A former Intel worker who joined rival chipmaker AMD has been indicted for trial on allegations that he stole more than $1bn worth of intellectual property and took it with him to his new employer.

Biswamohan Pani, 33, has been indicted on one count of stealing confidential information and four counts of wire fraud.

Prosecutors allege that he illegally downloaded more than a dozen confidential documents that Intel has valued at over $1bn.

Pani faces a maximum of 10 years in prison if convicted for theft of trade secrets, and up to 20 years on each wire fraud charge.

Pani left Intel in June, saying that he was investigating a move to a hedge fund position. As he took vacation time he downloaded the documents, presumably with the intention of using them in his actual new job with AMD.

AMD has since fired Pani and is co-operating fully with investigators. "AMD has not been accused of wrongdoing, and the FBI has stated that there is no evidence that AMD had any involvement in or awareness of Pani's alleged actions, " the company said in a statement.