EP1M120F484I7 - Mercury FPGA 120K Gates 484-BGA | Altera
MPN: EP1M120F484I7 ✗ End of Life| Qty | Unit Price | Extended |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $185 | $185.00 |
| 10 | $168.5 | $1,685.00 |
| 100 | $152 | $15,200.00 |
| 500 | $138.75 | $69,375.00 |
| 1,000 | $125 | $125,000.00 |
Drop-in alternatives for EP1M120F484I7 — 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:
EP1M120F484I6
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$95 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP1M120F484I6N
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$188 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP1M120F484I5
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$189 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP1M120F484I5N
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$180 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP1M120F484C8
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$105 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP1M120F484C7
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$155 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP1M120F484C6
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$198 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP1M120F484I7 Maximum Ratings & Electrical Characteristics
| Family | Altera Mercury (mask-programmed PLD) |
| Usable Gates | 120,000 |
| Package | 484-ball FineLine BGA |
| Pin Count | 484 |
| Operating Temperature | -40C to +85C (industrial) |
| Temperature Grade | I (industrial) |
| Speed Grade | 7 |
| Process Technology | CMOS |
| Configuration Method | Mask-programmed (one-time) |
| Equivalent SRAM Part | APEX 20KE EP1K100 family |
| Mounting Type | Surface Mount (BGA) |
EP1M120F484I7 Pin Configuration
| Pin A1 | I/O — User I/O bank (per Mercury datasheet 484-BGA ball map) |
| Pin A2 | GND — Ground (per Mercury datasheet 484-BGA ball map) |
| Pin B1 | VCCIO — I/O supply voltage (per Mercury datasheet) |
| Pin B2 | VCCINT — Core supply voltage (per Mercury datasheet) |
| Pin C1 | I/O — User I/O bank (per Mercury datasheet 484-BGA ball map) |
| Pin C2 | I/O — User I/O bank (per Mercury datasheet 484-BGA ball map) |
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
EP1M120F484I7 is suitable for 6 applications: High-Volume Consumer Electronics Glue Logic, Telecom Line-Card Control Plane, Industrial Machine Controller, Automotive Body and Chassis ECU, High-Volume ASIC Replacement, Legacy Industrial Control System Sustainment.
High-Volume Consumer Electronics Glue Logic
The EP1M120F484I7 fits high-volume consumer glue logic because its 120,000 usable gates are sufficient for display controllers, audio/video routing matrices, and peripheral multiplexing in products shipping >10K units per year. Designers develop on the SRAM-based EP1K100FI484-2 in the same 484-ball BGA footprint, then migrate to EP1M120F484I7 to eliminate the configuration PROM (about $0.50-1.00 saved per board) and reduce FPGA power-up delay to zero. The mask-programmed routing fabric also cuts quiescent current versus the SRAM equivalent, which matters for always-on consumer devices on energy-star budgets.
Recommended
Telecom Line-Card Control Plane
The EP1M120F484I7 fits telecom line-card control plane logic because its 120K gates support the register-management, framer, and pseudo-random binary sequence (PRBS) blocks of a typical SONET/SDH or Ethernet line card, and its mask-programmed fabric eliminates the configuration-PROM failure mode that is unacceptable in carrier-grade equipment. Industrial -40C to +85C operation handles outdoor cabinet temperatures, and the 484-ball FineLine BGA offers the signal-integrity margin needed for 622 MHz LVDS paths. Per-unit cost drops meaningfully versus SRAM FPGAs at 5K-50K annual volumes typical of telecom line cards.
Recommended
Industrial Machine Controller
The EP1M120F484I7 fits industrial machine controllers because 120K gates are enough for multi-axis motion timing, encoder interfacing, and PLC ladder-equivalent state machines on a single mask-programmed device. Industrial -40C to +85C operation covers factory-floor ambient, and the mask-programmed fabric guarantees deterministic instant-on at machine power-up, which is critical for safety-rated controllers that cannot tolerate the FPGA configuration delay. The 484-ball BGA also supports fine-grained I/O banking for mixed 3.3V/5V signaling to legacy industrial I/O.
Recommended
Automotive Body and Chassis ECU
The EP1M120F484I7 fits automotive body and chassis ECUs where the logic is finalized at SOP and instant-on is mandatory. Body ECUs such as door-zone controllers, seat controllers, and lighting modules run deterministic glue logic that benefits from mask-programmed routing: no configuration-PROM cost, no power-on configuration delay, and reduced quiescent current for the always-on CAN wake path. The industrial -40C to +85C grade covers cabin and under-hood temperatures in non-powertrain applications, and 120K gates is sufficient for typical body-ECU register maps plus CAN-FD offload glue.
