A field-programmable gate array (FPGA) is an integrated circuit designed to be configured by the customer or designer. The FPGA configuration is generally specified using a hardware description language (HDL). FPGAs can be used to implement any logical function that an ASIC could perform. The ability to update the functionality after shipping, partial re-configuration of the portion of the design[1] and the low non-recurring engineering costs relative to an ASIC design (notwithstanding the generally higher unit cost), offer advantages for many applications.

Avnet Memec specialise in FPGA solutions from Microsemi (Who acquired Actel). FPGA Products from Microsemi are referred to as SOC (System on Chip) and include Low Power, Mixed Signal (Smartfusion), Radiation Tolerant or Rad Hard and Antifuse technologies. Smartfusion Mixed Signal FPGAs include ARM Cortex–M1 and Cortex-M3 MCU core and Programmable Analogue functions such as ADC, DAC, ACE (Analogue Compute Engine) Voltage/Current/Temperature Monitors. Differentiating features of Microsemi FPGA Anti Fuse technology is its Non-Volatile requirements and Microsemi are the only FPGA vendor to offer devices that are immune to SEU (Single Event Upsets). Single Event Upsets are caused by high energy particles within the Earth’s atmosphere and when they impact electronic devices they can cause upset.