What are all those pins for? (2009)
The article discusses the design and functionality of the Intel Core i7 920 CPU, which features a total of 1366 pins. It explains the division of these pins into categories such as power, memory data, and reserved signals, highlighting the need for a large number of power pins due to high current requirements. The author speculates on the design choices behind the pin layout and the implications for motherboard design.
- ▪The Intel Core i7 920 CPU has 1366 pins, more than any previous CPU.
- ▪The pins are divided into sections for power, memory data, and reserved signals.
- ▪The CPU can use up to 145A of current, necessitating a spread-out design for power connections.
Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
I recently built myself a new computer using an Intel Core i7 920 CPU. This CPU has more pins (well, "lands" actually, since they are just flat conducting areas that touch pins in the socket) than any other yet produced, 1366 of them to be precise. I was wondering why so many were needed, so I grabbed the datasheet and made a map: Power: VSS VCC VCCPLL VTTA VTTD VDDQ Memory: DDR0 data other DDR1 data other DDR2 data other Other: QPI data other Other reserved Idle speculation follows (I don't have any background in CPU or motherboard design): The pins roughly divide into six sections: two for memory data, one for other memory-related signals, one for power, one for the QPI bus and one that is mostly reserved.
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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at Reenigne.
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