EPF10K100ABC356-2 - Flex 10KA FPGA, 100K Gates, 356-BGA | Altera
MPN: EPF10K100ABC356-2 β End of Life| Qty | Unit Price | Extended |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $168 | $168.00 |
| 10 | $155 | $1,550.00 |
| 100 | $138 | $13,800.00 |
| 500 | $122 | $61,000.00 |
| 1,000 | $108 | $108,000.00 |
EPF10K100ABC356-2 Overview
A Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) is a type of programmable logic device (PLD) that combines the gate-level flexibility of mask-programmed ASICs with the in-system reconfigurability of SRAM-based logic arrays. Within the broader semiconductor taxonomy, FPGAs sit between complex PLDs (CPLDs) and full-custom ASICs: more flexible than CPLDs, faster to deploy than ASICs. The FLEX 10KA family is hypernymically classified as a high-density, SRAM-based, embedded-array FPGA, designed for glue-logic replacement, custom datapath implementation, and SOPC prototyping in telecom, industrial, and test equipment.
Key features include 24,576 bits of embedded memory (RAM), 624 Logic Array Blocks (LABs), and an EAB-based architecture that allows embedded RAM, ROM, or multiplier functions to be instantiated directly in the silicon. The device operates from a 3.3 V core supply with separate I/O bank voltages (5.0 V, 3.3 V, or 2.5 V tolerant), supporting multi-voltage interfacing in mixed-signal boards. The 356-ball LBGA package provides high I/O density for the 274 user I/Os while keeping board footprint manageable for prototyping cards and PCI form-factor add-in boards.
From an architectural perspective, the FLEX 10KA device family uses row-and-column interconnect with FastTrack continuous routing paths, giving predictable timing closure at the -2 speed grade. Configuration is loaded via serial PROM (EPC1/EPC2) or byte-wide parallel interface, with in-system programmability (ISP) via JTAG. The 0.30 Β΅m process geometry was state-of-the-art in 1998 and remains adequate for legacy industrial control and instrumentation designs still in production.
Typical applications include telecommunications line cards, industrial motor control front-ends, flat-panel display controllers, and PCI bus bridge implementations. The wide 3.3 V I/O tolerance also makes the part useful for legacy 5 V systems where a level-shifting ASIC would otherwise be required. Designers often pair the EPF10K100A with an EPC2 configuration PROM for standalone board bring-up.
When designing with the EPF10K100ABC356-2, pay close attention to power-supply decoupling on all 3.3 V and VCCINT pins, as the simultaneous switching of 274 I/Os can produce significant SSO noise. A minimum of one 0.1 Β΅F ceramic per VCCIO bank plus bulk decoupling on VCCINT is recommended. JTAG chain integrity must also be validated before configuration; a corrupted chain will prevent device wake-up even with valid configuration data.
Drop-in alternatives for EPF10K100ABC356-2 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 EPF10K100ABC356-2 (same form factor and footprint) β differing in Operating Temperature, Process Technology, Package, Speed Grade, Family.
Quick Comparison Tool β Select alternative parts for side-by-side comparison:
EPF10K100ABC356-1
β Drop-Inπ Reference alternative (not in catalog)
EPF10K100ABC356-3
β Drop-Inπ Reference alternative (not in catalog)
EPF10K100ABC356-2N
β Drop-Inπ Reference alternative (not in catalog)
EPF10K100AQC240-2
β Drop-In β οΈ εζ°εΎ ιͺθ―π Reference alternative (not in catalog)
EPF10K130AQC240-2
β Drop-Inπ Reference alternative (not in catalog)
EPF10K100ABC356-2 Maximum Ratings & Electrical Characteristics
| Family | FLEX 10KA |
| Typical Gates | 100,000 |
| Logic Cells | 4,992 |
| Embedded Memory (bits) | 24,576 |
| Logic Array Blocks (LABs) | 624 |
| User I/Os | 274 |
| Package | 356-LBGA (1.0 mm pitch) |
| Process Technology | 0.30 Β΅m CMOS SRAM |
| Core Voltage | 3.3 V |
| I/O Voltage (VCCIO) | 2.5 V / 3.3 V / 5.0 V tolerant |
| Propagation Delay | 0.6 ns |
| Maximum Frequency | 142.86 MHz |
| Speed Grade | -2 |
| Operating Temperature | 0 Β°C to +70 Β°C (Commercial) |
| Logic Family | CMOS |
| Configuration Method | Serial (EPC1/EPC2) / Byte-wide / JTAG ISP |
| RoHS Status | unknown |
EPF10K100ABC356-2 356-lbga (1.0 mm pitch) Pin Configuration Guide
Pin configuration for EPF10K100ABC356-2 (356-lbga (1.0 mm pitch) 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 EPF10K100ABC356-2.
