IP blocks with x8 lane support, exposing 488 user I/Os through the 1152-ball FCBGA to attach DDR3 memory and host-side custom logic. With 72.6K logic elements and 7.56 Mbits of TriMatrix memory, the FPGA handles inference acceleration, FPGA-as-a-service workloads, and database query offload. Compared with a discrete PCIe bridge + FPGA architecture, integrating the PCIe controller saves 20-30K LEs and 3-4W, while the industrial -40C to +100C temperature rating meets typical PCIe card ambient envelopes with adequate airflow.
Recommended
High-Performance DSP Coprocessor
The EP4SGX70HF35I4G works as a DSP coprocessor because its hundreds of 18x18 dedicated multiplier blocks combined with 72.6K logic elements deliver hundreds of GMACs of DSP throughput for FIR/FFT/IFFT pipelines, while 7.56 Mbits of TriMatrix memory holds tap coefficients and overlapping window buffers. The transceivers interface directly to high-speed ADC/DAC pairs and the hard DDR3 controllers attach large external memory for radar, image processing, or scientific workloads. The 40 nm low-power process plus industrial temperature rating lets the coprocessor card sit adjacent to a host CPU or DSP without exceeding chassis thermal envelopes.
Recommended
Industrial Test & Measurement
The EP4SGX70HF35I4G fits industrial test and measurement because its 488 user I/Os drive wide parallel ADC/DAC arrays, the integrated multi-gigabit transceivers interface to LXI/AXIe backplanes, and the industrial -40C to +100C temperature rating supports unconditioned factory-floor deployment. With 7.56 Mbits of TriMatrix memory the device buffers waveform captures and correlation sequences in real time, while 72.6K logic elements implement custom triggering and protocol decoding. The 40 nm process and Stratix IV power-optimized ALMs reduce measurement-card power consumption versus previous-generation FPGAs, easing chassis thermal design.
Recommended
Recommended Products Summary
Engineering reference data for EP4SGX70HF35I4G — comparison, design guidance, and compliance information.
Selection Guide
Comparison with Alternatives
| Parameter | This Product | EP4SGX70HF35I3G | EP4SGX70HF35C4G | EP4SGX70HF35C3G | EP4SGX70HF35C2G |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Package | 1152-BBGA, FCBGA (HF35) | 1152-BBGA, FCBGA (HF35) - same | 1152-BBGA, FCBGA (HF35) - same | 1152-BBGA, FCBGA (HF35) - same | 1152-BBGA, FCBGA (HF35) - same |
| Brand | Intel (formerly Altera) | Intel (formerly Altera) | Intel (formerly Altera) | Intel (formerly Altera) | Intel (formerly Altera) |
| Logic Elements | 72,600 | 72,600 | 72,600 | 72,600 | 72,600 |
| Embedded Memory (bits) | 7,564,880 | 7,564,880 | 7,564,880 | 7,564,880 | 7,564,880 |
| User I/O Count | 488 | 488 | 488 | 488 | 488 |
| Temperature Grade | Industrial (-40C to +100C) | Industrial (-40C to +100C) | Commercial (0C to +85C) | Commercial (0C to +85C) | Commercial (0C to +85C) |
| Speed Bin | -4 | -3 | -4 | -3 | -2 |
| RoHS Compliance | Compliant | Compliant | Compliant | Compliant | Compliant |
Key Differentiators
- Industrial temperature grade with high-speed bin (vs EP4SGX70HF35C4G)
- Highest speed bin available in EP4SGX70 family (vs EP4SGX70HF35I3G)
- Maximum logic density in same FCBGA footprint (vs EP4SGX230HF35I4G)
Design Notes
Estimated: at industrial-grade 100C ambient and full transceiver utilization, the EP4SGX70HF35I4G FCBGA requires a heatsink or thermal-interface-material-attached cold plate to keep the junction below 125C. The HF35 1152-ball FCBGA exposes a large die-to-PCB thermal path; design the PCB with at least 4 inner ground/power planes directly under the package, vias stitched on 1.2 mm pitch in a 3x3 array, and a copper coin or lid if NEBS Level 3 thermal compliance is required.
The 1152-ball FCBGA with 35 mm pitch needs a minimum 14-layer PCB with stacked microvias (laser-drilled, 0.1 mm pitch) for breakout. Route all transceiver differential pairs as 100 ohm differential with matched length to within 0.127 mm (5 mil) for SATA/PCIe Gen2 signalling. Keep each transceiver channel's reference clock within 5 mm of the corresponding clock pin and use a 4-layer stripline structure under the BGA to maintain 85 ohm impedance for high-speed signals.
The Stratix IV GX EP4SGX70 typically requires four independent supply rails: 0.95 V VCC (core), 1.1 V VCCR (transceiver analog), 2.5 V VCCPT (PLL analog), and 3.3 V VCCIO (I/O banks). Use a sequence controller (e.g., Altera/Intel-compliant power-management IC) to enforce 0.95 V ramp before 1.1 V/2.5 V ramps to prevent latch-up. Place bulk decoupling 22 uF X5R ceramics at each supply pin pair, plus 0.1 uF and 1 nF capacitors within 1 mm of every VCC pin to suppress transients during simultaneous-switching-output events.
Receiver jitter on the Stratix IV GX transceivers depends on the reference-clock phase-noise performance; use a clock jitter cleaner with sub-1 ps RMS jitter (12 kHz to 20 MHz) for 6.375 Gbps operation. For DDR3 interfaces running at 800 MT/s, perform fly-by topology with VTT termination at the end of each address/command fly-by trace, and place the FPGA on the same side of the PCB as the DIMM connector to minimize via reflections.
Compliance Information
RoHS compliance and lead-free status per Altera/Intel product labeling. REACH, halogen-free, and conflict-mineral disclosure not in provided data and marked unknown. AEC-Q100 not applicable (FPGA is not an automotive-qualified part number under this standard).
