External Memory Interfaces Intel® Agilex™ FPGA IP User Guide

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Date 1/31/2022
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Document Table of Contents
Document Table of Contents x
1. About the External Memory Interfaces Intel® Agilex™ FPGA IP 2. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – Introduction 3. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – Product Architecture 4. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – End-User Signals 5. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – Simulating Memory IP 6. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – DDR4 Support 7. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – QDR-IV Support 8. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – Timing Closure 9. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – I/O Timing Closure 10. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – Controller Optimization 11. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – Debugging 12. External Memory Interfaces Intel® Agilex™ FPGA IP User Guide Archives 13. Document Revision History for External Memory Interfaces Intel® Agilex™ FPGA IP User Guide
1. About the External Memory Interfaces Intel® Agilex™ FPGA IP x
1.1. Release Information
2. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – Introduction x
2.1. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF IP Protocol and Feature Support 2.2. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF IP Design Flow 2.3. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF IP Design Checklist
3. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – Product Architecture x
3.1. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF Architecture: Introduction 3.2. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF Sequencer 3.3. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF Calibration 3.4. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF Controller 3.5. User-requested Reset in Intel® Agilex™ EMIF IP 3.6. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF for Hard Processor Subsystem
3.1. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF Architecture: Introduction x
3.1.1. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF Architecture: I/O Subsystem 3.1.2. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF Architecture: I/O SSM 3.1.3. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF Architecture: I/O Bank Zipper Block I/O Sub-Bank Usage 3.1.4. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF Architecture: I/O Lane 3.1.5. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF Architecture: Input DQS Clock Tree 3.1.6. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF Architecture: PHY Clock Tree 3.1.7. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF Architecture: PLL Reference Clock Networks 3.1.8. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF Architecture: Clock Phase Alignment
3.1.4. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF Architecture: I/O Lane x
3.1.4.1. Considerations for Designing DDR4 x72 Interface Together with an AVST x8/x16/x32 Configuration Scheme
3.3. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF Calibration x
3.3.1. Intel® Agilex™ Calibration Stages 3.3.2. Intel® Agilex™ Calibration Stages Descriptions 3.3.3. Intel® Agilex™ Calibration Flowchart 3.3.4. Intel® Agilex™ Calibration Algorithms
3.3.4. Intel® Agilex™ Calibration Algorithms x
3.3.4.1. Calibration Algorithms for DDR4 3.3.4.2. Calibration Algorithms for QDR-IV 3.3.4.3. Guidelines for Debugging Calibration Issues
3.3.4.1. Calibration Algorithms for DDR4 x
3.3.4.1.1. DDR4 Read Calibration 3.3.4.1.2. DDR4 Write Calibration
3.3.4.2. Calibration Algorithms for QDR-IV x
3.3.4.2.1. QDR-IV Read Calibration 3.3.4.2.2. QDR-IV Write Calibration
3.3.4.3. Guidelines for Debugging Calibration Issues x