Refer to the datasheet for full pin configuration.
Typical Applications
EPF10K100ABC356-2 is suitable for 6 applications: PCI Bridge / Glue Logic, Telecom Line Card Interface, Flat-Panel Display Controller, Industrial Motor Control Front-End, Test & Measurement Instrumentation, Legacy ASIC Replacement / Mezzanine Cards.
PCI Bridge / Glue Logic
The EPF10K100ABC356-2 is well-suited for legacy PCI 32-bit/33 MHz bridge and bus-glue logic, where its 274 user I/Os and 142.86 MHz maximum internal frequency comfortably meet the 33 MHz PCI clock domain. According to Altera reference designs, the FLEX 10KA device can implement the full PCI target state machine plus 8-bit BIOS ROM in a single chip. The 24,576 bits of embedded memory map directly onto PCI configuration header and FIFO buffers, eliminating external SRAM. A typical board places the FPGA between a host CPU and a downstream peripheral, replacing three or four discrete 74-series TTL parts and shortening the BOM.
Recommended
Telecom Line Card Interface
In telecom line cards and central-office equipment, the EPF10K100ABC356-2 implements HDB3 line coding, T1/E1 framers, and HDLC controllers as custom datapaths. According to the FLEX 10KA datasheet, the 624 LABs and 0.6 ns propagation delay deliver deterministic timing for synchronous serial interfaces up to 52 Mbps. The wide 5 V tolerant I/O banks connect directly to legacy line-interface transformers without level shifting. The 356-LBGA package allows compact, multi-IC mezzanine layouts typical of legacy cPCI and VME line cards still deployed in telecom infrastructure.
Recommended
Flat-Panel Display Controller
The EPF10K100ABC356-2 has been widely used in LVDS-based flat-panel display controllers, where its 274 I/Os provide enough channels to drive 24-bit color TFT panels plus the control signals. According to Altera application notes, the FLEX 10KA's EABs can implement pixel-clock double-buffering and gamma-correction LUTs without external memory. The 3.3 V core combined with 5 V tolerant I/Os interfaces directly to legacy STN/TFT controllers. Display timing, including HSYNC/VSYNC generation, is implemented in hardware state machines that take advantage of the -2 speed grade's deterministic 0.6 ns propagation delay.
Recommended
Industrial Motor Control Front-End
For industrial motor-control front-ends, the EPF10K100ABC356-2 implements the encoder interface, PWM generation, and Hall-sensor decoding in a single chip. According to the FLEX 10KA datasheet, the device's 24,576 bits of embedded memory support encoder counters and current-loop tables without external SRAM, while the 5 V tolerant I/Os interface directly to optocoupler-isolated feedback signals. Industrial temperature grades (-40 to +85 C, EPF10K100ABC356-2N variant) are commonly deployed in servo-drive boards. The deterministic timing allows up to 16 kHz PWM switching without jitter-induced torque ripple.
Recommended
Test & Measurement Instrumentation
In test and measurement equipment such as logic analyzers, protocol analyzers, and ATE fixtures, the EPF10K100ABC356-2 is used as a pattern-generator and timing engine. The 274 I/Os allow direct stimulus to DUT pin electronics, while the 624 LABs implement deep counter chains for timing measurements. According to Altera documentation, the 0.6 ns propagation delay gives the device 600 ps of intrinsic timing resolution when used with external time-interpolation circuits. Embedded EAB memory is configured as deep trace buffers, capturing up to 4 k samples before host readback via JTAG.
Recommended
Legacy ASIC Replacement / Mezzanine Cards
The EPF10K100ABC356-2 is widely deployed as a fast-turnaround replacement for discontinued gate-array ASICs, particularly on legacy mezzanine cards in aerospace, defense, and industrial automation. According to Altera migration documentation, the FLEX 10KA family matches the timing, drive strength, and 5 V I/O tolerance of mid-1990s gate arrays. The 356-LBGA footprint allows placement on existing ASIC land patterns without PCB rework. Designers can re-host gate-array netlists into the FLEX 10KA using Altera's library-mapped synthesis flow, preserving the original board qualification status.
Recommended
Recommended Products Summary
Engineering reference data for EPF10K100ABC356-2 β comparison, design guidance, and compliance information.
