The XCKU025-1FFVA1156I is a high-performance field-programmable gate array (FPGA) from AMD Xilinx’s Kintex® UltraScale™ family, built on advanced 20nm process technology. Designed to deliver an industry-leading balance of price, performance, and power efficiency, this device is an ideal choice for engineers tackling demanding workloads in networking, data centers, medical imaging, and wireless infrastructure. Whether you are designing for 100G packet processing or DSP-intensive video pipelines, the XCKU025-1FFVA1156I offers a proven, scalable platform backed by AMD Xilinx’s mature UltraScale architecture.
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What Is the XCKU025-1FFVA1156I?
The XCKU025-1FFVA1156I is a Kintex UltraScale FPGA produced by AMD (formerly Xilinx). It belongs to the XCKU025 device family and is housed in a 1156-pin Flip-Chip Ball Grid Array (FCBGA) package. The “-1” in the part number indicates Speed Grade 1, the baseline speed grade in the UltraScale lineup, while the trailing “I” confirms an Industrial temperature rating, qualifying this part for operation across the full –40°C to +100°C junction temperature range.
The UltraScale architecture was the industry’s first ASIC-class programmable architecture, combining monolithic silicon integration with next-generation stacked silicon interconnect (SSI) technology to push performance well beyond previous FPGA generations.
XCKU025-1FFVA1156I Key Specifications
General Overview
| Parameter |
Value |
| Manufacturer |
AMD (Xilinx) |
| Part Number |
XCKU025-1FFVA1156I |
| FPGA Family |
Kintex® UltraScale™ |
| Process Technology |
20nm |
| Speed Grade |
-1 (Industrial) |
| Temperature Grade |
Industrial (Tj = –40°C to +100°C) |
| RoHS Compliant |
Yes |
Logic Resources
| Resource |
Quantity |
| Logic Cells (Macrocells) |
318,150 |
| Configurable Logic Blocks (CLBs) |
145,440 |
| Look-Up Tables (LUTs) |
~178,200 |
| Flip-Flops |
~356,400 |
The 318,150-cell density places the XCKU025 at the entry point of the Kintex UltraScale family, making it highly cost-effective for designs that need significant programmable logic without the area and power overhead of the larger XCKU035, XCKU060, or XCKU085 devices.
Memory Resources
| Memory Type |
Capacity |
| Total Block RAM |
13,004.8 Kbits (~13 Mb) |
| Block RAM Type |
True Dual-Port (TDP) 36K/18K |
| Block RAM FMAX (Speed -1) |
525 MHz |
The 13 Mb of on-chip Block RAM provides ample buffering and storage for packet processing, look-up tables, and DSP coefficient storage. True dual-port Block RAM allows simultaneous read/write access from two independent clock domains, critical for high-throughput interface bridging.
DSP and Signal Processing
| Parameter |
Value |
| DSP48E2 Slices |
600 |
| Maximum DSP Performance |
Up to 900 GMACs (Speed -3) |
The DSP48E2 slices support multiply-accumulate (MAC) operations, pre-adders, and cascaded configurations for demanding arithmetic pipelines in image processing, FEC decoding, and radar signal processing.
High-Speed Serial Transceivers
| Parameter |
Value |
| GTH Transceiver Count |
12 |
| GTH Maximum Line Rate |
16.3 Gb/s |
| Aggregate Transceiver Bandwidth |
391 Gb/s |
The 12 GTH transceivers support a wide range of high-speed serial protocols including PCIe, 10GbE, CPRI, JESD204B, and more. At a maximum line rate of 16.3 Gb/s per channel and 391 Gb/s aggregate full-duplex bandwidth, the XCKU025-1FFVA1156I handles demanding line-card and backplane interconnect applications with ease.
Package and I/O
| Parameter |
Value |
| Package |
FCBGA (Flip-Chip Ball Grid Array) |
| Package Designator |
FFVA (RoHS 6/6, 1.0mm pitch) |
| Total Pins |
1,156 |
| Maximum User I/Os |
312 |
| MMCM / PLL Count |
Yes (for clock management) |
| I/O Standards Supported |
LVDS, LVCMOS, SSTL, HSUL, POD, and more |
The 1156-pin FFVA package offers 312 user I/Os, organized into High-Performance (HP) and High-Range (HR) banks. HP banks support lower supply voltages for high-speed interfaces, while HR banks accommodate a wider supply range for general-purpose I/O.
Power Supply
| Supply Rail |
Nominal Voltage |
| VCCINT (Core) |
0.95V |
| VCCAUX |
1.8V |
| VCCO (I/O) |
1.0V – 3.3V |
The 0.95V core supply keeps dynamic power consumption low, while the flexible VCCO range allows direct interfacing with both modern low-voltage and legacy 3.3V peripherals.
