CIII51001-2.4
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Cyclone III Device Handbook
Volume 1
July 2012
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1. Cyclone III Device Family Overview
Cyclone
®
III device family offers a unique combination of high functionality, low
power and low cost. Based on Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company
(TSMC) low-power (LP) process technology, silicon optimizations and software
features to minimize power consumption, Cyclone III device family provides the ideal
solution for your high-volume, low-power, and cost-sensitive applications. To address
the unique design needs, Cyclone III device family offers the following two variants:
■ Cyclone III—lowest power, high functionality with the lowest cost
■ Cyclone III LS—lowest power FPGAs with security
With densities ranging from about 5,000 to 200,000 logic elements (LEs) and
0.5 Megabits (Mb) to 8 Mb of memory for less than ¼ watt of static power
consumption, Cyclone III device family makes it easier for you to meet your power
budget. Cyclone III LS devices are the first to implement a suite of security features at
the silicon, software, and intellectual property (IP) level on a low-power and
high-functionality FPGA platform. This suite of security features protects the IP from
tampering, reverse engineering and cloning. In addition, Cyclone III LS devices
support design separation which enables you to introduce redundancy in a single
chip to reduce size, weight, and power of your application.
This chapter contains the following sections:
■ “Cyclone III Device Family Features” on page 1–1
■ “Cyclone III Device Family Architecture” on page 1–6
■ “Reference and Ordering Information” on page 1–12
Cyclone III Device Family Features
Cyclone III device family offers the following features:
Lowest Power FPGAs
■ Lowest power consumption with TSMC low-power process technology and
Altera
®
power-aware design flow
■ Low-power operation offers the following benefits:
■ Extended battery life for portable and handheld applications
■ Reduced or eliminated cooling system costs
■ Operation in thermally-challenged environments
■ Hot-socketing operation support
July 2012
CIII51001-2.4
