Intel has published a patent detailing technology that would enable the firm to embed MicroLEDs inside a CPU. The company has a few utilitarian ideas about how this tech would benefit consumers, but we do have some questions about the practical implications of these theoretical use cases.
In the patent filing, Intel provides a drawing (below) of an integrated circuit (IC) package containing the MicroLEDs sitting in a glass substrate sandwiched between two package substrates. Through-glass vias (TGVs) connect the substrates together, while deliver powering and electronic signals to the LEDs.
Through the use of nanowires, these LEDs can dynamically switch between red, green, or blue light. Intel describes uses for this light array that are commonplace elsewhere across other PC components, namely to “visually indicate that certain functions are being performed by the processor or simply for aesthetic effects.”
What the patent doesn’t discuss, however, is how anyone would actually be able to see these LEDs. After all, any desktop CPU visibility disappears once thermal interface material and heatsinks enter the picture, making the feature useless for all intents and purposes. That said, I’d certainly love to see a water block with a transparent core.
Intel filed this patent four years ago, but is only now publishing the details of its intellectual property. While such a passage of time theoretically leaves the door open to imminent products sporting MicroLEDs, there’s no guarantee the company will make use of this tech on its own CPUs, if anywhere.
There’s a near-zero chance that we’ll see this MicroLED tech manifest on Intel Nova Lake processors, of course, though I’d certainly welcome such a surprise. In the meantime, check out our picks of the best CPUs with which you can build a PC today.
