Altera broadens markets for Arria GX Family

Altera Corporation has announced its Arria GX FPGA family now offers support for transceiver speeds up to 3.125 Gbps, additional serial protocols and reduced static power. Based on the proven Stratix II GX technology, Arria GX FPGAs are designed to deliver robust signal integrity at a low price for higher volume applications. The increased transceiver speeds, expanded protocol support and reduced static power enables the Arria GX family to deliver greater value in communications, broadcast, computer, storage and industrial markets.

The Arria GX family includes increased performance and function of the transceivers to drive serial interfaces at speeds from 600 Mbps up to 3.125 Gbps and a reduction in static power of up to 20 percent. In addition, Arria GX FPGAs provide support for more protocols, including XAUI, SDI, CPRI, OBSAI and SerialLite II, along with the ability to develop proprietary, serial-based IP using its Basic mode. The Arria GX family continues to support PCI Express (PCIe), Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) and Serial RapidIO (SRIO) protocols. The upgraded device also includes performance-enhancing features such as channel equalization. Arria GX FPGAs utilize flip-chip packaging technology that provides superior signal integrity compared to wire-bond packages.

“We’ve expanded our initial Arria GX product offering to address an increasing number of applications requiring additional transceiver performance,” said Luanne Schirrmeister, director of marketing, low-cost products at Altera Corporation. “We’ve enhanced an award-winning FPGA family by expanding the serial protocol support to focus on higher volume applications.”
The Arria GX family is comprised of five devices ranging in density from 21K to 90K LEs, up to 4.5 Mbits of embedded memory and up to 176 multipliers. The family is built on Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company’s (TSMC’s) established 90-nm process.

Comprehensive Software and IP Support
Arria GX FPGAs utilize the industry-leading Quartus II design software to accelerate compile times, helping users expedite time to market. With outstanding software tools, verified intellectual property (IP) cores, complete characterization reports, reference designs, and excellent support, customers can begin designing immediately with Arria GX devices.

An advanced version of the Arria GX datasheet can be downloaded at http://www.altera.com/literature/hb/agx/agx_5v1_01_advanced_copy.pdf. Quartus II software version 7.2 is available at www.altera.com/download. An upgraded version of Quartus II software will be available soon; designers can complete their Arria GX design using Quartus II v7.2 software, and then port the design to new software version.

Altera