EPF10K50ETC144-1 - FLEX 10KE FPGA 50K Gates 144-LQFP | Intel
MPN: EPF10K50ETC144-1 ✗ End of Life| Qty | Unit Price | Extended |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $38.5 | $38.50 |
| 10 | $32.75 | $327.50 |
| 100 | $27.2 | $2,720.00 |
| 500 | $22.4 | $11,200.00 |
| 1,000 | $18.9 | $18,900.00 |
EPF10K50ETC144-1 Overview
An FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) is a semiconductor integrated circuit that can be configured by the customer or designer after manufacturing to implement arbitrary digital logic functions. FPGAs belong to the broader category of programmable logic devices (PLDs), which sit between fixed-function ASICs and software-programmable processors in the digital design hierarchy. Within that taxonomy: FPGA -> PLD -> programmable logic -> digital IC -> integrated circuit -> semiconductor. The FLEX 10KE family in particular introduced embedded array blocks (EABs) that function as on-chip RAM or ROM, pioneering the System-on-a-Programmable-Chip (SOPC) integration concept.
Key features of the EPF10K50ETC144-1 include 360 LABs for fine-grained logic implementation, 2,880 LEs providing roughly 50K usable gates, and 40,960 RAM bits distributed across embedded array blocks. The 144-pin LQFP package supports 102 user I/Os, while the CMOS process technology keeps quiescent power low. Pin migration is supported within the FLEX 10KE family via SameFrame compatibility, allowing designers to scale density without re-laying out the PCB.
Architecturally, the FLEX 10KE family combines a fine-grained LUT-based logic fabric with coarse-grained EABs that can be configured as 4 Kbit memory blocks with parity or as product-term logic. This hybrid approach makes the device well suited to designs that mix control logic with moderate on-chip data storage. MultiVolt I/O supports interfacing to 5.0 V, 3.3 V, and 2.5 V logic families, simplifying mixed-voltage system integration.
Typical applications include industrial control logic, telecommunications glue logic, custom interface bridges, and legacy system prototyping where the FLEX 10KE is a long-qualified platform. The 50K-gate density positions it for moderate-complexity designs such as state machines, peripheral controllers, and PCI bus bridges that have been in production for years.
When designing with this part, engineers should note that the device is mature and only available from distributors as legacy stock. Reference designs and Quartus II tool support must be obtained from the archived Altera documentation. Plan for long lead times on obsolete variants and verify pin migration compatibility before substituting other FLEX 10KE devices.
This page synthesizes distributor pricing, drop-in alternatives drawn from the same FLEX 10KE family, and practical design notes that go beyond the manufacturer datasheet alone.
Drop-in alternatives for EPF10K50ETC144-1 — 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 EPF10K50ETC144-1 (same form factor and footprint) — differing in Package, Process Technology, Speed Grade, Logic Array Blocks (LABs), Operating Temperature.
Quick Comparison Tool — Select alternative parts for side-by-side comparison:
EPF10K50ETC144-2
✅ Drop-In ⚠️ 参数待验证📋 Reference alternative (not in catalog)
EPF10K30ETC144-1
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$22.4 / Unit
View Datasheet →EPF10K30ETC144-2
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$37.8 / Unit
View Datasheet →EPF10K30ETC144-3
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$35.2 / Unit
View Datasheet →EPF10K20TC144-4
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$18.95 / Unit
View Datasheet →EPF10K10TC144-4N
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$15.5 / Unit
View Datasheet →EPF10K50ETC144-1 Maximum Ratings & Electrical Characteristics
| Family | FLEX 10KE |
| Series | FLEX 10KE |
| Typical Gates | 50,000 |
| Logic Elements (LEs) | 2,880 |
| Logic Array Blocks (LABs) | 360 |
| Embedded Memory (RAM bits) | 40,960 |
| Number of User I/O | 102 |
| Number of I/O Pins (package) | 144 |
| Package | 144-LQFP (TQFP) |
| Mounting Type | Surface Mount |
| Core Voltage | 2.5 V |
| Process Technology | CMOS |
| Internal Frequency (max) | 66.67 MHz |
| Propagation Delay | 0.6 ns |
| Operating Temperature | 0 °C to +70 °C (Commercial) |
EPF10K50ETC144-1 144-lqfp (tqfp) Pin Configuration Guide
Pin configuration for EPF10K50ETC144-1 (144-lqfp (tqfp) 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 EPF10K50ETC144-1.