3.3.4.3.1. Debugging Calibration Failure Using Information from the Calibration report 3.3.4.3.2. Debugging Address and Command Leveling Calibration Failure 3.3.4.3.3. Debugging Address and Command Deskew Failure 3.3.4.3.4. Debugging DQS Enable Failure 3.3.4.3.5. Debugging Read Deskew Calibration Failure 3.3.4.3.6. Debugging VREFIN Calibration Failure 3.3.4.3.7. Debugging LFIFO Calibration Failure 3.3.4.3.8. Debugging Write Leveling Failure 3.3.4.3.9. Debugging Write Deskew Calibration Failure 3.3.4.3.10. Debugging VREFOUT Calibration Failure
3.4. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF Controller x
3.4.1. Hard Memory Controller 3.4.2. Intel® Agilex™ Hard Memory Controller Rate Conversion Feature
3.4.1. Hard Memory Controller x
3.4.1.1. Hard Memory Controller Features 3.4.1.2. Hard Memory Controller Main Control Path 3.4.1.3. Data Buffer Controller
3.6. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF for Hard Processor Subsystem x
3.6.1. Restrictions on I/O Bank Usage for Intel® Agilex™ EMIF IP with HPS
4. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – End-User Signals x
4.1. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF IP Interface and Signal Descriptions 4.2. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF IP AFI Signals 4.3. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF IP AFI 4.0 Timing Diagrams 4.4. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF IP Memory Mapped Register (MMR) Tables
4.1. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF IP Interface and Signal Descriptions x
4.1.1. Intel Agilex EMIF IP Interfaces for DDR4 4.1.2. Intel Agilex EMIF IP Interfaces for QDR-IV
4.1.1. Intel Agilex EMIF IP Interfaces for DDR4 x
4.1.1.1. local_reset_req for DDR4 4.1.1.2. local_reset_status for DDR4 4.1.1.3. pll_ref_clk for DDR4 4.1.1.4. pll_locked for DDR4 4.1.1.5. ac_parity_err for DDR4 4.1.1.6. oct for DDR4 4.1.1.7. mem for DDR4 4.1.1.8. status for DDR4 4.1.1.9. afi_reset_n for DDR4 4.1.1.10. afi_clk for DDR4 4.1.1.11. afi_half_clk for DDR4 4.1.1.12. afi for DDR4 4.1.1.13. emif_usr_reset_n for DDR4 4.1.1.14. emif_usr_clk for DDR4 4.1.1.15. ctrl_amm for DDR4 4.1.1.16. ctrl_amm_aux for DDR4 4.1.1.17. ctrl_auto_precharge for DDR4 4.1.1.18. ctrl_user_priority for DDR4 4.1.1.19. ctrl_ecc_user_interrupt for DDR4 4.1.1.20. ctrl_ecc_readdataerror for DDR4 4.1.1.21. ctrl_ecc_status for DDR4 4.1.1.22. ctrl_mmr_slave for DDR4 4.1.1.23. hps_emif for DDR4 4.1.1.24. emif_calbus for DDR4 4.1.1.25. emif_calbus_clk for DDR4
4.1.2. Intel Agilex EMIF IP Interfaces for QDR-IV x
4.1.2.1. local_reset_req for QDR-IV 4.1.2.2. local_reset_status for QDR-IV 4.1.2.3. pll_ref_clk for QDR-IV 4.1.2.4. pll_locked for QDR-IV 4.1.2.5. oct for QDR-IV 4.1.2.6. mem for QDR-IV 4.1.2.7. status for QDR-IV 4.1.2.8. afi_reset_n for QDR-IV 4.1.2.9. afi_clk for QDR-IV 4.1.2.10. afi_half_clk for QDR-IV 4.1.2.11. afi for QDR-IV 4.1.2.12. emif_usr_reset_n for QDR-IV 4.1.2.13. emif_usr_clk for QDR-IV 4.1.2.14. ctrl_amm for QDR-IV 4.1.2.15. emif_calbus for QDR-IV 4.1.2.16. emif_calbus_clk for QDR-IV
4.2. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF IP AFI Signals x
4.2.1. AFI Clock and Reset Signals 4.2.2. AFI Address and Command Signals 4.2.3. AFI Write Data Signals 4.2.4. AFI Read Data Signals 4.2.5. AFI Calibration Status Signals 4.2.6. AFI Tracking Management Signals 4.2.7. AFI Shadow Register Management Signals
4.3. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF IP AFI 4.0 Timing Diagrams x
4.3.1. AFI Address and Command Timing Diagrams 4.3.2. AFI Write Sequence Timing Diagrams 4.3.3. AFI Read Sequence Timing Diagrams 4.3.4. AFI Calibration Status Timing Diagram
4.4. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF IP Memory Mapped Register (MMR) Tables x