Part Number Decoder: Understanding XCKU025-1FFVA1156I
The AMD Xilinx UltraScale ordering part number carries structured information that describes the device’s configuration, package, and grade at a glance.
| Field |
Code |
Meaning |
| Architecture |
XC |
Xilinx Commercial |
| Device Family |
KU |
Kintex UltraScale |
| Device Density |
025 |
Entry density in KU family |
| Speed Grade |
-1 |
Speed Grade 1 (slowest / most conservative timing) |
| Package Type |
FF |
Flip-Chip, Full Array |
| Package Variant |
VA |
RoHS 6/6 compliant, 1.0mm ball pitch |
| Pin Count |
1156 |
1,156 total BGA balls |
| Temperature |
I |
Industrial (–40°C to +100°C Tj) |
The “I” suffix at the end is particularly important for system designers: it distinguishes this part from the commercial (“C”) and extended (“E”) temperature variants, confirming the device’s suitability for ruggedized, outdoor, or industrial-grade deployments.
XCKU025-1FFVA1156I vs. Other XCKU025 Variants
The XCKU025 die is available in multiple speed grades and temperature options. Choosing the right variant depends on your timing closure requirements and operating environment.
| Part Number |
Speed Grade |
Temperature Grade |
Notes |
| XCKU025-1FFVA1156C |
-1 |
Commercial (0°C to +85°C) |
Cost-optimized, benign environments |
| XCKU025-1FFVA1156E |
-1 |
Extended (0°C to +100°C) |
Mid-range temp coverage |
| XCKU025-1FFVA1156I |
-1 |
Industrial (–40°C to +100°C) |
Widest temp range at Speed -1 |
| XCKU025-2FFVA1156I |
-2 |
Industrial (–40°C to +100°C) |
Higher performance, same temp range |
If your design requires the widest temperature range with baseline timing, the XCKU025-1FFVA1156I is the correct choice. For designs that are timing-critical in addition to being temperature-sensitive, the XCKU025-2FFVA1156I at Speed Grade 2 would be the next step up.
XCKU025-1FFVA1156I vs. Adjacent Kintex UltraScale Devices
Understanding where the XCKU025 sits within the broader Kintex UltraScale family helps engineers make informed design decisions.
| Device |
Logic Cells |
Block RAM (Mb) |
DSP Slices |
GTH Transceivers |
Agg. BW (Gb/s) |
| XCKU025 |
318,150 |
13 |
600 |
12 |
391 |
| XCKU035 |
444,000 |
19 |
900 |
16 |
522 |
| XCKU040 |
530,250 |
21 |
1,080 |
20 (GTY) |
652 |
| XCKU060 |
726,000 |
38 |
2,760 |
32 (GTY) |
1,043 |
| XCKU085 |
1,143,000 |
57 |
3,480 |
56 |
1,826 |
The XCKU025 is the most cost-effective device in the family. It provides enough resources for 10G to 40G networking line cards, embedded vision pipelines, and communications pre-processing, without paying for logic capacity that will remain unused.
Key Features of the Kintex UltraScale Architecture
#### ASIC-Class Routing Architecture
The UltraScale architecture replaces the traditional island-based FPGA routing with a columnar, ASIC-like routing fabric. This dramatically reduces routing congestion and improves timing predictability, which translates to faster design closure and fewer routing iterations in Vivado.
#### Next-Generation GTH Transceivers
The GTH transceivers in the XCKU025-1FFVA1156I operate at up to 16.3 Gb/s per lane. They include on-chip DFE (Decision Feedback Equalization), CDR (Clock and Data Recovery), and configurable pre/post-emphasis, enabling clean signal integrity over long PCB traces, cables, and backplanes without requiring external re-drivers.
#### Integrated Clock Management
Multiple Mixed-Mode Clock Managers (MMCMs) and Phase-Locked Loops (PLLs) provide low-jitter clock synthesis, deskew, and frequency conversion across all clock domains of the device. This is essential for synchronous multi-protocol designs where several independent clock trees must coexist on the same die.
#### Rich DSP48E2 Slice Capability
The DSP48E2 slice in UltraScale improves on earlier generations by adding a 27×18-bit pre-adder and a 48-bit accumulator, supporting efficient FIR filter chains, FFT butterflies, and complex number arithmetic without consuming CLB resources.
#### MicroBlaze Soft Processor Support
The XCKU025-1FFVA1156I supports the MicroBlaze™ soft processor, capable of running at over 200 DMIPs with 800 Mb/s DDR3 memory access. This enables embedded control plane functionality alongside the FPGA data plane — reducing the need for an external host MCU in many designs.
Target Applications for the XCKU025-1FFVA1156I
#### 100G Networking and Packet Processing
With 12 GTH transceivers at 16.3 Gb/s each and deep Block RAM FIFOs, the XCKU025-1FFVA1156I handles 10GbE, 25GbE, and 40GbE line-rate processing for switches, routers, and network function virtualization (NFV) appliances.
