Intel Arrow Lake-HX Interposer Appears Online

[T0@st]

The Intel Design tools webpage has this week once again provided an early preview of upcoming processors - following on from an LGA1851-MTL-S CPU interposer appearing on the site late last month - indicating that a Meteor Lake-S desktop CPU range was due at some point later in 2023. Intel's latest webpage entry features the "BGA2114-ARL-HX Interposer for the Gen 5 VR Test Tool" with an SKU code that reads: "Q6B2114ARLHX."

The BGA 2114 design points to a mobile processor platform, and industry analysts are fairly certain that Intel is preparing next generation high-end laptop CPUs in the form of its rumored Arrow Lake-HX lineup. This range is set to succeed the 13th generation Core-HX Raptor Lake family of mobile processors. The new BGA package looks to be slightly larger than the closest predecessor, possibly accommodating Intel's new "disaggregated" tile-based (tile is their term for chiplet) internal layout.



View at TechPowerUp Main Site | Source

 

[usiname]

BGA2114? Is this the number of pins, because this socket has no more than 500 holes

 

[pressing on]

BGA2114? Is this the number of pins, because this socket has no more than 500 holes

Yes, deliberate obfuscation I would have thought, to see what the actual thing looks like you have to log in.

 

[Denver]

One of the few intel technologies that sparks any interest (in my view), looking forward to seeing if and how they will make this work on a commercial scale and mitigate issues like latency between tiles.

 

[TiN]

This is interposer for Intel's VRTT power testing tool. Imagine a programmable DC load+oscilloscope+signal generator thing that has PGA-style pins. Motherboard manufacturers and Intel use VRTT as a power delivery testing tool to verify DC-DC design and motherboard power design before actual CPUs are available for testing. It looks like a huge tower cooler with bunch of electronics strapped to it and plugs into various interposers like one shown in news post.
Here's photo of thing https://designintools.intel.com/gen5-vr-test-tool-base-kit.html. It's very nice to use and test motherboard power delivery for all kinds of performance aspects. Saves whole lot of time manually poking with oscilloscope and DC load equipment.

Obviously you need one interposer per each socket type, to interface universal pin header on test tool for specific layout of pads for each socket LGA or BGA. One can buy them here: https://designintools.intel.com/equipment/cpu-socket-voltage-regulator-testing/interposers.html