4.4.1. ctrlcfg0 4.4.2. ctrlcfg1 4.4.3. dramtiming0 4.4.4. sbcfg1 4.4.5. caltiming0 4.4.6. caltiming1 4.4.7. caltiming2 4.4.8. caltiming3 4.4.9. caltiming4 4.4.10. caltiming9 4.4.11. dramaddrw 4.4.12. sideband0 4.4.13. sideband1 4.4.14. sideband4 4.4.15. sideband6 4.4.16. sideband7 4.4.17. sideband9 4.4.18. sideband11 4.4.19. sideband12 4.4.20. sideband13 4.4.21. sideband14 4.4.22. dramsts 4.4.23. niosreserve0 4.4.24. niosreserve1 4.4.25. sideband16 4.4.26. ecc3: ECC Error and Interrupt Configuration 4.4.27. ecc4: Status and Error Information 4.4.28. ecc5: Address of Most Recent SBE/DBE 4.4.29. ecc6: Address of Most Recent Correction Command Dropped 4.4.30. ecc7: Extension for Address of Most Recent SBE/DBE 4.4.31. ecc8: Extension for Address of Most Recent Correction Command Dropped
5. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – Simulating Memory IP x
5.1. Simulation Options 5.2. Simulation Walkthrough
5.2. Simulation Walkthrough x
5.2.1. Calibration Modes 5.2.2. Simulation Scripts 5.2.3. Functional Simulation with Verilog HDL 5.2.4. Functional Simulation with VHDL 5.2.5. Simulating the Design Example
6. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – DDR4 Support x
6.1. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP Parameter Descriptions 6.2. Intel® Agilex™ External Memory Interfaces Intel® Calibration IP Parameters 6.3. Register Map IP-XACT Support for Intel® Agilex™ EMIF DDR4 IP 6.4. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP Pin and Resource Planning 6.5. DDR4 Board Design Guidelines
6.1. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP Parameter Descriptions x
6.1.1. Intel Agilex EMIF IP DDR4 Parameters: General 6.1.2. Intel Agilex EMIF IP DDR4 Parameters: Memory 6.1.3. Intel Agilex EMIF IP DDR4 Parameters: Mem I/O 6.1.4. Intel Agilex EMIF IP DDR4 Parameters: FPGA I/O 6.1.5. Intel Agilex EMIF IP DDR4 Parameters: Mem Timing 6.1.6. Intel Agilex EMIF IP DDR4 Parameters: Controller 6.1.7. Intel Agilex EMIF IP DDR4 Parameters: Diagnostics 6.1.8. Intel Agilex EMIF IP DDR4 Parameters: Example Designs
6.4. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP Pin and Resource Planning x
6.4.1. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP Interface Pins 6.4.2. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP Resources 6.4.3. Pin Guidelines for Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP
6.4.1. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP Interface Pins x
6.4.1.1. Estimating Pin Requirements 6.4.1.2. DIMM Options 6.4.1.3. Maximum Number of Interfaces
6.4.2. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP Resources x
6.4.2.1. OCT 6.4.2.2. PLL
6.4.3. Pin Guidelines for Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP x
6.4.3.1. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP Banks 6.4.3.2. General Guidelines 6.4.3.3. x4 DIMM Implementation 6.4.3.4. Specific Pin Connection Requirements 6.4.3.5. Command and Address Signals 6.4.3.6. Clock Signals 6.4.3.7. Data, Data Strobes, DM/DBI, and Optional ECC Signals
6.5. DDR4 Board Design Guidelines x
6.5.1. Terminations for DDR4 with Intel® Agilex™ Devices 6.5.2. Clamshell Topology 6.5.3. General Layout Routing Guidelines 6.5.4. Reference Stackup 6.5.5. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF-Specific Routing Guidelines for Various DDR4 Topologies 6.5.6. DDR4 Routing Guidelines: Discrete (Component) Topologies 6.5.7. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF Pin Swapping Guidelines
6.5.1. Terminations for DDR4 with Intel® Agilex™ Devices x
6.5.1.1. Dynamic On-Chip Termination (OCT) 6.5.1.2. Dynamic On-Die Termination (ODT) in DDR4 6.5.1.3. Choosing Terminations on Intel® Agilex™ FPGA Devices 6.5.1.4. On-Chip Termination Recommendations for Intel® Agilex™ FPGA Devices
6.5.5. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF-Specific Routing Guidelines for Various DDR4 Topologies x