#### Next-Generation Medical Imaging
The combination of 600 DSP slices and 13 Mb of Block RAM makes this device well-suited for real-time ultrasound beamforming, CT image reconstruction, and MRI signal pre-processing where low latency and deterministic throughput are mandatory.
#### 8K/4K Video Processing
High-resolution video applications require massive pixel-processing bandwidth. The XCKU025’s wide I/O count, deep memory, and DSP resources support 8K and 4K video pipelines including color space conversion, scaling, compositing, and broadcast-grade interfacing (SDI, HDMI, DisplayPort).
#### Wireless Infrastructure (4G LTE / 5G NR Pre-processing)
The XCKU025-1FFVA1156I is optimized for heterogeneous wireless infrastructure. Its DSP and transceiver resources support baseband processing tasks including CPRI/eCPRI front-haul transport, beamforming weight computation, and DPD (Digital Pre-Distortion) for power amplifiers.
#### Data Center Acceleration
As a mid-range FPGA with a low entry price, the XCKU025 provides a path to hardware-accelerated workloads including database query acceleration, machine learning inference for edge nodes, and compression/decompression offload.
#### Industrial and Ruggedized Systems
The Industrial temperature rating (–40°C to +100°C junction) directly enables use in factory automation controllers, avionics ground support equipment, ruggedized test and measurement, and other harsh-environment applications where commercial-temperature parts are insufficient.
Development and Design Tools
The XCKU025-1FFVA1156I is fully supported by AMD’s Vivado Design Suite, which provides:
- RTL synthesis, place-and-route, and timing analysis optimized for UltraScale devices
- IP Integrator for block-diagram-based design with pre-verified AMD IP cores
- Vivado Simulator for behavioral and timing simulation
- Hardware Manager for in-system debugging via JTAG using ILA (Integrated Logic Analyzer) and VIO (Virtual I/O) cores
Designers transitioning from older ISE-based flows will find Vivado significantly more streamlined, particularly for timing closure and incremental compilation on complex designs.
Compliance and Regulatory Information
| Standard |
Status |
| RoHS 6/6 |
Compliant |
| REACH |
Compliant |
| ECCN |
3A991.d |
| US HTS Code |
8542390001 |
| TARIC Code |
8542399000 |
The XCKU025-1FFVA1156I carries an ECCN of 3A991.d, placing it in the EAR99-adjacent category for most commercial export purposes. However, designers involved in defense or dual-use programs should verify applicable export control regulations with their compliance teams before shipping internationally.
Ordering Information
| Attribute |
Detail |
| Part Number |
XCKU025-1FFVA1156I |
| Manufacturer |
AMD (Xilinx) |
| Package |
1156-BBGA / FCBGA |
| Temperature Grade |
Industrial |
| Speed Grade |
-1 |
| Packaging |
Tray |
| RoHS |
Yes |
The XCKU025-1FFVA1156I is available through authorized AMD distribution partners globally, including major electronics distributors. Pricing varies with volume; contact your distributor for quantity pricing and lead-time information.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is the operating temperature range of the XCKU025-1FFVA1156I? The “I” suffix denotes Industrial grade: junction temperature from –40°C to +100°C, making it suitable for outdoor, industrial, and ruggedized environments.
Q: How many user I/Os does the XCKU025-1FFVA1156I provide? The 1156-pin FCBGA package provides up to 312 user I/Os organized across multiple HP and HR I/O banks.
Q: What high-speed serial interface standards does the XCKU025-1FFVA1156I support? The 12 GTH transceivers support PCIe Gen1/2/3, 10GbE, CPRI, JESD204B, SATA, USB 3.0, and other common serial standards at data rates up to 16.3 Gb/s.
Q: Is the XCKU025-1FFVA1156I pin-compatible with other Kintex UltraScale devices? Yes. AMD Xilinx designed the FFVA1156 package to be footprint-compatible across several Kintex UltraScale devices (XCKU025, XCKU035, XCKU040), allowing system designers to scale logic density on the same PCB.
Q: What design tool is used to program the XCKU025-1FFVA1156I? AMD Vivado Design Suite is the primary tool for synthesis, implementation, and configuration of all Kintex UltraScale devices.
Summary
The XCKU025-1FFVA1156I delivers a compelling combination of 318,150 logic cells, 13 Mb of Block RAM, 600 DSP slices, 12 GTH transceivers at 16.3 Gb/s, and an Industrial temperature rating — all in a compact 1156-pin FCBGA package. Its 20nm UltraScale architecture provides ASIC-class routing performance, advanced clocking resources, and a mature ecosystem of IP and tools through AMD’s Vivado Design Suite. For engineers who need a cost-effective, mid-range FPGA that handles high-bandwidth serial interfaces and DSP-intensive workloads in thermally demanding environments, the XCKU025-1FFVA1156I is a strong and well-proven solution.
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