[Blog] Lattice MachXO4: Designed for Longevity, Engineered for Innovation

The Lattice Mach™ brand of FPGAs has long set the standard for performance, flexibility, and efficiency in board control and security applications. With the launch of the new Lattice MachXO4™ FPGA family, Lattice is redefining what’s possible for control and connectivity in next-generation systems, delivering competitive power efficiency, robust reliability, and design flexibility for a wide range of applications in the Compute, Industrial, Automotive, Consumer, and Communications markets.

Lattice Mach FPGAs have powered countless applications by offering unmatched system robustness combined with small form factor and low power, which enables designers to efficiently implement complex logic functions even in space-constrained environments. The family also delivers leadership I/O count per package area, supporting seamless connectivity to a wide array of peripherals and interfaces – making these devices ideal for system control and connectivity designs.

Integrated flash enables secure, instant-on boot in milliseconds, making Mach FPGAs the first-on, last-off device. This is essential for system control, power sequencing, and graceful shutdown to protect critical data and ensure reliability. Mach FPGAs further stand out for their flexible and robust I/O capabilities, including support for 1V to 3.3V I/O standards and default pull-down resistors. Such attributes ensure native compatibility with modern processors and legacy components while enhancing signal integrity.

Finally, the Mach family’s TransFR™ (Transparent Field Reconfiguration) technology with hitless I/O enables firmware updates without disrupting ongoing operations, ensuring continuous system performance and reliability in demanding applications.

MachXO4: The Next Evolution
MachXO4 takes these proven Mach family advantages even further with modern features that directly address key challenges faced by today’s system designers:

• Improved Hot Socketing (Leakage Current as Low as 350 μA):
  Reliable hot socketing ensures that devices can safely handle power sequencing mismatches without risk of damage or data loss. This means a device can power up while the rest of the system remains unpowered, or stay unpowered while connected components are active. Such conditions often occur when cards are physically plugged or unplugged during operation, or when modules are added while selected portions of the system are powered up or down independently. This is especially valuable in industrial, communications, and automotive applications where uptime is critical and maintenance must be performed quickly and safely.
• Reliable In-field System Reconfiguration:
  Features like dual boot flash memory and TransFR™ technology enable designers to reliably reprogram the MachXO4 devices in the field while the system continues to operate.
• Device Longevity:
  Long-term supply chain support (over 20 years) gives designers confidence that their products will remain manufacturable and supported throughout extended lifecycles, which is essential for industries like Automotive and Industrial automation.
• Compact, High-Density Integration:
  High logic density and small package options (such as WLCSP) allow MachXO4 to deliver advanced functionality in space-constrained designs. Integrated hardened features – including I2C, SPI, timer/counter, PLL, and an on-chip oscillator – also eliminate the need for external components, reducing both board complexity and total cost of ownership. This is ideal for applications where board space is at a premium, such as wearables, IoT devices, and compact industrial controllers.
• Accelerated Design Productivity with Lattice Radiant®:
  The MachXO4 FPGA family is fully supported in Lattice Radiant design software, which streamlines development with an intuitive interface, powerful synthesis and simulation, and easy integration of IP cores. Faster verification cycles and simplified project start-up mean engineers can bring products to market more quickly, respond to changing requirements, and reduce development costs.

MachXO4’s combination of flexible I/O, robust reliability, low power, and small form factor means products can meet demanding requirements, adapt to future needs, and deliver long-term value. Furthermore, upcoming releases in the MachXO4 family will deliver devices with reduced power consumption, specifically targeting high-temperature applications – ensuring MachXO4 remains the go-to solution for demanding environments where efficiency and reliability are paramount.

Whether you're designing for Compute systems, Industrial control, Automotive platforms, Consumer electronics, or Communications infrastructure, MachXO4 offers the performance and flexibility you need – backed by Lattice’s proven track record of innovation and support.

To learn more about how the Lattice MachXO4 FPGA family can help you achieve your design goals and accelerate time to market, reach out to speak with the team at Lattice.