Refer to the datasheet for full pin configuration.
Typical Applications
EPF10K50ETC144-1 is suitable for 6 applications: Industrial Glue Logic and Bus Bridges, Telecommunications Backplane Controllers, Legacy Peripheral and DMA Controllers, Custom Interface Bridging (5 V to 3.3 V), State Machine and Control Logic Cores, Prototyping and HDL Education Platforms.
Industrial Glue Logic and Bus Bridges
The EPF10K50ETC144-1 fits industrial glue-logic designs because its 50K-gate capacity comfortably handles custom bus-bridge state machines, address decoding, and protocol-conversion logic in legacy PLC and motor-control platforms. With 102 user I/Os and MultiVolt support for 5 V, 3.3 V, and 2.5 V peripherals, the part can interface directly to both legacy 5 V sensors and modern 3.3 V microcontrollers without external level shifters. The 144-pin LQFP is hand-solderable for rework and is well supported by long-established PCB libraries, simplifying maintenance in long-life industrial products.
Recommended
Telecommunications Backplane Controllers
Telecommunications backplanes often rely on FPGAs for serial-protocol bridging, line-card supervision, and low-speed TDM traffic grooming, all of which fit the EPF10K50ETC144-1's 50K-gate / 2,880-LE resource envelope. The device's 40,960 bits of embedded RAM are sufficient to buffer small packets or framing structures, while the 66.67 MHz internal performance comfortably handles E1/T1 and lower-rate telecom interfaces. Pin migration within the FLEX 10KE family lets designers scale density without re-laying out backplane PCBs.
Recommended
Legacy Peripheral and DMA Controllers
The EPF10K50ETC144-1 is well suited to legacy peripheral-controller designs such as custom DMA engines, ISA/PCI bus bridges, and SCSI controllers that have been in production since the late 1990s. Its 102 user I/Os allow wide parallel buses to be terminated directly on the device, and the 360 LABs give deterministic timing for handshaking logic that ASIC designers would otherwise have to commit to silicon. The part is widely available as qualified stock, supporting long-life-cycle programs in medical and aerospace equipment.
Recommended
Custom Interface Bridging (5 V to 3.3 V)
The MultiVolt I/O feature of the EPF10K50ETC144-1 makes it a natural choice for interface-bridging designs where a legacy 5 V peripheral must connect to a modern 3.3 V processor without external level shifters. Each I/O bank can be independently configured for 5.0 V, 3.3 V, or 2.5 V signalling, reducing BOM cost and PCB area. The 102 available I/Os comfortably support parallel interfaces such as IDE, ISA, or proprietary memory buses that still appear in long-life industrial products.
Recommended
State Machine and Control Logic Cores
Engineers continue to use the EPF10K50ETC144-1 for complex state-machine implementations where the fine-grained LUT fabric and 360 LABs offer clean timing closure and predictable propagation delays around 0.6 ns per logic element. Applications include custom sequencers for power-supply controllers, traffic-light and railway-signalling controllers, and machine-tool safety logic. The mature Quartus II toolchain still supports the device, allowing designers to drop in legacy HDL code without re-validating against a new platform.
Recommended
Prototyping and HDL Education Platforms
Universities and training labs continue to use the EPF10K50ETC144-1 on legacy Altera / Intel FPGA development boards because the part is well documented in textbooks from the late 1990s and early 2000s. The 50K-gate density is sufficient for teaching complete CPU cores, custom peripherals, and digital-signal-processing pipelines. The 144-pin LQFP is also friendly to breakout-board designs, allowing students to wire-wrap or hand-solder prototype circuits without BGA rework equipment.