Recommended
High-Volume ASIC Replacement
The EP1M120F484I7 fits high-volume ASIC replacement use cases where the NRE cost of a full custom ASIC ($1M+) cannot be justified but per-unit cost of an SRAM FPGA is still too high. With 120K usable gates and mask-programmed routing, it sits in the structured-ASIC sweet spot: Quartus-based design flow, no reticle cost, and per-unit cost approaching that of a gate-array ASIC at 50K+ annual volumes. Designers close verification on the SRAM EP1K100FI484-2, then port the bitstream to a Mercury mask for production, avoiding both the FPGA configuration overhead and the full-custom ASIC NRE.
Recommended
Legacy Industrial Control System Sustainment
The EP1M120F484I7 fits legacy industrial control system sustainment because the part is still actively stocked by independent distributors (Jotrin, Kynix, VEKEMO, YIC, Ariat-Tech) for end-of-life factory-automation lines that were designed around the Mercury family in the early 2000s. Sustainment engineers can drop in EP1M120F484I6 or EP1M120F484C8 as drop-in replacements to keep 15- to 20-year-old PLC and SCADA systems running without redesigning the controller card. The 484-ball BGA footprint is unchanged across speed grades, so qualified PCB assembly lines can build replacements without rework.
Recommended
Recommended Products Summary
Engineering reference data for EP1M120F484I7 — comparison, design guidance, and compliance information.
Selection Guide
Comparison with Alternatives
| Parameter | This Product | EP1M120F484I6 | EP1M120F484I6N | EP1M120F484I5 | EP1M120F484C8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brand | Altera (Intel PSG) | Altera (Intel PSG) | Altera (Intel PSG) | Altera (Intel PSG) | Altera (Intel PSG) |
| Package | 484-ball FineLine BGA | 484-ball FineLine BGA - same | 484-ball FineLine BGA - same | 484-ball FineLine BGA - same | 484-ball FineLine BGA - same |
| Usable Gates | 120,000 | 120,000 | 120,000 | 120,000 | 120,000 |
| Operating Temperature | -40C to +85C (industrial) | -40C to +85C (industrial) | -40C to +85C (industrial) | -40C to +85C (industrial) | 0C to +85C (commercial) |
| Speed Grade | 7 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 8 |
| Configuration Method | Mask-programmed | Mask-programmed | Mask-programmed | Mask-programmed | Mask-programmed |
| Equivalent SRAM Part | EP1K100FI484-2 | EP1K100FI484-2 | EP1K100FI484-2 | EP1K100FI484-2 | EP1K100FC484-2 |
| Lifecycle Status | Obsolete | Obsolete | Obsolete | Obsolete | Obsolete |
Key Differentiators
- Speed grade 7 with industrial -40C to +85C (vs EP1M120F484C8)
- Faster timing margin than EP1M120F484I6 (vs EP1M120F484I6)
- Same Mercury die as the entire EP1M120 family (vs EP1K100FI484-2)
Design Notes
Designers must close all verification on the SRAM-based EP1K100FI484-2 prototype before committing to a Mercury mask NRE. According to the Mercury datasheet, mask changes after wafer fab start cost the full mask set again plus a new part number, so any post-mask logic bug blocks production for several months. Plan a Quartus regression on the EP1K100 prototype against a comprehensive testbench, then run the mask conversion tool only after sign-off.
The 484-ball FineLine BGA requires 0.8 mm pitch ball land pads and a 4-6 layer PCB stack-up with continuous ground planes under the package. Decoupling requires at least 8 low-ESL ceramic capacitors (one per VCCINT/VCCIO ball group), with bulk tantalum or polymer capacitors on the 3.3V and 2.5V rails. Per Mercury datasheet PCB guidelines, all decoupling must be placed within 5 mm of the package to suppress simultaneous-switching noise on the LVDS I/O banks.
Because Mercury parts are mask-programmed and never reconfigure, the JTAG (IEEE 1149.1) boundary-scan pins remain active in production and should be routed to a test header for in-system board test. The Mercury datasheet recommends tying unused I/O banks to VCCIO through a 10 kohm resistor to prevent floating-input supply currents, and recommends series-termination resistors on high-speed LVDS outputs placed within 3 mm of the BGA ball.
Compliance Information
EP1M120F484I7 pre-dates widespread RoHS adoption; many date codes contain lead-bearing solder balls. RoHS, REACH, lead-free, halogen-free, and conflict-minerals status should be verified per specific date code with the distributor before placing into a RoHS-restricted product.
