Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering
Vidya Jyothi Institute of Technology
TECHNICAL SEMINAR
by
R.VAISHNAVI(19911A04A7)

FPGA IN OUTER SPACE

TOPICS TO BE DISCUSSED
• Introduction
• FPGA Architecture
• Why FPGA?
• Applications
• Challenges faced in space
• Space applications
TECHNICAL SEMINAR 1

FPGAs-Basic Introduction
• FPGA stands for Field-Programmable Gate Array
• It is a one type of semiconductor logic chip which can be
programmed to become almost any kind of system or
digital circuit, similar to PLDs.
• FPGA architecture is generally specified using a language,
i.e., HDL (Hardware Description language)
• They contain programmable logic blocks and
interconnection circuits
• It can be programmed to the required functionality after
manufacturing.
• Field Programmable Gate Arrays are classified into three
types based on applications such as Low-end FPGAs,
Mid-range FPGAs and high-end FPGAs.
TECHNICAL SEMINAR 2

FPGA ARCHITECTURE
• The general FPGA architecture consists of three types
of modules. They are I/O blocks or Pads, Switch
Matrix/ Interconnection Wires and Configurable logic
blocks (CLB).
• CLB (Configurable Logic Block) includes digital logic,
inputs, outputs. It implements the user logic.
• Interconnects provide direction between the logic
blocks to implement the user logic.
• Depending on the logic, switch matrix provides
switching between interconnects.
• I/O Pads used for the outside world to communicate
with different applications.
TECHNICAL SEMINAR 3

CLB
• An individual CLB is made up of several logic
blocks.
• A lookup table (LUT) is a characteristic feature
of an FPGA.
• An LUT stores a predefined list of logic outputs
for any combination of inputs.
• LUTs with four to six input bits are widely used
TECHNICAL SEMINAR 4

Why FPGA ??
• FPGA , as the name says are field programmable .Compared to ASICs
which are specifically designed to perform a standard operation by
default.
• Newer FPGAs typically has millions of gates present , which makes
data processing and data compressing faster.
TECHNICAL SEMINAR 5

APPLICATIONS OF FPGA
We can find them in numerous industries or applications such as the
following
• Aerospace,OuterSpace, and defense
• Audio,Automotive and Broadcast
• Security Applications,Wired and Wireless Communications
• Instruments of Science,Industrial and Medical
TECHNICAL SEMINAR 6

FPGA IN SPACE APPLICATIONS
• "Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) devices have been used in space
for more than a decade with a mixed level of success.
• Space environment is different from terrestrial system as radiation is more.
• This radiation causes ionization failure in semiconductors.
• This kind of hardware faults cannot be debugged and repaired easily.
• The use of run-time reconfiguration in space will allow to modify onboard
hardware by faulty/outdated designs at different stages of a machine
• Some example applications are rectification of design faults,improvement
of processing algorithms.
TECHNICAL SEMINAR 7

Challenges Faced
1.Total Ionizing Dose Effect
• Neutrons,Protons,Alpha particles,heavy ions,and high-energy gamma rays that
transfer enough energy to the silicon to displace atoms in the lattice all cause
lattice defects
• Charged particles and gamma rays create ionization which can alter device
parameters
• These changes are called Total ionizing dose effects.
• These can be termed as permanent radiation damage to silicon devices.
TECHNICAL SEMINAR 8

2.SINGLE EVENT EFFECTS
• Any effect induced by a single event
on electronic circuit,whether
transient or damaging is referred to
as single event effect (SEE)
• This is caused due to cosmic rays
and high energy protons.
• The Sees are recoverable effects
TECHNICAL SEMINAR 9

COPING WITH THESE CHALLENGES
There have been two basic options for FPGAs in space applications:
• SRAM-type FPGAs: high-
density,reprogrammable,conventional,repurposed and heavily
modified for space use
• Antifuse FPGAs:lower-density,non-volatile,one-time-
programmable,designed specifically for space applications
TECHNICAL SEMINAR 10

USE OF FPGA IN SPACE
• FPGAs can be reconfigured with a different design.It is an integrated
circuit which can be “field” programmed to work as per the intended
design.
• It means it can work as a microprocessor,or as an encryption unit, or
even all these three at once.
• They are used in image and signal processing.FPGA are programmed
with custom implementations of an algorithm.
• This flexibility and speed has made FPGAs attractive for many space
programs .
TECHNICAL SEMINAR 11

Different Models of Space FPGAs
• XILINX
Xilinx virtex-5QV Space-Grade FPGA
• SRAM Based-RTG4FPGAs,RT ProASIC3FPGAs
• Antifuse Based-RT Pro ASIC3 FPGAs,RTSX-SU FPGAs
TECHNICAL SEMINAR 12

THANK YOU
TECHNICAL SEMINAR 15