External Memory Interface Handbook Volume 3: Reference Material: For UniPHY-based Device Families

ID 683841
Date 3/06/2023
Public
Document Table of Contents

3.5. Hard PHY

A physical layer interface (PHY) is embedded in the periphery of the Arria V device, and can run at the same high speed as the hard controller and hard sequencer. This hard PHY is located next to the hard controller. Differing device configurations have different numbers and sizes of hard controller and hard PHY pairs.

The hard PHY implements logic that connects the hard controller to the I/O ports. Because the hard controller and AFI interface support high frequencies, a portion of the sequencer is implemented as hard logic. The Nios® II processor, the instruction/data RAM, and the Avalon® fabric of the sequencer are implemented as core soft logic. The read/write manger and PHY manager components of the sequencer, which must operate at full rate, are implemented as hard logic in the hard PHY.