with reference now to fig1 there is depicted a cross sectional view of a portion of a substrate 10 . the embodiments of the invention as described herein are applicable to the cases where the substrate 10 is either a substrate or a printed circuit board . in either case , the substrate 10 is generally used to route signals from a generally central location on one side of the substrate 10 to generally more dispersed locations on the opposite of the substrate 10 . thus , although the descriptions provided below are given in regard to the specific case of a substrate , it is appreciated that the invention is applicable as well to a printed circuit board . it is also appreciated that , while the substrate 10 depicted in fig1 is a ten - layer substrate , the invention is equally applicable to substrates having four layers , six layers , eight layers , or other numbers of layers , with signals routed either above or below the core 22 . in the specific embodiment depicted in fig1 , the substrate 10 includes a core 22 with four build - up layers on either side of the core 22 . specifically , the substrate 10 has a first electrically conductive layer 20 that is formed directly on a first side of the core 22 , and then four build - up layers 12 , 14 , 16 , and 18 on top of the first side of the core 22 , where layer 12 is the upper most layer on the first side of the substrate 10 . similarly , the substrate 10 has a second electrically conductive layer 24 that is formed directly on a second opposing side of the core 22 , and then four build - up layers 26 , 28 , 30 , and 32 on top of the second side of the core 22 , where layer 32 is the upper most layer on the second side of the substrate 10 . it is appreciated that the number of layers as depicted in fig1 is representative only , and that in various embodiments of the invention , the substrate 10 may include either a greater or a lesser number of such build - up layers , within the constraints as dictated by the description contained herein . the electrically conductive layers are disposed between non - electrically conductive layers , which electrically insulate the electrically conductive layers one from another . in the example as depicted in fig1 , an integrated circuit 34 is electrically connected to contacts on the upper most layer 12 of the substrate 10 . also as depicted in fig1 , electrical contacts 36 are provided on the lower most layer 32 of the substrate 10 . the electrical contacts 36 are depicted as ball contacts , but may be of another type , and are used for making electrical connections between the packaged integrated circuit assembly and other portions of a larger circuit in which the packaged integrated circuit is used . fig1 also provides a legend on the right hand side of the figure , in which there is given the layer designations for a very specific embodiment of the invention . in this specific embodiment , the upper most layer 12 includes a vddio structure 36 , which is the power plane for the input / output circuitry disposed in an outer portion of the integrated circuit . layer 16 includes a vssio structure 38 , which is the ground plane for all the input / output circuitry in the integrated circuit . layer 20 includes a vddio structure 40 , which is the power plane for the input / output circuitry disposed in an inner portion of the integrated circuit . layers 14 and 18 contain the circuitry routing to the outer and inner portions of the integrated circuit , respectively . in the embodiment depicted in fig1 , the signal traces 38 on layer 18 are preferably referenced to the power plane 40 on layer 20 . the best referencing is provided when the signal traces 38 do not overlie any voids within the power plane 40 , which is generally referred to herein as the reference layer 40 . it is appreciated that the reference layer 40 may be either a power ( vdd ) layer or a ground ( vss ) layer . with reference now to fig2 , there is depicted a top plan view of a logical section of the substrate 10 , depicting the relative alignment between core vias 46 in the core 22 , voids 48 in the reference layer 40 , and signal traces 38 , where the signal traces 38 overlie the voids 48 around the core vias 46 . by “ logical section ” it is meant that this is a portion somewhere within the whole of the substrate 10 , but there are no actual lines or other markings on the substrate 10 itself which would delineate one logical section from another . as mentioned above , the embodiment depicted in fig2 is not a preferred embodiment , as there are irregularities in the impedance of the signal traces 38 between those areas that are properly referenced and those areas that are not , such as between those portions of the signal traces 38 which overlie the reference plane 40 and those portions of the signal traces 38 which overlie the voids 48 . it can also be seen that the arrangement of the vias 46 produces many gaps between two adjacent voids 48 in which signal traces 38 cannot easily be routed without running over the voids 48 . with reference now to fig3 , there is depicted a top plan view of a logical section of the substrate 10 , depicting the relative alignment between core vias 46 , voids 48 in the reference layer 40 , and signal traces 38 , where the signal traces 38 have been