Intel has detailed its next-gen 18A process node, which will be the replacement for its Intel 3 node, offering improved clock & voltage scaling.
Intel 18A Process Node Offers Improved Performance, Efficiency & Density Versus Intel 3 Node
At the 2025 Symposium on VLSI Technology and Circuits, Intel further highlighted the features of its next-generation 18A process node, which will be featured on upcoming families such as the client-aimed "Panther Lake" CPUs and the server-aimed Clearwater Forest E-Core-only Xeon offerings.
Advanced CMOS Technology
“Intel 18A Platform Technology Featuring RibbonFET (GAA) and Power Via for Advanced High-Performance Computing” – Intel (Paper T1-1) An advanced Intel 18A technology featuring RibbonFET and Power Via provides over 30% density scaling and a full node of performance improvement compared to Intel 3. Intel 18A offers high-performance (HP) and high-density (HD) libraries with full-featured technology design capabilities and enhanced design ease of use.
It looks like the main highlights for Intel's 18A nodes will be RibbonFET (GAA) & PowerVia, enabling the transition into the next iteration of process technologies.
Starting with the 18A RibbonFET technology, Intel will be making a substantial leap from FinFET tech, offering improvements to gate electrostatics, more effective width per footprint versus FinFET, less parasitic capacitance per footprint versus FinFET, and offering improved flexibility versus FinFET.
Intel also improves upon the design flexibility of RibbonFET vs FinFET by introducing multiple ribbon widths for both 180H and 160H libraries, optimized logic power/leakage vs performance through DTCO, and specialized Ribbon Widths for SRAM that are optimized for bitcell performance, all enhancing the performance and design capabilities of next-gen chips fabricated on the 18A node.
Intel's 18A PowerVia technology will also help make improvements in the power delivery of next-gen transistors with backside power signal wires versus front-side power signal wires. These new wires are decoupled and optimized separately, allowing for:
With these improvements, Intel 18A provides over 15% iso-power performance gain over Intel 3.
At the same voltage of 1.1V, Intel 18A delivers around 25% higher frequency, and it also supports low-voltage operations below 0.65V, where you get to see up to 38% power savings at the same clocks. Intel states that multiple factors of 18A help improve performance, such as:
As for density scaling, Intel 18A provides up to 39% (~30%) density improvement over Intel 3 with the backside power technology enabling an 8-10% improvement in cell utilization, which cuts worst-case IR droop by 10x. Intel 18A also supports HP Library Height of 180nm vs 240nm (Intel 3), HD Library Height of 160nm vs 210nm (Intel 3), and an M0/M2 pitch of 32/32 versus 30/42 (Intel 3).
Lastly, in terms of SRAM scaling, Intel 18A achieves an HCC SCRAM density improvement of 30% vs Intel 3, offering HCC 0.0230um2 and HDC 0.0210um2 SRAM. As for 18A, it just doesn't stop there as the company has additional iterations of the node which will be launching between 2026-2028. The family includes 18A-P and 18A-PT, which were recently disclosed at Direct Connect 2025. Intel also expects customers to leverage these nodes for their chip production.
wccftech.com
Intel 18A Process Node Offers Improved Performance, Efficiency & Density Versus Intel 3 Node
At the 2025 Symposium on VLSI Technology and Circuits, Intel further highlighted the features of its next-generation 18A process node, which will be featured on upcoming families such as the client-aimed "Panther Lake" CPUs and the server-aimed Clearwater Forest E-Core-only Xeon offerings.
Advanced CMOS Technology
“Intel 18A Platform Technology Featuring RibbonFET (GAA) and Power Via for Advanced High-Performance Computing” – Intel (Paper T1-1) An advanced Intel 18A technology featuring RibbonFET and Power Via provides over 30% density scaling and a full node of performance improvement compared to Intel 3. Intel 18A offers high-performance (HP) and high-density (HD) libraries with full-featured technology design capabilities and enhanced design ease of use.
It looks like the main highlights for Intel's 18A nodes will be RibbonFET (GAA) & PowerVia, enabling the transition into the next iteration of process technologies.
Starting with the 18A RibbonFET technology, Intel will be making a substantial leap from FinFET tech, offering improvements to gate electrostatics, more effective width per footprint versus FinFET, less parasitic capacitance per footprint versus FinFET, and offering improved flexibility versus FinFET.
Intel also improves upon the design flexibility of RibbonFET vs FinFET by introducing multiple ribbon widths for both 180H and 160H libraries, optimized logic power/leakage vs performance through DTCO, and specialized Ribbon Widths for SRAM that are optimized for bitcell performance, all enhancing the performance and design capabilities of next-gen chips fabricated on the 18A node.
Intel's 18A PowerVia technology will also help make improvements in the power delivery of next-gen transistors with backside power signal wires versus front-side power signal wires. These new wires are decoupled and optimized separately, allowing for:
- - Improved Logic Density
- - Better standard cell utilization
- - Lower signal RC
- - Reduced voltage droop
- - More design flexibility
With these improvements, Intel 18A provides over 15% iso-power performance gain over Intel 3.
At the same voltage of 1.1V, Intel 18A delivers around 25% higher frequency, and it also supports low-voltage operations below 0.65V, where you get to see up to 38% power savings at the same clocks. Intel states that multiple factors of 18A help improve performance, such as:
- - RibbonFET transistors
- - Backside power advantage
- - Frontside interconnect improvements
- - Process/Design co-optimization
As for density scaling, Intel 18A provides up to 39% (~30%) density improvement over Intel 3 with the backside power technology enabling an 8-10% improvement in cell utilization, which cuts worst-case IR droop by 10x. Intel 18A also supports HP Library Height of 180nm vs 240nm (Intel 3), HD Library Height of 160nm vs 210nm (Intel 3), and an M0/M2 pitch of 32/32 versus 30/42 (Intel 3).
Lastly, in terms of SRAM scaling, Intel 18A achieves an HCC SCRAM density improvement of 30% vs Intel 3, offering HCC 0.0230um2 and HDC 0.0210um2 SRAM. As for 18A, it just doesn't stop there as the company has additional iterations of the node which will be launching between 2026-2028. The family includes 18A-P and 18A-PT, which were recently disclosed at Direct Connect 2025. Intel also expects customers to leverage these nodes for their chip production.
Intel 18A Process Node Offers 25% Higher Frequency At ISO & 36% Lower Power At Same Frequency Versus Intel 3, Over 30% Density
Intel detailed its next-gen 18A process node, which will be the replacement for its Intel 3 node, offering improved clock & voltage scaling.
wccftech.com