6.5.5.1. One DIMM per Channel (1DPC) for UDIMM, RDIMM, LRDIMM, and SODIMM DDR4 Topologies 6.5.5.2. Two DIMMs per Channel (2DPC) for UDIMM, RDIMM, and LRDIMM DDR4 Topologies 6.5.5.3. Two DIMMs per Channel (2DPC) for SODIMM Topology 6.5.5.4. Skew Matching Guidelines for DIMM Configurations 6.5.5.5. Power Delivery Recommendations for the Memory / DIMM Side
6.5.6. DDR4 Routing Guidelines: Discrete (Component) Topologies x
6.5.6.1. Single Rank x 8 Discrete (Component) Topology 6.5.6.2. Single Rank x 16 Discrete (Component) Topology 6.5.6.3. ADDR/CMD Reference Voltage/RESET Signal Routing Guidelines for Single Rank x 8 and R Rank x 16 Discrete (Component) Topologies 6.5.6.4. Skew Matching Guidelines for DDR4 Discrete Configurations 6.5.6.5. Power Delivery Recommendations for DDR4 Discrete Configurations
7. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – QDR-IV Support x
7.1. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP Parameter Descriptions 7.2. Intel® Agilex™ External Memory Interfaces Intel® Calibration IP Parameters 7.3. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP Pin and Resource Planning 7.4. QDR-IV Board Design Guidelines
7.1. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP Parameter Descriptions x
7.1.1. Intel Agilex EMIF IP QDR-IV Parameters: General 7.1.2. Intel Agilex EMIF IP QDR-IV Parameters: Memory 7.1.3. Intel Agilex EMIF IP QDR-IV Parameters: FPGA I/O 7.1.4. Intel Agilex EMIF IP QDR-IV Parameters: Mem Timing 7.1.5. Intel Agilex EMIF IP QDR-IV Parameters: Controller 7.1.6. Intel Agilex EMIF IP QDR-IV Parameters: Diagnostics 7.1.7. Intel Agilex EMIF IP QDR-IV Parameters: Example Designs
7.3. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP Pin and Resource Planning x
7.3.1. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP Interface Pins 7.3.2. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP Resources 7.3.3. Pin Guidelines for Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP
7.3.1. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP Interface Pins x
7.3.1.1. Estimating Pin Requirements 7.3.1.2. Maximum Number of Interfaces
7.3.2. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP Resources x
7.3.2.1. OCT 7.3.2.2. PLL
7.3.3. Pin Guidelines for Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP x
7.3.3.1. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP Banks 7.3.3.2. General Guidelines 7.3.3.3. QDR IV SRAM Commands and Addresses, AP, and AINV Signals 7.3.3.4. QDR IV SRAM Clock Signals 7.3.3.5. QDR IV SRAM Data, DINV, and QVLD Signals 7.3.3.6. Specific Pin Connection Requirements 7.3.3.7. Resource Sharing Guidelines (Multiple Interfaces)
7.4. QDR-IV Board Design Guidelines x
7.4.1. General Layout Routing Guidelines 7.4.2. Reference Stackup 7.4.3. Routing Guidelines for QDR-IV Topology 7.4.4. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF Design Guideline Summary
7.4.3. Routing Guidelines for QDR-IV Topology x
7.4.3.1. QDR-IV Single Device Memory Topology 7.4.3.2. Skew Matching Guidelines for QDR-IV Configurations 7.4.3.3. Power Delivery Recommendation for QDR-IV Configurations
8. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – Timing Closure x
8.1. Timing Closure 8.2. Optimizing Timing
8.1. Timing Closure x
8.1.1. Timing Analysis
8.1.1. Timing Analysis x
8.1.1.1. PHY or Core
9. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – I/O Timing Closure x
9.1. I/O Timing Closure Overview 9.2. Collateral Generated with Your EMIF IP 9.3. SPICE Decks 9.4. File Organization 9.5. Top-level Parameterization File 9.6. IP-Supplied Parameters that You Might Need to Override 9.7. Multi-Rank Topology 9.8. Pin Parasitics 9.9. Mask Evaluation
9.3. SPICE Decks x
9.3.1. Address/Command Simulation Deck 9.3.2. FPGA Write Operation Simulation Deck 9.3.3. FPGA Read Operation Simulation Deck
10. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – Controller Optimization x
10.1. Interface Standard 10.2. Bank Management Efficiency 10.3. Data Transfer 10.4. Improving Controller Efficiency
