EP1C12Q240C8 - Cyclone FPGA 12,060 LEs 173 I/O 240-PQFP | Intel
MPN: EP1C12Q240C8 ⚠ Last Time Buy| Qty | Unit Price | Extended |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $38.5 | $38.50 |
| 10 | $34.2 | $342.00 |
| 100 | $29.85 | $2,985.00 |
| 500 | $26.4 | $13,200.00 |
| 1,000 | $23.1 | $23,100.00 |
Drop-in alternatives for EP1C12Q240C8 — same package, pin-to-pin compatible. Different-package parts requiring PCB rework are excluded.
Quick Comparison Tool — Select alternative parts for side-by-side comparison:
EP1C12Q240C7N
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View Datasheet →EP1C12Q240C7
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View Datasheet →EP1C12Q240C6N
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View Datasheet →EP1C12Q240C6
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View Datasheet →EP1C12Q240C6NAA
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View Datasheet →EP1C12Q240
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View Datasheet →EP1C12Q240C8 Maximum Ratings & Electrical Characteristics
| Series | Cyclone® |
| Family | Cyclone I (EP1C12) |
| Logic Elements (LEs) | 12,060 |
| Embedded Memory (bits) | 239,616 (234 kbit) |
| User I/O Pins | 173 |
| PLLs | 2 |
| Embedded Multipliers | Yes (per Cyclone architecture) |
| Speed Grade | C8 |
| Core Voltage | 1.5 V |
| I/O Voltage | 3.3 V (LVTTL/LVCMOS/LVDS tolerant) |
| Process Technology | 130 nm CMOS SRAM |
| Package | 240-BFQFP / PQFP-240, gull-wing |
| Mounting Type | Surface Mount |
| Configuration Modes | AS, PS, JTAG |
| JTAG Support | IEEE 1149.1 boundary-scan |
| RoHS Status | Non-Compliant (legacy PQFP) |
EP1C12Q240C8 240-bfqfp / pqfp-240, gull-wing Pin Configuration Guide
Complete pinout information for EP1C12Q240C8 (240-bfqfp / pqfp-240, gull-wing package) with 173 pins. This digital IC includes GPIO, communication interfaces (UART, SPI, I2C), and power pins. Refer to the manufacturer datasheet for alternate pin functions and configuration options. Essential for embedded system design and PCB layout.
No detailed pinout data available for EP1C12Q240C8.
Refer to the datasheet for full pin configuration.
Estimated pin count: 173 pins (digital package)
Safe Operating Area (SOA) & Thermal Characteristics
No official SOA curve available for this digital IC. Always operate within absolute maximum ratings specified in the datasheet. Ensure adequate cooling and derate as needed.
Typical Applications
EP1C12Q240C8 is suitable for 6 applications: Industrial Motor Control State Machine, Legacy Microcontroller Bus Expansion / Glue Logic, Telecom Line-Card Interface Controller, Factory Automation Protocol Bridge, Educational / Hobby FPGA Development Board, Automotive Aftermarket / Hobby CAN-bus Gateway.
Industrial Motor Control State Machine
The EP1C12Q240C8 fits industrial motor-control state machines because its 12,060 LEs and two PLLs provide enough fabric for PID loops, PWM generators, and encoder decoding, while the 240-PQFP package survives the vibration profile of factory-floor equipment better than fine-pitch BGA. With 173 user I/O it directly interfaces to Hall sensors, quadrature encoders, and 3-phase gate-driver PWM outputs. Its 1.5 V core / 3.3 V I/O banks accept 3.3 V Hall/encoder signals directly without external level shifters, simplifying the BOM. Designers should note the C8 timing margin (~275 MHz internal) is sufficient for 50 µs PWM update periods typical of low-to-mid speed V/Hz drives.
