Efinix Targets Mass-Market Devices with Its New Topaz FPGA Line
Energy-efficient chips built on the same process node as its Titanium line, and can be specified with quad-core RISC-V processors too.
Programmable logic specialist Efinix has announced the launch of a new family of field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), the Topaz line — optimized for performance in a low power envelope and targeting direct deployment in mass-market devices, rather than serving as a prototyping platform for later transition to a fixed-feature chip.
"Topaz once again demonstrates Efinix's leadership position in the market," boasts company co-founded, chief executive officer, and president Sammy Cheung of Efinix's latest launch. "The family features the perfect combination of performance and power, delivering the clear technological advantage of the Efinix architecture to the multi-billion-dollar, high-volume FPGA market and traditional custom silicon markets alike."
The Topaz family is designed as an alternative to the company's existing Titanium line, built on the same 16nm CMOS process node but optimized for both power efficiency and for mass-market deployment — meaning Efinix envisions devices shipping with a Topaz chip or two on-board, without needing to move from FPGA to an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) as part of a route to mass production.
"The Topaz line perfectly complements the power and performance-optimized Titanium line," claims Efinix's Mark Oliver. "Whereas Titanium finds a natural fit within the high-performance communications and power-efficient compute markets, Topaz satisfies the needs of high-volume and mainstream applications that need a cost-effective blend of performance and low power consumption."
Features and specification vary, as you'd expect, by model, with the entry-level Tz50 boasting 52,160 logic elements, 2.4Mb RAM blocks, 34 general-purpose input/output (GPIO) and 146 high-speed input/output pins while the range-topping Tz325 features 326,080 logic elements, 19.22Mb RAM blocks, 181 GPIO and 235 high-speed IO pins.The Tz75, Tz100, Tz200, and Tz325 also benefit from an on-board quad-core RISC-V processor, PCI Express Gen. 3 connectivity, up to four each transmit and receive MIPI D-PHY connections, and single- or dual-channel LPDDR4 RAM support.
More information on the new parts is available on the Efinix website; pricing had not been disclosed at the time of writing.