Xilinx Launches New Era Of Digital Design In Aerospace And Defense With Introduction Of QPRO Virtex-II Family

Up to six million gate radiation-tolerant Platform FPGA family drives next-generation, mission-critical Space,  Avionics and Defense applications

SAN JOSE, Calif., May 10, 2004 - Xilinx, Inc. (NASDAQ:XLNX), the world leader in programmable logic solutions, today announced the immediate availability of its QPRO Virtex-II radiation-tolerant reconfigurable Platform FPGA family. Offering densities of up to six million system gates and high performance system features such as high performance embedded block RAM, embedded multipliers, Digital Clock Manager, and integrated I/O termination (XCITE), the QPRO Virtex-II family leads the industry in offering high density, high performance reconfigurable solutions specifically designed for mission-critical applications in aerospace and defense. 

Xilinx provides the industry's only line of reconfigurable solutions for these high integrity applications. Used in the "main brain" of the Mars Rover vehicles, the on-board reprogrammability of Xilinx previous-generation QPRO radiation-tolerant FPGAs allowed for design changes and updates right up to launch time, allowing the JPL design team to meet demanding schedules. According to JPL, this same "on the fly" reprogrammability will be used for post-launch reprogramming in its next generation deep space UHF radio on the '05 Mars orbiter. Because Xilinx chips can literally change their personality, designers have the ability to fix hardware problems or download new features from a remote location.

"Reconfigurablity plays a key role in addressing three key industry requirements - program re-use, technology insertion and a superior alternative to mask-programmed ASICs and one-time-programmable FPGAs. Both the aerospace and defense communities have embraced Xilinx QPRO technology for a wide range of applications, including mission-critical airborne and space systems," stated Rick Padovani, general manager of the Aerospace and Defense division at Xilinx. "By combining radiation-tolerance with the flexibility and high-performance features of our Virtex-II FPGAs, we're enabling a whole new range of cost effective applications and capabilities for our customers."

Addressing Industry Challenges
Xilinx has maintained an uninterrupted 15-year commitment to the Aerospace and Defense market and continues to expand both its product portfolio and investment in the industry by driving industry consortia such as the Single Events Consortium (SEE). Formed in 2002 by the Xilinx in cooperation with NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory and experts from the industry, government and academia, the SEE consortia focuses on the test and characterization of radiation effects for reconfigurable FPGAs. Through their efforts, the effectiveness of innovative radiation mitigation techniques such as Configuration Scrubbing and Triple Mode Redundancy have been evaluated and documented enabling the Aerospace and Defense market to derive the significant benefits of reconfigurable logic.

Transformational programs currently in development such as Transformational Communications, Software Defined Radio (SDR) and the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) will greatly benefit from the high-density and rich feature set of the Virtex-II QPRO family. These programs demand a very agile, high performance reprogrammable platform capable of high-performance packet processing and DSP. As such, they are a great match for the newly introduced Virtex-II QPRO family. 

Proven Solution Offers Superior Benefits
Because the QPRO Virtex-II family is based on the highly successful Virtex architecture, designers will benefit from the complete suite of design solutions including the broadest library available of proven connectivity IP, system solution boards, and development platforms. Well-established partnerships and certified interoperability with key industry standards yields a design ecosystem that is unparalleled in the industry.

The QPRO Virtex-II family extends beyond increased gate density by offering high-performance I/O signaling technology supporting up to 840 MBPS in both plastic and ceramic packages while offering up to 1104 user I/O. In addition, the QPRO Virtex-II family includes up to 144 independent blocks of 18Kbit embedded memory - ideal for a wide range of high-performance applications ranging from system interfacing and local packet buffering, to high performance DSP applications. The QPRO Virtex-II also offers superior DSP performance through the integration of up to 144 high performance Multipliers. By combining such high-performance features with a flexible fabric, the Virtex-II QPRO devices address many of today's industry challenges. 

Online Design Resource
Also launched today is the newest segment of the Xilinx eSP web portal dedicated specifically to the design and development of Aerospace and Defense applications. The portal provides a comprehensive resource for system designers, delivering a powerful array of solutions and information in a single location. Visit www.xilinx.com/esp/aero_defense/ for more information.

Pricing and Availability 
Xilinx QPRO Virtex-II devices are available in a range of grades in plastic and ceramic packages. Space grades are guaranteed for total ionizing dose (TID) up to 200K Rad (si) and latch up immune to Let >100 MeV-cm2/mg., Xilinx Virtex-II QPRO devices are available now. Pricing for the QPRO Virtex-II devices start at $318 and $2,655 for radiation tolerant space grade devices in quantities of 100. Various processing options are available. 

About Xilinx
Xilinx is the worldwide leader in complete programmable logic solutions. For more information, visit www.xilinx.com.