Recommended
Legacy Microcontroller Bus Expansion / Glue Logic
The EP1C12Q240C8 is widely deployed as glue logic between legacy 8/16-bit microcontrollers and parallel peripherals (ASICs, FPGAs, memories). Its 173 user I/O split across four banks lets engineers map a 16-bit data bus, 24-bit address bus, plus 12 chip-select and interrupt lines without external bus expander ICs. The 240-PQFP footprint is hand-solderable, which matters for low-volume retrofit boards where fine-pitch BGA rework is impractical. With JTAG-supported in-system programming per IEEE 1149.1, firmware revisions can be applied through the same header used for production test.
Recommended
Telecom Line-Card Interface Controller
Telecom line-card designs historically used the EP1C12Q240C8 as a T1/E1 framer interface controller, taking advantage of its two PLLs for clock recovery and its 173 I/O for parallel backplane buses. The 130 nm Cyclone fabric offers deterministic timing suitable for HDLC encoding and elastic store buffering. The PQFP-240 thermal envelope handles the typical 1.5-2 W dissipation of an idle-moderate workload line-card FPGA without heatsinking. For new designs, migrate to Cyclone IV GX in F256/F324 BGA for built-in transceivers, but sustain legacy platforms with the EP1C12Q240C8 from authorized stock.
Recommended
Factory Automation Protocol Bridge
Factory-automation systems use the EP1C12Q240C8 as a protocol bridge between Profibus, Modbus, and Ethernet/IP segments. The 12,060 LEs are sufficient to host multiple soft-core processors (e.g., Nios II) for protocol stack handling, and the 239 kbit embedded RAM accommodates the buffer pools for serial packet reassembly. The four I/O banks simplify mixed-voltage interfacing — 5 V tolerant inputs via external resistor dividers feed one bank while 3.3 V LVCMOS outputs drive the Ethernet PHY. PQFP-240 mechanical robustness matches the IPC-2221 industrial PCB guideline for vibration and thermal-cycling environments.
Recommended
Educational / Hobby FPGA Development Board
The EP1C12Q240C8 is a popular FPGA on university and hobbyist development boards because its PQFP-240 package can be hand-soldered by students — a near-impossible task with F-BGA. At ~12,060 LEs it can host an entire Nios II soft processor plus peripherals, making it an ideal teaching platform for digital-design and computer-architecture courses. The 173 I/O are exposed through 0.1″ headers on typical dev boards, simplifying logic-analyzer probing. Quartus II Web Edition supports the part free of charge, removing licensing friction for students and makers. The C8 timing grade is more than adequate for classroom clock frequencies of 50-100 MHz.
Recommended
Automotive Aftermarket / Hobby CAN-bus Gateway
The EP1C12Q240C8 serves as a CAN-bus gateway in automotive aftermarket products where the OEM ECU protocols need translation to OBD-II or custom telemetry. The 12,060 LEs comfortably host two CAN controllers plus a Nios II/e processor for message routing. The PQFP-240 mechanical format tolerates the -40 °C to +100 °C automotive under-hood temperature range when derated appropriately, and its 173 I/O easily accommodate dual CAN transceivers, LIN, and SPI peripherals. Note: this part is NOT AEC-Q100 qualified, so it is suitable for aftermarket/commercial-vehicle deployments but not for OEM safety-critical ECUs.
Recommended
Recommended Products Summary
Engineering reference data for EP1C12Q240C8 — comparison, design guidance, and compliance information.
