Upgraded Arria GX FPGAs now support transceiver speeds up to 3.125 Gbps

The folks at Altera have announced that their Arria GX FPGA family now offers support for transceiver speeds up to 3.125 Gbps, additional serial protocols, and reduced static power.

Based on their 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.

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.

Software and IP support
Arria GX FPGAs utilize the Quartus II design software suite to accelerate compile times, helping users expedite time to market. The folks at Altera say: "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."

Click Here to see an advanced version of the Arria GX datasheet. Quartus II software version 7.2 is available from 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.

Pricing and availability
Pricing for the upgraded Arria GX devices will remain the same as the initial version – US$50 for the EP1AGX50CF484C6 device in 25K unit volume. All Arria GX devices are shipping and available. The Arria GX Development Kit is available for ordering through the Altera online store (Click Here for more details and to order).