10.4. Improving Controller Efficiency x
10.4.1. Auto-Precharge Commands 10.4.2. Additive Latency 10.4.3. Bank Interleaving 10.4.4. Additive Latency and Bank Interleaving 10.4.5. User-Controlled Refresh 10.4.6. Frequency of Operation 10.4.7. Series of Reads or Writes 10.4.8. Data Reordering 10.4.9. Starvation Control 10.4.10. Command Reordering 10.4.11. Bandwidth 10.4.12. Enable Command Priority Control 10.4.13. Controller Pre-pay and Post-pay Refresh (DDR4 Only)
10.4.1. Auto-Precharge Commands x
10.4.1.1. Using Auto-precharge to Achieve Highest Memory Bandwidth for DDR4 Interfaces
11. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – Debugging x
11.1. Interface Configuration Performance Issues 11.2. Functional Issue Evaluation 11.3. Timing Issue Characteristics 11.4. Verifying Memory IP Using the Signal Tap Logic Analyzer 11.5. Hardware Debugging Guidelines 11.6. Categorizing Hardware Issues 11.7. Debugging with the External Memory Interface Debug Toolkit 11.8. Using the Default Traffic Generator 11.9. Using the Configurable Traffic Generator (TG2) 11.10. EMIF On-Chip Debug Port 11.11. Efficiency Monitor
11.1. Interface Configuration Performance Issues x
11.1.1. Interface Configuration Bottleneck and Efficiency Issues
11.2. Functional Issue Evaluation x
11.2.1. Intel® IP Memory Model 11.2.2. Vendor Memory Model 11.2.3. Transcript Window Messages 11.2.4. Modifying the Example Driver to Replicate the Failure
11.3. Timing Issue Characteristics x
11.3.1. Evaluating FPGA Timing Issues 11.3.2. Evaluating External Memory Interface Timing Issues
11.4. Verifying Memory IP Using the Signal Tap Logic Analyzer x
11.4.1. Signals to Monitor with the Signal Tap Logic Analyzer
11.5. Hardware Debugging Guidelines x
11.5.1. Create a Simplified Design that Demonstrates the Same Issue 11.5.2. Measure Power Distribution Network 11.5.3. Measure Signal Integrity and Setup and Hold Margin 11.5.4. Vary Voltage 11.5.5. Operate at a Lower Speed 11.5.6. Determine Whether the Issue Exists in Previous Versions of Software 11.5.7. Determine Whether the Issue Exists in the Current Version of Software 11.5.8. Try A Different PCB 11.5.9. Try Other Configurations 11.5.10. Debugging Checklist
11.6. Categorizing Hardware Issues x
11.6.1. Signal Integrity Issues 11.6.2. Hardware and Calibration Issues
11.6.1. Signal Integrity Issues x
11.6.1.1. Characteristics of Signal Integrity Issues 11.6.1.2. Evaluating Signal Integrity Issues
11.6.1.2. Evaluating Signal Integrity Issues x
11.6.1.2.1. Skew 11.6.1.2.2. Crosstalk 11.6.1.2.3. Power System 11.6.1.2.4. Clock Signals 11.6.1.2.5. Address and Command Signals 11.6.1.2.6. Read Data Valid Window and Eye Diagram 11.6.1.2.7. Write Data Valid Window and Eye Diagram 11.6.1.2.8. OCT and ODT Usage
11.6.2. Hardware and Calibration Issues x
11.6.2.1. Postamble Timing Issues and Margin 11.6.2.2. Intermittent Issue Evaluation
11.7. Debugging with the External Memory Interface Debug Toolkit x
11.7.1. Prerequisites for Using the EMIF Debug Toolkit 11.7.2. Configuring a Design to Use the Toolkit 11.7.3. Launching the EMIF Debug Toolkit 11.7.4. Using the EMIF Debug Toolkit 11.7.5. Exporting Tables 11.7.6. Viewing Reports Graphically in the Eye Viewer
11.7.2. Configuring a Design to Use the Toolkit x
11.7.2.1. Generating a Design Example with the Debug Toolkit 11.7.2.2. Creating a Design Example with Multiple External Memory Interfaces 11.7.2.3. Enabling the EMIF Toolkit in an Existing Design
11.7.4. Using the EMIF Debug Toolkit x
11.7.4.1. Memory Configuration Tab 11.7.4.2. Calibration Tab 11.7.4.3. Guidelines for Debugging Calibration Issues 11.7.4.4. Calibration Report Tab 11.7.4.5. Calibrate Termination Tab 11.7.4.6. Vref Margining Tab 11.7.4.7. Driver Margining Tab 11.7.4.8. ISSPs Tab 11.7.4.9. Pin Delay Settings Tab
11.7.4.2. Calibration Tab x
11.7.4.2.1. Rerunning Calibration 11.7.4.2.2. Rerunning the Traffic Generator
