Basic Product Information
Part Number: EP3C40F780C6N
| Field |
Value |
| Manufacturer |
Altera (Intel Programmable Solutions Group) |
| Device Type |
EP3C40F780C6N |
| Package |
780-FBGA (FineLine BGA, 29 x 29 x 1.75 mm, 1.0mm pitch) |
| Compliance |
RoHS Compliant (N suffix = lead-free) |
| Grade |
Commercial (0°C to +85°C TJ) |
| Series |
Cyclone® III |
| Product Status |
Active / NRND (Not Recommended for New Designs) |
| MSL |
MSL 3 (168 Hours) |
| ECCN |
3A991.d |
Part Number Decoding
| Segment |
Value |
Meaning |
| EP3C |
Cyclone III |
FPGA family identifier |
| 40 |
~39,600 LEs |
Logic density index |
| F |
FineLine BGA |
Packaging type (FBGA) |
| 780 |
780 pins |
Pin count |
| C |
Commercial |
Temperature grade (0°C ~ 85°C) |
| 6 |
Speed grade 6 |
Fastest grade in Cyclone III (lower = faster) |
| N |
Lead-free |
RoHS-compliant package |
Core Electrical Parameters
| Parameter |
Value |
Unit |
| FPGA Family |
Cyclone® III (SRAM-based) |
– |
| Process Technology |
65nm LP (TSMC low-power) |
– |
| Logic Elements (LEs) |
39,600 |
– |
| Logic Array Blocks (LABs) |
2,475 |
– |
| Adaptive Logic Modules (ALMs) |
2,475 |
– |
| Embedded Memory (M9K Blocks) |
126 blocks |
– |
| Total Embedded RAM |
1,161,216 |
bits (1,134 Kbits / ~141.8 KB) |
| Embedded Multipliers (18×18) |
126 |
– |
| Maximum User I/O |
535 |
(780-FBGA package) |
| Number of I/O Banks |
8 |
– |
| Global Clock Networks |
20 |
– |
| PLLs |
4 |
(5 outputs per PLL) |
| Speed Grade |
C6 (fastest) |
– |
| Maximum Operating Frequency |
~472.5 |
MHz (internal) |
| Core Supply Voltage (VCCINT) |
1.15 ~ 1.25 (1.2 typical) |
V |
| I/O Supply Voltage (VCCIO) |
1.2 / 1.5 / 1.8 / 2.5 / 3.3 |
V (per bank) |
| Configuration Interface |
JTAG / AS / PS / FPP |
– |
| Configuration Device |
EPCS16 / EPCS64 / EPCQ128 |
– |
| Single-Ended I/O Standards |
LVTTL, LVCMOS, SSTL, HSTL, PCI, PCI-X |
– |
| Differential I/O Standards |
LVDS, BLVDS, mini-LVDS, RSDS, PPDS, LVPECL, SSTL, HSTL |
– |
| External Memory Interfaces |
DDR SDRAM, DDR2 SDRAM, SDR SDRAM, QDRII+ SRAM |
– |
| LVDS Data Rate (left/right banks) |
Up to 875 |
Mbps |
| LVDS Data Rate (top/bottom banks) |
Up to 640 |
Mbps (external resistor) |
| DDR2 SDRAM Data Rate |
Up to 400 |
Mbps |
| On-Chip Termination (OCT) |
Series termination with calibration |
– |
| Hot Socketing Support |
Yes |
– |
| Design Security |
AES 256-bit (Cyclone III LS only) |
– |
| Embedded Processor Support |
Nios® II, ARM Cortex-M1, Freescale V1 ColdFire |
– |
| Operating Temperature |
0 ~ +85 |
°C (TJ, Commercial) |
| Package Dimensions |
29 x 29 x 1.75 |
mm |
| Factory Pack Quantity |
36 |
Tray |
Core Features & Advantages
The EP3C40F780C6N is Altera’s Cyclone® III FPGA with 39,600 logic elements, 126 embedded 18×18 multipliers, 1.13 Mbits of embedded memory, 4 PLLs, and 535 user I/Os in a 780-pin FineLine BGA — delivering mid-range FPGA density with the lowest static power in its class (under 1W typical) thanks to TSMC’s 65nm low-power process, making it the cost-performance sweet spot for industrial, video processing, and communications applications.
- Primary Function: 39,600-LE SRAM-based FPGA, 65nm LP process, 1.13 Mbits embedded RAM, 126 multipliers, 4 PLLs, 535 I/Os, 8 I/O banks, multi-standard I/O (LVDS/LVCMOS/SSTL/HSTL/PCI), DDR2 memory interface, 780-FBGA commercial-grade, speed grade C6.
- Advantages:
- TSMC 65nm LP Process — Lowest Static Power in Mid-Range FPGA Class: The Cyclone III family is fabricated on TSMC’s 65nm low-power (LP) process, specifically optimized for low static power consumption. The EP3C40F780C6N typically draws under 200mW static power at 85°C junction temperature — dramatically lower than competing 65nm FPGAs from Xilinx (Spartan-3A DSP) which consume 2–5× more static power. For industrial systems that operate 24/7 in sealed enclosures without active cooling, this low static power eliminates the need for heatsinks and fans, improving reliability (no moving parts) and reducing system-level power cost by $5–$10/year per unit at $0.10/kWh.
- 126 Embedded 18×18 Multipliers — DSP-Ready Without Logic Element Overhead: The 126 embedded hardware multipliers operate independently of the logic element fabric, performing 18×18-bit signed or unsigned multiplication in a single clock cycle. This enables the EP3C40F780C6N to implement 126 parallel multiply-accumulate (MAC) operations per clock — equivalent to a 126-tap FIR filter at full clock rate, or a 64K-point FFT in under 1ms. Without these embedded multipliers, each 18×18 multiply would consume ~200 LEs in the logic fabric, requiring 25,200 LEs just for the multipliers — leaving only 14,400 LEs for the rest of the design. The dedicated multipliers free up 64% of the logic fabric for state machines, control logic, and protocol processing.