Selection Guide
Comparison with Alternatives
| Parameter | This Product | EP1C12Q240C7N | EP1C12Q240C7 | EP1C12Q240C6N | EP1C12Q240C6 | EP1C12Q240C6NAA | EP1C12Q240 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Package | 240-PQFP (240-BFQFP) | 240-PQFP - same | 240-PQFP - same | 240-PQFP - same | 240-PQFP - same | 240-PQFP - same | 240-PQFP - same |
| Brand | Intel (formerly Altera) | Intel | Intel | Intel | Intel | Intel | Intel |
| Logic Elements | 12,060 | 12,060 | 12,060 | 12,060 | 12,060 | 12,060 | 12,060 |
| Speed Grade | C8 | C7 (faster) | C7 (faster) | C6 (slower) | C6 (slower) | C6 (slower) | C-family (unsuffixed) |
| User I/O | 173 | 173 | 173 | 173 | 173 | 173 | 173 |
| Embedded RAM | 239,616 bits (234 kbit) | 239,616 bits | 239,616 bits | 239,616 bits | 239,616 bits | 239,616 bits | 239,616 bits |
| Core Voltage | 1.5 V | 1.5 V | 1.5 V | 1.5 V | 1.5 V | 1.5 V | 1.5 V |
| Lead-Free Finish | No (legacy SnPb) | Yes (N suffix) | No | Yes (N suffix) | No | Yes (N suffix + AA) | No |
| Approx. 1k-piece Price (USD, 2026-09-06) | 23.10 | 24.50 | 23.80 | 21.20 | 20.50 | 21.40 | 22.10 |
| Process Technology | 130 nm CMOS SRAM | 130 nm CMOS SRAM | 130 nm CMOS SRAM | 130 nm CMOS SRAM | 130 nm CMOS SRAM | 130 nm CMOS SRAM | 130 nm CMOS SRAM |
Key Differentiators
- Same-die speed-grade flexibility across C6/C7/C8 in identical 240-PQFP (vs EP1C12Q240C7N)
- Lead-free finish variant without PCB or bitstream changes (vs EP1C12Q240C8N)
- PQFP-240 hand-solderable footprint vs F-BGA requiring reflow (vs EP1C12F324C8)
Design Notes
The EP1C12Q240C8 requires a 1.5 V core rail and 3.3 V I/O rails, each of which must be decoupled per the Cyclone device handbook. Place a 0.1 µF X7R ceramic capacitor adjacent to every VCCINT/VCCIO pin pair, plus a single 100 µF low-ESR tantalum or polymer bulk capacitor on each rail. Power-on reset must follow the Altera-recommended sequencing (VCCINT ramp first, then VCCIO within 100 ms) to avoid I/O latch-up during cold start. Estimated: at 50% logic utilization and 100 MHz, total power dissipation is approximately 0.8-1.2 W.
Although the 240-PQFP package has a larger thermal footprint than F-BGA, the EP1C12Q240C8 still requires thermal management at high toggle rates. Reference the Cyclone family datasheet thermal-resistance table: theta_JA of the PQFP-240 with JEDEC EIA/JESD51 4-layer test board is approximately 28 °C/W. Estimated: at 1.5 W dissipation, junction temperature rise above ambient is ~42 °C — acceptable up to a 70 °C ambient. Above 70 °C ambient, add a small clip-on heatsink or increase PCB copper area under the exposed die-pad region.
Route all 1.5 V VCCINT and 3.3 V VCCIO power pins with at least 20-mil traces, and provide a continuous power plane under the device. Keep JTAG signals (TCK, TMS, TDI, TDO) short and parallel; add 10 kΩ pull-ups on TCK/TMS/TDI per the IEEE 1149.1 recommendation. The configuration mode pins (MSEL0, MSEL1) must be tied high or low with 1 kΩ resistors — never left floating — to guarantee deterministic boot mode selection. Finally, reserve a 4-pin header for the Altera USB-Blaster download cable footprint.
Three common pitfalls when designing with the EP1C12Q240C8: (1) Do NOT drive I/O pins before VCCIO has ramped — this causes I/O latch-up. (2) Do NOT omit the CONFIG_DONE pull-up; without it, configuration fails silently on power-up. (3) Do NOT assume the PQFP-240 package is RoHS-compliant — the EP1C12Q240C8 itself is non-RoHS (SnPb finish); select the EP1C12Q240C8N or EP1C12Q240C7N variants for RoHS-conformant EU shipments.
Compliance Information
EP1C12Q240C8 ships with SnPb (non-lead-free) finish per Cyclone I family datasheet; it is not RoHS-compliant. Select the EP1C12Q240C8N or EP1C12Q240C7N variant for lead-free / RoHS-compliant EU deployments. Not AEC-Q100 qualified; suitable for industrial, commercial, and hobbyist use, but not automotive OEM safety-critical ECUs.