Selection Guide
Comparison with Alternatives
| Parameter | This Product | EPF10K100ABC356-1 | EPF10K100ABC356-3 | EPF10K100ABC356-2N | EPF10K130AQC240-2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brand | Altera (Intel) | Altera (Intel) | Altera (Intel) | Altera (Intel) | Altera (Intel) |
| Package | 356-LBGA | 356-LBGA - same | 356-LBGA - same | 356-LBGA - same | 356-LBGA - same |
| Logic Capacity | 100,000 gates / 4,992 cells | 100,000 gates / 4,992 cells | 100,000 gates / 4,992 cells | 100,000 gates / 4,992 cells | 130,000 gates (+30%) |
| Speed Grade | -2 (0.6 ns / 142.86 MHz) | -1 (slower) | -3 (faster) | -2 (same) | -2 (same) |
| Operating Temperature | 0 Β°C to +70 Β°C (Commercial) | 0 Β°C to +70 Β°C | 0 Β°C to +70 Β°C | -40 Β°C to +85 Β°C (Industrial) | 0 Β°C to +70 Β°C |
| Embedded Memory | 24,576 bits | 24,576 bits | 24,576 bits | 24,576 bits | 32,256 bits (+31%) |
| User I/Os | 274 | 274 | 274 | 274 | 274 |
| Lifecycle Status | Obsolete | Obsolete | Obsolete | Obsolete | Obsolete |
| Core Voltage | 3.3 V | 3.3 V | 3.3 V | 3.3 V | 3.3 V |
Key Differentiators
- Drop-in speed-grade flexibility within the same footprint (vs EPF10K100ABC356-1 and EPF10K100ABC356-3)
- Industrial-temperature variant available in identical package (vs EPF10K100ABC356-2N)
- Upward migration path to higher-density FLEX 10KA (vs EPF10K130AQC240-2)
Design Notes
Estimated: a FLEX 10KA device with 274 user I/Os switching at 33 MHz can draw up to 1.5 A from VCCINT (3.3 V) and another 0.5 A total from the VCCIO banks. Place one 0.1 Β΅F X7R ceramic decoupling capacitor adjacent to every VCC/VCCIO pin pair (approximately 40 pairs on the 356-LBGA package), plus a single 47 Β΅F tantalum bulk capacitor near the FPGA's VCCINT power pin. Inadequate decoupling is the most common cause of configuration failure and JTAG chain errors on FLEX 10KA boards.
The 356-LBGA uses a 1.0 mm ball pitch, which requires NSMD (non-solder-mask-defined) pads with a 0.45 mm pad diameter and microvia or dog-bone fan-out for signal escape. Estimated: trace width 0.15 mm and trace-to-pad clearance 0.10 mm on 0.20 mm via pitch. Place at least one continuous ground plane beneath the BGA to control return-current paths; split power planes should align with the VCCIO bank locations to avoid simultaneous switching noise (SSO) coupling into adjacent I/O banks.
Configuration will silently fail if the configuration PROM data is larger than the device's 0.6 Mbit bitstream budget. The EPC2LC20 typically stores one bitstream; if the design exceeds EPC2 capacity, use the EPC4QC100 in byte-wide mode. JTAG chain order matters: place the FPGA first, the configuration PROM second, and any other JTAG devices (BSCAN, IDCODE) last to preserve correct TAP addressing. Finally, CONF_DONE must be pulled high with a 10 kΞ© resistor and tied through an LED to verify successful configuration during bring-up.
Estimated: simultaneous switching of 32 or more I/Os at 33 MHz can produce 0.5 V ground-bounce on the internal GND reference. Enable the FLEX 10KA's programmable drive-strength and slew-rate controls for each I/O bank in the Quartus/MAX+PLUS II assignment editor; reducing drive strength from 12 mA to 8 mA typically halves the SSO without breaking timing closure. Series-damping resistors (22-33 Ξ©) on high-fanout clock and strobe outputs help reduce reflections on 50 Ξ© controlled-impedance traces.
Compliance Information
EPF10K100ABC356-2 was released by Altera circa 1998, before RoHS took full effect. RoHS, lead-free, and REACH status are unknown in current Intel/Altera product records; for new RoHS-sensitive builds, request a manufacturer compliance letter for the specific date code. Not applicable for AEC-Q100 (FPGA is not automotive-qualified for this part number; industrial-grade EPF10K100ABC356-2N is the appropriate alternative for harsh environments).
