AN 763: Intel® Arria® 10 SoC Device Design Guidelines

ID 683192
Date 5/17/2022
Public
Document Table of Contents

3.4. HPS EMIF Design Considerations

A critical component to the HPS is its external SDRAM memory. The following design considerations help you properly design the interface between SDRAM memory and the HPS.

When connecting external SDRAM to the HPS, refer to the following essential documentation:
  • Intel® Arria® 10 Core Fabric and General Purpose I/O Handbook
  • External Memory Interface Handbook, Volume 3: Reference Material

GUIDELINE: When connecting external SDRAM to the HPS, refer to the Intel® Arria® 10 Core Fabric and General Purpose I/O Handbook

The Intel® Arria® 10 Core Fabric and General Purpose I/O Handbook includes information on the Hard Memory Controller (HMC) block and hardened feature support for DDR SDRAM memories in the I/O elements. The handbook also shows the I/O column architecture, where the specific HMC block accessible to the HPS resides, and the number of supported interfaces of a given type for the available device/package combinations. The handbook is a central source of documentation for the FPGA portion of SoC devices.

For guidance on connecting the HPS-accessible hard memory controller block to the HPS, study the following sections of the handbook:
  • Chapter 5: I/O and High Speed I/O in Intel® Arria® 10 Devices - GPIO Banks, SERDES and DPA Locations in Intel® Arria® 10 Devices under I/O Resources in Intel® Arria® 10 Devices section

    This section shows the I/O column and bank locations for all device and package combinations across all Intel® Arria® 10 family variants, including the relative location of the HPS to its accessible banks.

  • Chapter 6: External Memory Interfaces in Intel® Arria® 10 Devices - Memory Interfaces Support in Intel® Arria® 10 Device Packages

    This section shows the number of supported memory types and widths supported by Arria 10 SX device/package combinations.

GUIDELINE: When connecting external SDRAM to the HPS, refer to the, External Memory Interface Handbook, Volume 3: Reference Material

External Memory Interface Handbook, Volume 3: Reference Material includes the details required to understand what specific I/O banks are used for HPS external memory interfaces, where address/command, ECC and data signals are located. The handbook also consists of important information on restrictions on the placement of these external memory interface signals within the banks and any flexibility the designer has in varying from the default placement. While Intel® recommends that you familiarize yourself with all the content available in the three volumes that make up The EMIF Handbook, understanding the following section found in volume 3 is a prerequisite to properly design the Intel® Arria® 10 EMIF for the HPS IP in your application.

  • Chapter 2: Functional Description – Intel® Arria® 10 EMIF, section Intel® Arria® 10 EMIF for Hard Processor Subsystem

    This section states the specific external SDRAM memory types, speeds, widths, and interface and device configurations supported for HPS external memory interfaces in Intel® Arria® 10 SX devices. A diagram is provided that shows the specific I/O bank and lane locations for address/command, ECC, and data signals. See the “Restrictions on I/O Bank Usage for Arria 10 EMIF IP with HPS” subsection for detailed information on memory interface signal placement when varying from the Intel® Arria® 10 EMIF for the HPS IP default locations.

The following design guidelines supplement the information found in the previously referenced documentation.