Mercury Systems, Inc. announced the Model 5585 and Model 5586 SOSA aligned Xilinx Virtex UltraScale+™ high bandwidth memory (HBM) FPGA 3U VPX modules. These are the first open architecture 3U products on the market to feature HBM (memory directly integrated on the FPGA chip), offering a 20x increase in memory bandwidth over traditional DDR4 memory. This innovative design dramatically boosts signal processing speeds to support size, weight and power (SWaP)-constrained compute-intensive applications such as electronic warfare, radar, signals intelligence and big data.

When applied to mission-critical applications such as electronic countermeasures, this added processing power helps transform raw data into actionable intelligence in near real-time, allowing customers to gain insights quickly and make fast decisions confidently.

“Our new Model 5585 and 5586 modules are a breakthrough in FPGA technology designed to speed information to the end user, and the first to market with HBM technology” said Ken Hermanny, general manager, Mercury Microwave and Mixed Signal Assemblies. “The HBM memory chip stacking approach shortens how far data has to travel on chip, enabling smaller form factor subsystems to achieve superior power efficiency and space savings while eliminating processing and memory bottlenecks. It’s an excellent example of Mercury’s expertise in applying the latest commercial technology to aerospace and defense applications.”

“The Virtex UltraScale+ with HBM provides a unique combination of memory, compute and I/O capability in a single high performance FPGA,” said Manuel Uhm, director for silicon marketing at Xilinx. “This level of integration enables demanding data acquisition and signal processing applications to operate with much lower latency and reduced SWaP than was possible with previous generations of FPGAs, which needed external memory. This real-time responsiveness is key for mission-critical applications.”

Next-Generation Performance in a Compact and Standardized Form Factor

  • Superior power efficiency and space savings in a single-slot, SOSA aligned 3U VPX profile
  • HBM offers 3x the bandwidth per watt vs. GDDR5 memory while occupying 94 percent less space
  • 20x increase in memory bandwidth over traditional DDR4 memory
  • Dual 100 GigE interfaces offer fast, flexible backplane system connections
  • Navigator Design Suite accelerates design with tools that enable complete operational control of the hardware and all IP functions in the FPGA.