Powerful partners optimise FPGA management: News from Altera Europe

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Altera Corp has teamed up with Bellnix, Linear Technology, National Semiconductor, Texas Instruments and Volterra Semiconductor to release a complete power management solution for designers working with its FPGAs. This collaboration, including the introduction of new PowerPlay technology in Quartus II software version 4.2, helps customers manage power consumption while optimising the performance of their Stratix II designs. Customers designing with Stratix II FPGAs can leverage defined solutions using voltage regulators, voltage supervisors, voltage references and reference designs from leading power management vendors.

'Bellnix has developed power supply solutions to optimise the performance of Altera's leading-edge 90nm Stratix II FPGAs', said Shotaro Suzuki, President of Bellnix.

'Using Bellnix's ultrafast, high-efficiency DC/DC convertor BSV-H series, customers can expect superior stability and power characteristics for Stratix II FPGAs'.

According to Todd Reimund, Linear's Director of Marketing: 'Linear Technology offers compact solutions for powering all Altera FPGAs and CPLDs'.

'Our solutions optimise Stratix II performance and simplify the power design by providing excellent transient response and precision low voltage regulation'.

'National Semiconductor has developed best-in-class power management products and design tools to address the challenge of moving to 90nm devices', said Jeff Bessa, Americas Marketing Director for National Semiconductor.

'We have worked with Altera to build reference designs, develop design tools and codefine new power management products that are optimised for use with Altera's newest FPGAs'.

'This allows our customers to implement complete power solutions with minimal effort'.

'TI leverages its comprehensive set of high-performance power management products and technical support to address every power management design requirement of tomorrow's FPGA-based applications', said Greg Waterfall, Director of Product Development for TI's Power Management Products.

'Customers using our library of reference designs can benefit from simplified power design when implementing Altera's Stratix II FPGAs'.

William Numann, Vice President of Marketing for Volterra Semiconductor Corp, said: 'Volterra is pleased to offer a series of high frequency, integrated step-down switching regulators that are ideal for powering Altera's Stratix II FPGAs'.

'Our ultrasmall, highly efficient reference designs were chosen by Altera to provide their customers with an off-the-shelf solution that meets the challenging requirements of powering the Stratix II devices'.

Altera took many steps in the development of its 90nm Stratix II and Cyclone II devices to control power consumption while delivering increased performance.

Stratix II devices are the first high-performance, high-density FPGAs to use the combination of low-k dielectric material and a new, more efficient logic structure, called adaptive logic modules (ALMs), to obtain maximum performance while minimising power consumption.

Additionally, Altera optimised voltage thresholds, changed the length of transistors to maximise performance of critical paths, and minimised static power of noncritical paths within the device.

'Customers require methodologies for optimising design performance while managing static and dynamic power consumption at 90nm', said David Greenfield, Altera's Senior Director of Product Marketing for High-Density FPGAs.

'Working with industry-leading vendors allows us to provide customers with the tools they need to manage power consumption and realise performance benefits when designing with Stratix II devices, the industry's fastest FPGAs'.

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Powerful partners optimise FPGA management

Altera Corp has teamed up with Bellnix, Linear Technology, National Semiconductor, TI and Volterra Semiconductor to release a complete power management solution for designers working with its FPGAs.