11.7.4.3. Guidelines for Debugging Calibration Issues x
11.7.4.3.1. Debugging Calibration Failure Using Information from the Calibration report 11.7.4.3.2. Debugging Address and Command Leveling Calibration Failure 11.7.4.3.3. Debugging Address and Command Deskew Failure 11.7.4.3.4. Debugging DQS Enable Failure 11.7.4.3.5. Debugging Read Deskew Calibration Failure 11.7.4.3.6. Debugging VREFIN Calibration Failure 11.7.4.3.7. Debugging LFIFO Calibration Failure 11.7.4.3.8. Debugging Write Leveling Failure 11.7.4.3.9. Debugging Write Deskew Calibration Failure 11.7.4.3.10. Debugging VREFOUT Calibration Failure
11.8. Using the Default Traffic Generator x
11.8.1. Reading the Default Traffic Generator Status 11.8.2. Running Infinite Traffic using the Default Traffic Generator 11.8.3. Changing the Reset Trigger of the Default Traffic Generator 11.8.4. Observing Generated Traffic with Signal Tap
11.9. Using the Configurable Traffic Generator (TG2) x
11.9.1. Enabling the Traffic Generator in a Design Example 11.9.2. Traffic Generator Block Description 11.9.3. Default Traffic Pattern 11.9.4. Configuration and Status Registers 11.9.5. User Pattern 11.9.6. Traffic Generator Status 11.9.7. Starting Traffic with the Traffic Generator 11.9.8. Traffic Generator Configuration User Interface
11.9.5. User Pattern x
11.9.5.1. Test Duration / Instruction pattern 11.9.5.2. Address Pattern 11.9.5.3. Data Pattern and Byte Enable
11.9.5.2. Address Pattern x
11.9.5.2.1. Address Generator Modes 11.9.5.2.2. Address Generator MSB Indices 11.9.5.2.3. Address Generator Effective Width 11.9.5.2.4. Address Generator Relative Frequencies 11.9.5.2.5. Address Pattern Examples - Basic Mode 11.9.5.2.6. Address Pattern Examples - Advanced Mode
11.9.8. Traffic Generator Configuration User Interface x
11.9.8.1. Connecting the Traffic Generator 11.9.8.2. Configuring the Traffic Generator 11.9.8.3. Traffic Generator Preset Selection 11.9.8.4. Traffic Generator Status Report 11.9.8.5. Examples of Configuring the TG2 Traffic Generator
11.10. EMIF On-Chip Debug Port x
11.10.1. Enabling the On-Chip Debug Port 11.10.2. I/O SSM calbus Bridge Data Structures and Usage 11.10.3. I/O SSM User-RAM Data Structures and Usage 11.10.4. Debug Interface Structure 11.10.5. Example: Reading Calibration Results and Margins with the On-Chip Debug Port
11.10.3. I/O SSM User-RAM Data Structures and Usage x
11.10.3.1. Parameter Tables 11.10.3.2. Parameter Table Enums
11.10.3.1. Parameter Tables x
11.10.3.1.1. Global Parameter Table 11.10.3.1.2. Per-interface Parameter Table Structure 11.10.3.1.3. Parameter Table Arrays
11.10.4. Debug Interface Structure x
11.10.4.1. Debug Data Structures 11.10.4.2. Debug Enums
11.11. Efficiency Monitor x
11.11.1. Enabling the Efficiency Monitor in a Design Example 11.11.2. Efficiency Monitor Block Descriptions 11.11.3. Control and Status Registers 11.11.4. Opening the Efficiency Monitor Toolkit
1. About the External Memory Interfaces Intel® Agilex™ FPGA IP
2. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – Introduction
3. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – Product Architecture
4. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – End-User Signals
5. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – Simulating Memory IP
6. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – DDR4 Support
7. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – QDR-IV Support
8. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – Timing Closure
9. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – I/O Timing Closure
10. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – Controller Optimization
11. Intel® Agilex™ FPGA EMIF IP – Debugging
12. External Memory Interfaces Intel® Agilex™ FPGA IP User Guide Archives
13. Document Revision History for External Memory Interfaces Intel® Agilex™ FPGA IP User Guide