- 535 User I/Os in 8 Independent Banks — Multi-Voltage, Multi-Protocol on One Chip: The 8 I/O banks each have independent VCCIO rails (1.2V, 1.5V, 1.8V, 2.5V, or 3.3V), allowing the EP3C40F780C6N to interface with multiple voltage domains simultaneously — e.g., 3.3V LVCMOS for legacy peripherals, 1.8V SSTL-18 for DDR2 SDRAM, 2.5V LVDS for high-speed ADC data links, and 1.5V HSTL for QDRII+ SRAM — all on a single device without external level shifters. The 535 I/O count in the 780-FBGA package provides the highest I/O density in the Cyclone III family, enabling pin-hungry applications like wide parallel memory interfaces, video data buses, and multi-channel serializer/deserializer (SERDES) implementations.
Typical Application Scenarios
- Industry: Industrial Control / Video Processing / Communications / Medical / Test & Measurement
- Equipment: Industrial vision systems, video surveillance cameras, motor drive controllers, protocol bridge cards, medical ultrasound front-ends, automated test equipment, software-defined radio
- Use Cases:
- Industrial Machine Vision Frame Grabber with DDR2 Buffer: The EP3C40F780C6N serves as the frame grabber FPGA in an industrial machine vision camera, receiving parallel pixel data from a CMOS image sensor (up to 12-bit, 80MHz pixel clock via LVCMOS), performing real-time image preprocessing (defective pixel correction, white balance, noise reduction using the 126 embedded multipliers for Bayer demosaicing), and buffering frames into a DDR2 SDRAM (up to 400Mbps data rate) for DMA transfer to the host processor. The 4 PLLs generate independent clock domains for the sensor interface, DDR2 memory controller, image processing pipeline, and PCI/PCIe host interface. The low static power allows the camera to operate in sealed IP67 enclosures without active cooling in factory environments up to 60°C ambient.
- Video Surveillance IP Camera with Multi-Stream H.264 Encoding: The EP3C40F780C6N implements the video preprocessing and multi-stream distribution pipeline in a network surveillance camera. The FPGA receives raw sensor data, performs lens distortion correction, 2D/3D noise reduction (using embedded multipliers for temporal filtering), and outputs two simultaneous streams: a full-resolution main stream to the H.264 encoder ASIC and a downsampled sub-stream for local display and motion detection. The LVDS interface (up to 875 Mbps per channel on left/right banks) connects to the image sensor at high data rates, while the DDR2 interface provides the frame buffer for noise reduction algorithms. The 535 I/Os accommodate the parallel sensor bus, DDR2 bus, dual video output buses, and Ethernet MAC control signals on a single device.
- Multi-Protocol Industrial Communication Gateway: The EP3C40F780C6N bridges multiple industrial communication protocols in a single gateway device — e.g., implementing PROFINET, EtherCAT, and Modbus TCP on the same FPGA. The 8 independent I/O banks allow each protocol interface to operate at its native voltage (3.3V for Ethernet PHY, 2.5V for LVDS backplane, 1.8V for DDR2 packet buffer), while the 4 PLLs generate independent clock domains for each protocol’s timing requirements. The Nios II soft processor core runs the protocol stack software, while the FPGA fabric handles the real-time packet processing and deterministic timing that software-only implementations cannot achieve. The 39,600 LEs provide sufficient capacity for three simultaneous protocol stacks plus a shared DDR2 memory controller and Ethernet MAC.
Market Reference Price
| Market |
Price Range |
Currency |
| DigiKey / Mouser (franchised) |
$449.53 (1+ pcs) |
USD |
| Microchip USA (independent) |
$273.31 (10+ pcs) |
USD |
| Worldway Electronics (spot) |
$196.48 (100+ pcs) |
USD |
| Components-World (spot) |
$73.31 (1+ pcs) |
USD |
Note: Price spread is extreme — franchised distributors charge $449 while spot market ranges from $73 to $280. Verify authenticity, date codes, and traceability carefully when sourcing from non-franchised channels. Arrow lists this part as NRND. For new designs, consider Cyclone V (5CEFA5F23C6N) or Cyclone 10 GX as modern alternatives with lower power, higher density, and longer projected lifecycle.
Related Models Comparison
| Model |
Difference |
Application |
| EP3C40F780C8N |
Same die, speed grade C8 (slower), lower cost |
Cost-optimized designs with relaxed timing |
| EP3C40F780C6 |
Same die, lead-containing (non-RoHS), lower cost |
Non-RoHS systems, legacy manufacturing |
| EP3C40F484C6N |
Same die, 484-pin FBGA, 328 I/O |
Pin-count constrained designs |
| EP3C25F780C6N |
24,624 LEs, 66 multipliers, same package |
Lower density, same PCB footprint drop-in |
| 5CEFA5F23C6N (Cyclone V) |
28nm, 46K LEs, 3.9 Mbits RAM, hard memory controller, lower power |
New designs requiring modern FPGA with better PPA |
| 10CL040YF484C6G (Cyclone 10 LP) |
Same 60nm process, 39,600 LEs, 484-pin, lower cost |
Cyclone III replacement in new designs with fewer I/O needs |
| XC3S1200E-FG320 (Xilinx Spartan-3E) |
Competing mid-range FPGA, older 90nm process |
Xilinx-based legacy designs, cross-vendor comparison |