Recommended
Recommended Products Summary
Engineering reference data for EPF10K50ETC144-1 — comparison, design guidance, and compliance information.
Selection Guide
Comparison with Alternatives
| Parameter | This Product | EPF10K50ETC144-2 | EPF10K30ETC144-1 | EPF10K30ETC144-2 | EPF10K30ETC144-3 | EPF10K20TC144-4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brand | Intel | Intel | Intel | Intel | Intel | Intel |
| Package | 144-LQFP (TQFP) | 144-LQFP (TQFP) - same | 144-LQFP (TQFP) - same | 144-LQFP (TQFP) - same | 144-LQFP (TQFP) - same | 144-LQFP (TQFP) - same |
| Family | FLEX 10KE | FLEX 10KE | FLEX 10KE | FLEX 10KE | FLEX 10KE | FLEX 10KA |
| Typical Gates | 50,000 | 50,000 | 30,000 | 30,000 | 30,000 | 20,000 |
| Logic Elements (LEs) | 2,880 | 2,880 | 1,728 | 1,728 | 1,728 | 1,152 |
| Logic Array Blocks (LABs) | 360 | 360 | 216 | 216 | 216 | 144 |
| Embedded Memory (RAM bits) | 40,960 | 40,960 | 24,576 | 24,576 | 24,576 | 12,288 |
| User I/O Pins | 102 | 102 | 102 | 102 | 102 | 102 |
| Core Voltage | 2.5 V | 2.5 V | 2.5 V | 2.5 V | 2.5 V | 5.0 V |
| Lifecycle Status | Obsolete | Obsolete | Obsolete | Obsolete | Obsolete | Obsolete |
Key Differentiators
- Highest logic density in the 144-LQFP FLEX 10KE family (vs EPF10K30ETC144-1)
- Pin-compatible migration path to faster speed grade (vs EPF10K50ETC144-2)
- Significantly larger embedded memory than smaller family members (vs EPF10K20TC144-4)
Design Notes
Do not confuse the EPF10K50ETC144-1 (FLEX 10KE) with the older FLEX 10KA family devices such as EPF10K20TC144-4 - although both ship in the same 144-pin LQFP footprint, the FLEX 10KA uses a 5.0 V core supply while the FLEX 10KE uses 2.5 V. Substituting one for the other without reworking the power tree will damage the device. Always cross-check the family prefix (10KE vs 10KA) on the top-side marking before PCB assembly.
Route all FLEX 10KE VCCINT (2.5 V core) pins to a low-impedance plane with at least one 0.1 µF decoupling capacitor per VCCINT pin, placed within 5 mm of the package. The VCCIO pins must be grouped by bank and each bank should have its own 0.1 µF + 10 µF bulk capacitor. Poor core-supply decoupling is the most common root cause of configuration failures and JTAG communication errors on legacy FLEX 10KE designs.
Take advantage of the FLEX 10KE family's SameFrame pin migration by leaving the 144-pin LQFP footprint generic to the family, then de-rating the design to the common I/O set when substituting between EPF10K50E and EPF10K30E devices. Altera's FLEX 10KE datasheet lists the shared I/O count; design with only those pins as I/O to keep the PCB reusable across the family. This future-proofs the layout for cost-down or density-up substitutions without a board respin.
Estimated: at 66.67 MHz internal frequency with 0.6 ns propagation delay per LE, the longest combinational path should be limited to roughly 8-10 LEs to meet typical 100 MHz timing closure targets. For clock distribution, use the device's dedicated clock inputs (CLK0/CLK1) rather than routing a global clock through general-purpose I/O, which minimizes skew. MultiVolt I/O banks should not be mixed within a single bank - each bank must be configured entirely for one voltage level.
Compliance Information
Compliance status was not provided in the verified distributor data. FLEX 10KE parts pre-date RoHS legislation for many original lots, so RoHS compliance varies by date-code; request a certificate of compliance from the distributor before ordering for RoHS-restricted applications.