3.1.3. Intel® Agilex™ EMIF Architecture: I/O Bank

Each I/O row contains up to four I/O banks; the exact number of banks depends on device size and pin package.

Each I/O bank consists of two sub-banks, and each sub-bank contains the following components:

  • Hard memory controller
  • Sequencer components
  • I/O PLL and PHY clock trees
  • DLL
  • Input DQS clock trees
  • 48 pins, organized into four I/O lanes of 12 pins each

A single I/O sub-bank contains all the hardware needed to build an external memory interface. You can make a wider interface by connecting multiple adjacent sub-banks together.

Figure 5. I/O Bank Architecture in Intel® Agilex™ Devices


Within an I/O bank, the top sub-bank is placed near the edge of the die, and the bottom sub-bank is placed near the FPGA core.

There are interconnects between the sub-banks which chain the sub-banks into a row. The following figures show how I/O lanes in various sub-banks are chained together to form the top and bottom I/O rows in various Intel® Agilex™ device variants. These figures represent the top view of the silicon die that corresponds to a reverse view of the device package.

Figure 6. Sub-Bank Ordering in Top I/O Row in Intel® Agilex™ AGF012 and AGF014, package R24A/R24B
Figure 7. Sub-Bank Ordering in Bottom I/O Row in Intel® Agilex™ AGF012 and AGF014, package R24A/R24B
Figure 10. Sub-Bank Ordering in Top I/O Row in Intel® Agilex™ AGF022 and AGF027 devices, package R25A

On the top I/O row in AGF022 and AGF027 package R25A , an EMIF interface cannot span across Bank 3A and Bank 3F, because the two I/O banks are not adjacent to each other.

Figure 11. Sub-Bank Ordering in Bottom I/O Row in Intel® Agilex™ AGF022 and AGF027 devices, package R25A
Figure 12.  Sub-Bank Ordering in Top I/O Row in Intel® Agilex™ AGI022 and AGI027 devices, package R29A

Bank 3E, Bank 3F, I/O Lane 0 in Top Sub-bank 3B and I/O Lane 0 in Top Sub-bank 3C are not bonded.

Figure 13. Sub-Bank Ordering in Bottom I/O Row in Intel® Agilex™ AGI022 and AGI027 devices, package R29A

Bank 2A, Bank 2D, I/O Lane 3 in Bottom Sub-bank 2B and I/O Lane 3 in Bottom Sub-bank 2C are not bonded.

Figure 14. Sub-Bank Ordering in Top I/O Row in Intel® Agilex™ AGI022 and AGI027 devices, package R31B

Bank 3E, Bank 3F, I/O Lane 0 in Top Sub-bank 3B and I/O Lane 0 in Top Sub-bank 3C are not bonded.

