acm-header
Sign In

Communications of the ACM

Practice

FPGAs in Client Compute Hardware


processor chip on a circuit board

Credit: Jiang Jie Feng

back to top 

Field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) are remarkably versatile. They are used in a wide variety of applications and industries where use of application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) is less economically feasible. Despite the area, cost, and power challenges designers face when integrating FPGAs into devices, they provide significant security and performance benefits. Many of these benefits can be realized in client compute hardware such as laptops, tablets, and smartphones.

An FPGA is an integrated circuit (IC) composed of configurable logic blocks (CLBs) connected via programmable interconnects (Figure 1);22 it can be configured to desired application or functionality requirements after having been manufactured (hence, field-programmable). In contrast, an ASIC cannot be modified or changed after manufacturing. Examples are a CPU, GPU, or SoC (system on a chip).


 

No entries found

Log in to Read the Full Article

Sign In

Sign in using your ACM Web Account username and password to access premium content if you are an ACM member, Communications subscriber or Digital Library subscriber.

Need Access?

Please select one of the options below for access to premium content and features.

Create a Web Account

If you are already an ACM member, Communications subscriber, or Digital Library subscriber, please set up a web account to access premium content on this site.

Join the ACM

Become a member to take full advantage of ACM's outstanding computing information resources, networking opportunities, and other benefits.
  

Subscribe to Communications of the ACM Magazine

Get full access to 50+ years of CACM content and receive the print version of the magazine monthly.

Purchase the Article

Non-members can purchase this article or a copy of the magazine in which it appears.