Intel Nova Lake’s Most Powerful CPU Tile Could Exceed 150 mm² With Expanded L3 Cache
Intel Nova Lake-S processors are back in the spotlight, even though their launch is not expected until later this year. Recently, reports showed that some high-end models may include an NPU capable of delivering up to 74 TOPS for AI, making them suitable for the Copilot+ PC label. Now, new details reveal the expected size of the CPU tile, including the version with a large L3 cache that Intel is preparing.
The Most Powerful Nova Lake CPU Tile Could Exceed 150 mm²
The Nova Lake-S design, also known as the Intel Core Ultra 4 Series, will follow a tile-based structure similar to current Arrow Lake processors. Intel will use its most advanced manufacturing node for the most important tile in the package: the CPU tile.
According to HXL on X (formerly Twitter), the top configuration of Nova Lake with 8 performance cores and 16 efficiency cores will feature a CPU tile measuring around 110 mm². However, the version equipped with bLLC (big Last Level Cache) will exceed 150 mm².
The difference in size between the two versions is entirely due to the added L3 cache, which takes up the extra surface area.
The version without bLLC is expected to measure about 110 mm², while the larger variant grows significantly because of the expanded cache.
In addition to the CPU tile, Nova Lake processors will include other tiles to complete the package. One of them will be the GPU tile, which is rumored to use the Celestial (Xe3p) architecture. There will also be a SoC tile, which integrates components such as the memory controller and PCIe support.
