FPGA Communications Based on Gigabit Ethernet

The use of Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) in accelerators is widespread due to their flexibility, performance, and affordability. Whether they are used for fast feedback systems, data acquisition, fast communications using custom protocols, or any other application, there is a need for the end-user and the global control software to access FPGA features using a commodity computer. The choice of communication standards that can be used to interface to a FPGA board is wide, however there is one that stands out for its maturity, basis in standards, performance, and hardware support: Gigabit Ethernet. In the context of accelerators it is desirable to have highly reliable, portable, and flexible solutions. We have therefore developed a chipand board-independent FPGA design which implements the Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) standard. Our design has been configured for use with multiple projects, supports full linerate traffic, and communicates with any other device implementing the same well-established protocol, easily supported by any modern workstation or controls computer.