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Test & Measurement
Communication Testers
FPGAs for 800GE, PCIe, and 5G/6G test platforms with real-time signal processing.
Testing at the Speed of the Network
Altera FPGAs are at the core of high-performance test platforms targeting today’s most advanced communication technologies, enabling real-time signal capture, modulation analysis, protocol decoding, and jitter measurement for RF and high-speed digital interfaces.
With hardened Ethernet IP, multi-rate transceivers up to 116 Gbps, and support for beamforming, MIMO, and IQ modulation, Altera devices validate physical and MAC layers, stress-test switching infrastructure, and ensure compliance with evolving 3GPP and IEEE standards.
The Challenges, and Why FPGA
The Challenge
800GE Line-Rate Validation
Ethernet testers must generate traffic and inject errors at 400GE and 800GE line rates.
Why FPGA
Hardened Ethernet IP
Multi-rate transceivers up to 116 Gbps validate physical and MAC layers at line rate.
The Challenge
PCIe Compliance & Margining
PCIe testers must validate lane margining and protocol compliance across configurations.
Why FPGA
High-Performance FPGA Fabric
Agilex 7 validates PCIe links against industry standards with scalable performance.
The Challenge
Evolving 5G/6G Standards
3GPP standards and O-RAN fronthaul protocols evolve faster than fixed test hardware.
Why FPGA
Reprogrammable RF Test Paths
Adapt to evolving 3GPP standards without a hardware respin.
Why Altera
Multi-Rate Transceivers
Support PCIe, CPRI, JESD204, and Ethernet standards from one transceiver architecture.
Real-Time DSP for RF Validation
FFTs, filtering, IQ modulation, and EVM calculations run in real time.
Precision Clocking & Triggers
Low-jitter, deterministic timing for demanding test cycles.
Proven in PCIe Test Equipment
Agilex 7 M-Series powers commercial PCIe protocol testers today.
Get Started
More Test & Measurement Applications
Automated Test Equipment (ATE)
High-performance, low-latency FPGAs for semiconductor, display, image sensor, SoC and memory ATE
Digital & RF Testers
Real-time signal processing FPGAs for oscilloscopes, spectrum analyzers, and RF testers.
Automotive Testers
Flexible FPGAs for in-vehicle network, ADAS, and ECU testing platforms.
Common Questions
An FPGA can capture signals, decode protocols, generate traffic and run real-time modulation analysis. Parallel logic, DSP and transceivers support Ethernet, PCIe and wireless test paths, including physical- and MAC-layer validation, switching-infrastructure stress tests and analysis of RF or high-speed digital interfaces.
The options differ in their Ethernet IP implementation: Agilex 7 F-Tile includes 400GbE hard IP, while the 800GbE option uses partner MAC, PCS and RS-FEC IP. Tester design must match the selected IP and transceiver resources to traffic generation, packet analysis and link-validation requirements. Explore 400GE and 800GE FPGA Ethernet design resources
PCIe test equipment combines the selected transceiver implementation with protocol controller IP and tester logic. Agilex 7 resources include an F-Tile Gen6 demonstration and partner soft controller options, supporting evaluation of protocol analysis and link testing without assuming every FPGA configuration supports the same PCIe generation. Explore PCIe tester interface and protocol integration
FPGA DSP implements FFTs, filtering, IQ modulation and EVM calculations in hardware. These functions complement signal capture, beamforming and MIMO processing, providing a programmable analysis path for wireless testers as their RF workloads and protocol requirements evolve.
Reprogrammable test paths allow wireless protocol functions and test behavior to change without replacing fixed-function logic. Soft IP and configurable transceivers support adaptation of 5G/6G and fronthaul testing, with the revised implementation matched to the platform’s available interfaces and processing resources.