Intel and Arm join hands to develop the 1.8nm mobile SoCs

Arm and Intel Foundry Services announced plans on Wednesday to perform design technology co-optimization (DTCO) and system technology co-optimization (STCO) on the Intel 18A fabrication technology for Arm’s mobile IP (1.8nm-class). The plan will enable Arm and IFS clients to maximise performance, reduce power consumption, and optimise die sizes in their upcoming SoCs incorporating Arm’s IP.

Under the terms of the agreement, Intel Foundry Services and Arm will co-optimize Arm’s IP and Intel’s 18A fabrication process to improve the new node’s performance, power, area, and cost advantages. The two companies will initially concentrate on mobile SoC designs, but their collaboration may eventually expand to the automotive, aerospace, data center, Internet of Things, and government applications. Arm and IFS will collaborate to create reference designs and optimised process developer kits for mobile SoCs as part of the agreement.

Chip manufacturing technologies and processor designs are extremely complex and costly in today’s world. To maximise the benefits of each new node for a specific design, foundries and chip developers now optimise transistor design, libraries, standard cells, chip layout, and interconnects, to name a few aspects of DTCO methodology.

Intel
credit: tomshardware

When it comes to Intel’s 18A fabrication process, there are numerous things that can be optimised at the node and design levels to extract more PPAC benefits from the node.

One of Intel 18A’s key innovations is the use of gate-all-around (GAA) transistors known as RibbonFETs. The channels in GAA transistors are horizontally oriented and completely enclosed by gates.

These GAA channels are formed via epitaxy and selective material removal, allowing designers to fine-tune them by varying the width of the transistor channels to achieve higher performance or lower power consumption. If everything goes well, they will be able to reduce transistor leakage current and performance variability, which will open up new opportunities for DTCO.

Intel 4

Another advantage of the 18A process is its PowerVia backside power delivery network (PDN). The PDN must be customised for a specific design and process technology in order to efficiently provide power and respond quickly to the behaviour of a modern processor, which can vary significantly depending on the workload.

Client and smartphone SoCs should be optimised for burst behaviour, whereas data center SoCs should be optimised for constant high loads — which is why Intel and Arm will only address smartphone SoCs for the time being.

One thing to keep in mind about Intel’s 18A process technology is that it will be used to make chips at various IFS locations around the world. As fabless chip designers seek to localise chip production, this will be an advantage of this fabrication process.

Also Read:

Source

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

More like this

AMD

AMD Surges Ahead in 2025: Gains 16.6% CPU Market...

In a dramatic shift in the CPU landscape, AMD has pulled off one of its biggest wins...
Intel’s Highly-Anticipated 18A Process Enters “Risk Production”; Foundry Division Geared Up To Make a Comeback

Intel’s 18A Chip: A Game-Changer in Risk Production

Intel’s 18A chip enters risk production, signaling a potential comeback in the semiconductor industry. Learn about its...
Intel’s Panther Lake CPUs: 2026 Launch Confirmed

Intel’s Panther Lake CPUs: 2026 Launch Confirmed

Intel’s Panther Lake “Core Ultra 300” CPUs set for 2026 launch. Discover the latest on Intel’s 18A...
Intel’s New Era: CEO Lip-Bu Tan Unveils Customer-Centric Vision at Intel Vision 2025

Intel’s New Era: CEO Lip-Bu Tan Unveils Customer-Centric Vision...

Intel’s New Era: The air crackled with anticipation as hundreds of partners and customers filled the conference...
Intel Meteor Lake Desktop Processor

Intel Meteor Lake Desktop Processor Spotted: 14 Cores, LGA...

Intel Meteor Lake Desktop Processor Spotted: Intel’s Meteor Lake processors have been making waves in the mobile...

LATEST NEWS

Best Features of iOS 18.4 in Apple’s Latest Update

Apple’s iOS 18.4 update is finally here, and it’s packed with meaningful upgrades across core apps and system functions — including the long-awaited expansion...

Virat Kohli Achieves 13,000 T20 Runs Milestone with a Stunning 29-Ball Fifty Against MI

On a balmy evening at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium, as the crowd roared with anticipation, Virat Kohli etched his name into the annals of cricket...

Huawei Watch Fit 3 Launched in India from ₹14,999

Huawei has introduced its Watch Fit 3 smartwatch in India, adding to its range of wearables in the market. The watch is priced at...

The Ultimate Cleaning Companion: Portronics MopCop4 Transforms How Indians Clean Their Homes and Cars

Portronics MopCop4 Launched: Have you ever found yourself struggling to clean those hard-to-reach corners under your sofa? Or perhaps you’ve experienced the frustration of...

Featured