Summary of ALCHITRY – FPGA DEVELOPMENT BOARDS FOR HOBBYISTS
This article introduces the Alchitry Au, an FPGA development board designed for hobbyists to create digital circuits without expensive ASIC manufacturing. It highlights the Artix 7 XC7A35T-1C chip, offering significant logic capacity and DDR3 RAM. The board supports versatile I/O, USB-C power/configuration, and a high-speed serial interface, enabling users to reprogram hardware repeatedly for various projects using modern tools instead of legacy software.
Parts used in the Alchitry Au:
- Artix 7 XC7A35T-1C FPGA
- 256MB DDR3 RAM
- USB C port
- 8 general purpose LEDs
- 1 button
- 100 MHz on-board clock
- USB to serial interface
Digital design refers to creating digital circuits. Digital circuits are in basically everything today and range from something as simple as a circuit that turns an LED on when a button is pressed to the complex processor in the device you are reading this on. Traditionally, these circuits are built by making ASICs (Application Specific Integrated Circuits) out of silicon wafers. This process is incredibly expensive and complex.
FPGAs, or Field Programmable Gate Arrays, are a way to create digital circuits without these barriers. FPGAs are part of a class of devices known as programmable hardware. This means that you can design a digital circuit and program the FPGA to become that circuit. You can reconfigure the FPGA as many times as you want allowing you to create circuit after circuit without having to physically change a thing!
Specifications
- Artix 7 XC7A35T-1C – 33,280 logic cells (approx. 4x the capacity of the Mojo)
- 256MB DDR3 RAM
- 102 IO pins (3.3V logic level, 20 of then can be switched to 1.8V for LVDS)
- 9 differential analog inputs (1 dedicated, 8 mixed with digital IO)
- USB C to configure and power the board
- 8 general purpose LEDs
- 1 button (typically used as a reset)
- 100 MHz on-board clock (can be multiplied internally by the FPGA)
- Powered with 5V through USB C port, 0.1″ holes, or headers
- USB to serial interface for data transfer (up to 12Mbaud)
- Dimensions of 65mm x 45mm
The Alchitry Au is the workhorse of the two boards. It features an Artix 7 FPGA which means no more dealing with Xilinx’s antiquated ISE tool. This board also has 256MB of DDR3 RAM while still having 102 IO pins available for your projects!
Read more: ALCHITRY – FPGA DEVELOPMENT BOARDS FOR HOBBYISTS
- What is the primary advantage of using FPGAs over traditional ASICs?
FPGAs allow you to design and program digital circuits that can be reconfigured as many times as you want without physically changing anything. - Does the Alchitry Au use Xilinx's antiquated ISE tool?
No, the board features an Artix 7 FPGA which eliminates the need to deal with Xilinx's antiquated ISE tool. - How much DDR3 RAM does the Alchitry Au have?
The board includes 256MB of DDR3 RAM. - Can the IO pins on the Alchitry Au operate at different voltage levels?
Yes, out of 102 IO pins, 20 can be switched to 1.8V for LVDS while others remain at 3.3V logic level. - What are the dimensions of the Alchitry Au board?
The dimensions are 65mm x 45mm. - How can the Alchitry Au be powered?
It can be powered with 5V through the USB C port, 0.1″ holes, or headers. - What is the maximum data transfer speed of the USB to serial interface?
The USB to serial interface supports data transfer up to 12Mbaud. - How many differential analog inputs are available on the board?
There are 9 differential analog inputs, consisting of 1 dedicated and 8 mixed with digital IO.
