Definition: PowerVia

A chip design from Intel that separates the wires that power the transistors from the wires that interconnect the signals from one transistor to another. For decades, the common mixing of power and signal lines in the top layers of the chip has caused interference and connection bottlenecks.

With PowerVia, the power wires are placed below the transistor layers and deliver current directly from the package leads. The interconnecting signal wires remain on top. As a result, each wiring section is better optimized for its purpose. In 2021, Intel announced PowerVia along with a new transistor architecture (see RibbonFET). See transistor.

Better Resource Organization

Separating the power from the signal allows for better organization of both. Higher frequencies are obtained, and power leakage is reduced. Nano-TSVs are vias from the power lines through the transistors that are 500 times smaller than traditional TSVs (see via).