Aerospace, defense, and high reliability systems must deliver demanding processing performance while operating in environments where extreme temperatures and mechanical stress can compromise electronics. Developers must also plan for long service lives, supply continuity, and mission requirements that continue to evolve.
Altera’s defense-grade Agilex® FPGA and SoC FPGA portfolio brings these priorities together. It combines scalable programmable performance with military-temperature and ruggedized packaging options, while U.S. wafer fabrication supports supply resilience. For system designers, that means more ways to balance performance, deployment conditions, and long-term program needs.
Designed for harsh environments
Defense-grade Agilex devices offer military-temperature options supporting operation from −55°C to +125°C, helping designers target extreme hot and cold environments in applications such as outdoor radar, vehicle-mounted communications, and airborne sensors. A wider specified temperature range can provide more thermal headroom and may reduce heating or cooling needed solely to keep a narrower-rated FPGA within its specified limits, easing size, weight, and power trade-offs.
Ruggedized packaging options, including leaded-ball configurations, help address temperature cycling, vibration, and shock in mobile and deployed systems. For customers with tin-lead assembly requirements, leaded-ball options can also avoid a separate reballing step and its associated process-control and qualification burden. Addressing environmental durability and manufacturing compatibility early can reduce the risk of late-stage redesign.
Together, these capabilities help designers bring Agilex FPGA performance into demanding mission environments with fewer thermal and manufacturing workarounds. Temperature grades and packaging options vary by device and configuration.
Supply resilience for long-life platforms
Aerospace and defense platforms often remain in service for many years, making continuity of supply an important consideration. Agilex FPGAs provide a domestic source of wafer fabrication that supports supply resilience and helps customers plan for long program lifecycles.
Performance and choice across Hi-Rel applications
Defense applications call for different combinations of performance, power efficiency, and integration. The Agilex portfolio spans low-power, cost-optimized Agilex 3 FPGAs, mid-range Agilex 5, high-performance Agilex 7, and Agilex 9 Direct RF-Series FPGAs. This range supports applications from embedded processing for industrial and automotive to high-bandwidth communications, radar, and electronic warfare.
Altera’s HyperFlex® architecture supports higher clock frequencies and processing throughput through Hyper-Retiming and Hyper-Pipelining. Alongside FPGA programmability, these capabilities offer a flexible foundation as mission-critical systems integrate more sensing, processing, and AI within constrained platforms.
Availability
Initial shipments of defense-grade Agilex FPGAs are planned for the first quarter of 2027, with software support targeted for Quartus® Prime Design Software version 27.1. For more information about defense-grade device options, contact your local Altera sales representative.
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