placed closer together so as to not overlie the voids 48 around the core vias 46 . as mentioned above , this is also not a preferred embodiment , as the close proximity of the signal traces 38 to each other tends to increase the degree of crosstalk that is experienced between the signals . as before , the arrangement of the vias 46 produces many gaps between the adjacent voids 48 in which signal traces 38 cannot easily be routed without running over the voids 48 . with reference now to fig4 , there is depicted a top plan view of a logical section of the substrate 10 , depicting the relative alignment between core vias 46 , voids 48 in the reference layer 40 , and signal traces 38 , where the core vias 46 and voids 48 have been realigned so that the signal traces 38 do not overlie the voids 48 around the core vias 46 . in this preferred embodiment , the signal traces 38 are neither narrowed , so there is no impact on their resistance , nor are they crowded together such that crosstalk between them increases . however , they also do not substantially overlie the voids 48 in the reference layer 40 , so the impedance of the signal traces 38 is not disrupted in that manner , and the signal traces 38 are well referenced to the reference layer 40 . the benefits of the embodiment as depicted in fig4 are enabled by having the signal traces 38 , the vias 46 , and the voids 48 substantially aligned in rows that are directed along a given direction . in this manner , good use is made of the space available for the signal traces 38 , and the substrate 10 does not need to be made larger in order to accommodate all the desired signal traces 38 without resorting to the non - preferred embodiments described above . in other words , the space on the substrate 10 is compacted between rows of vias 46 and voids 48 , so that there are fewer unusable gaps between them . as depicted in fig4 , some or all of the voids 48 may be linked together to form a continuous void around a row of vias 46 . one important difference between the embodiment depicted in fig4 and the embodiments depicted in fig2 and 3 is the alignment of the vias 46 and voids 48 within the logical section depicted . typically , the core vias 46 are aligned to some structure within the substrate 10 other than the signal traces 38 . for example , the core vias 46 can be aligned with reference to the contacts 36 which make electrical connections to the outside circuitry , such as the ball contacts . when the core vias 46 are aligned to some other structure in this manner , the voids 48 are automatically aligned in the same manner , and then the signal traces 38 must be routed as best as can be done around the orientation of the voids 48 . however , in the embodiment as depicted in fig4 , the core vias 46 within the depicted logical section of the substrate 10 are aligned substantially in rows in generally the same direction as the desired routing of the signal traces 38 within that same logical section . thus , the voids 48 are also substantially aligned in rows that travel in the same general direction as the signal traces 38 in that logical section of the substrate 10 . in this manner , the various structures are aligned with reference to the desired routing of the signal traces 38 , and not with reference to some other structure . thus , there is more space that is usable for the routing of the signal traces 38 , and less space that is undesirably disposed in gaps between the voids 48 . thus , the vias 46 and voids 48 within each logical section are preferably aligned according to the desired routing of the signal traces 38 within that logical section . this alignment may be , in various embodiments , in the same general direction within all logical sections of the substrate 10 , or more preferably may be in different general directions within the various logical sections of the substrate 10 . for example , the general direction for each logical section may be generally along a radial line extending from the center of the substrate 10 and through the logical section to the peripheral edge of the substrate 10 . in most embodiments , the general direction of alignment within a given logical section will be different from section to section , but generally along radial lines of the substrate 10 as the signals are routed generally outwardly from a relatively small and centrally located integrated circuit 34 to contacts 36 that are located generally toward the peripheral edges of the substrate 10 . the foregoing description of preferred embodiments for this invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description . it is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed . obvious modifications or variations are possible in light of the above teachings . the embodiments are chosen and described in an effort to provide the best illustrations of the principles of the invention and its practical application , and to thereby enable one of ordinary skill in the art to utilize the invention in various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated . all such modifications and variations are within the scope of the invention as determined by the appended claims when interpreted in accordance with the breadth to which they are fairly , legally , and equitably entitled .