Figure 15. Sub-Bank Ordering in Bottom I/O Row in Intel® Agilex™ AGI022 and AGI027 devices, package R31B

Bank 2A, Bank 2B, I/O Lane 3 and I/O Lane 2 in Bottom Sub-bank 2E are not bonded.

Figure 16. Sub-Bank Ordering in Top I/O Row in Intel® Agilex™ AGF022 and AGF027 devices, package R31C

Bank 3E, Bank 3F, I/O Lane 0 in Top Sub-bank 3B and I/O Lane 0 in Top Sub-bank 3C are not bonded.

Figure 17. Sub-Bank Ordering in Bottom I/O Row in Intel® Agilex™ AGF022 and AGF027 devices, package R31C

Bank 2A, Bank 2B, I/O Lane 3 and I/O Lane 2 in Bottom Sub-bank 2E are not bonded

Figure 18. Sub-Bank Ordering in Top I/O Row in Intel® Agilex™ AGF022 and AGF027 devices, package R24C
Figure 19. Sub-Bank Ordering in Bottom I/O Row in Intel® Agilex™ AGF022 and AGF027 devices, package R24C
Figure 20. Sub-Bank Ordering in Top I/O Row in Intel® Agilex™ AGF019 and AGF023, package R25A
Figure 21. Sub-Bank Ordering in Bottom I/O Row in Intel® Agilex™ AGF019 and AGF023, package R25A
Figure 22. Sub-Bank Ordering in Top I/O Row in Intel® Agilex™ AGF006 and AGF008, package R16A
Figure 23. Sub-Bank Ordering in Bottom I/O Row in Intel® Agilex™ AGF006 and AGF008, package R16A

The two sub-banks within an I/O bank are adjacent to each other when there is at least one I/O lane in each sub-bank that is bonded out and available for EMIF use. The blue line in the above figures shows the connectivity between the sub-banks.

For example, in the top row in Intel® Agilex™ AGF012 and AGF014 devices (Figure 6):

  • The top sub-bank in 3A is adjacent to the bottom sub-bank in 3A and the bottom sub-bank in 3B.
  • The top sub-bank in 3B is adjacent to the bottom sub-bank in 3B and the top sub-bank in 3C.
    • The top sub-bank in 3B is adjacent to the top sub-bank in 3C even though there is a zipper block between the two sub-banks.
  • The top sub-bank in 3B is not adjacent to the bottom sub-bank in 3A.

When an interface must occupy multiple sub-banks, ensure that those sub-banks are adjacent to one another. You can identify where a pin is located within an I/O bank based on its Index within I/O Bank value in the device pinout file.

Zipper Block

The zipper is a block that performs necessary routing adjustments where routing wires cross the zipper.

I/O Sub-Bank Usage

The pins in an I/O bank can serve as address and command pins, data pins, or clock and strobe pins for an external memory interface. You can implement a narrow interface, DDR4 x8 interface, with only a single I/O sub-bank. A wider interface of up to 72 bits can be implemented by configuring multiple adjacent sub-banks in a multi-bank interface.

Note: A given sub-bank cannot be shared between multiple EMIFs.

Every sub-bank includes a hard memory controller which you can configure for DDR4. In a multi-bank interface, only the controller of one sub-bank is active; controllers in the remaining sub-banks are turned off to conserve power.

To use a multi-bank Intel® Agilex™ EMIF interface, you must observe the following rules:

  • Designate one sub-bank as the address and command bank.
  • The address and command sub-bank must contain all the address and command pins.
  • The locations of individual address and command pins within the address and command sub-bank must adhere to the pin map defined in the pin table— regardless of whether you use the hard memory controller or not. You can find the pin tables at the following location: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/programmable/support/literature/lit-dp.html.
  • If you do use the hard memory controller, the address and command sub-bank contains the active hard controller.

All the sub-banks are capable of functioning as the address and command bank. For interfaces that span multiple sub-banks, the Intel® Quartus® Prime software requires that the address and command bank be placed in the center-most bank of the interface. The only exception to this rule is for the Hardened Processor Subsystem External Memory Interface.

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