The need for higher density and performance and lower power in FPGA designs is becoming the number one driver in FPGA selection. Accessing these capabilities is usually accomplished by using the latest FPGA generation, the availability of which is also critical to fit within a design window. Prior FPGA generations provided some level of migration between device densities within a single FPGA family without changing the pin-out.
Future-Proof Your Designs
It is now possible to future-proof your Stratix® III FPGA designs to take advantage of the higher performance, higher density, and lower power benefits of Stratix IV E FPGAs. With up-front planning that considers the different power supply voltages and available packages in both families, it is possible to design a circuit board that can be assembled with either a Stratix III or a Stratix IV E FPGA in the same package.
Cross-Family Migration
The ability to do cross-family migration between a Stratix III and Stratix IV E FPGA allows you to design with a Stratix III FPGA today and move to a Stratix IV E FPGA in the future without having to change the device pin-outs or the circuit board layout. For more details on Stratix III to Stratix IV E FPGA cross-family migration, see AN 557: Stratix III to Stratix IV E Cross-Family Migration Guidelines (PDF).
Table 1 shows the supported Stratix III and Stratix IV FPGA migrations within a specific package pin-count combination.
| Table 1. Stratix III and Stratix IV E Package Vertical Migration | |||||
| User I/O (1), Full-Duplex LVDS (Receive/Transmit) | |||||
| Device | Part Number | F780 (2) | F1152 (3) | F1517 (4) | F1760 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stratix III L (Logic) and Stratix III E (Enhanced) FPGAs | EP3SL50 | 480, 56 | |||
| EP3SL70 | 480, 56 | ||||
| EP3SL110 | 480, 56 | 736, 88 | |||
| EP3SL150 | 480, 56 | 736, 88 | |||
| EP3SL200 | 480, 56 | 736, 88 | 960, 112 | ||
| EP3SL340 | 736, 88 | 960, 112 | 1104, 132 | ||
| EP3SE50 | 480, 56 | ||||
| EP3SE80 | 480, 56 | 736, 88 | |||
| EP3SE110 | 480, 56 | 736, 88 | |||
| EP3SE260 | 480, 56 | 736, 88 | 960, 112 | ||
| Stratix IV E (Enhanced) FPGAs | |||||
| EP4SE230 | 480, 56 | ||||
| EP4SE360 | 480, 56 | 736, 88 | |||
| EP4SE530 | 736, 88 | 960, 112 | 960, 112 | ||
| EP4SE820 | 736, 88 | 960, 112 | 1104, 132 | ||
- All I/O count numbers do NOT include dedicated clock inputs
- EP3SL200, EP3SE260, and EP4SE360 devices are available in an H780 package to maintain vertical package migration. These packages require a keep-out area to be created to allow for the overhang of the H package. See the Altera Device Package Information Datasheet (PDF) for details.
- EP3SL340, EP4SE530, and EP4SE820 devices are available in an H1152 package to maintain vertical package migration. These packages require a keep-out area to be created to allow for the overhang of the H package. See the Altera Device Package Information Datasheet (PDF) for details.
- EP4SE530 and EP4SE820 devices are available in an H1517 package to maintain vertical package migration. These packages require a keep-out area to be created to allow for the overhang of the H package. See the Altera Device Package Information Datasheet (PDF) for details.
