Gate-count anchor for medium-density logic
The EP4CE115F23C8LN is an Intel Cyclone IV E FPGA with 114,480 logic elements — enough to absorb a soft-core processor, a DDR controller, and several peripheral bridges without spilling into a larger package. The 280 I/O lines in a 484-ball FBGA give the board designer enough escape routing for a wide parallel bus without resorting to a high-layer-count stackup.
On-chip memory and supply rails
3,981,312 bits of embedded RAM (3.8 Mbit) serve as block memory for FIFOs, line buffers, or dual-port register files — enough to hold a full VGA frame buffer at 8-bit depth. The core operates from 0.97 V to 1.03 V, a narrow window that demands a regulated supply rail with ±30 mV tolerance; a standard 1.0 V LDO with 1% accuracy covers it. The 7,155 LAB/CLB blocks each contain 16 logic elements, giving the synthesis tool fine granularity for pipelined datapaths.
Housed in a 484-ball FBGA measuring 23×23 mm, the 0.8 mm ball pitch requires a 4-layer PCB minimum for fan-out — the inner two layers handle the core and I/O bank voltages. The commercial temperature range (0°C to 85°C junction) suits indoor equipment, telecom racks, and benchtop instrumentation; not rated for extended automotive or outdoor enclosure use without thermal management.