Mechanical Characterization of Thermal Interface Materials and Its Challenges

2019 ◽  
Vol 141 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Vijay Subramanian ◽  
Jorge Sanchez ◽  
Joseph Bautista ◽  
Yi He ◽  
Jinlin Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Conductivity ◽  
Polymer Matrix ◽  
Thermal Performance ◽  
Mechanical Characterization ◽  
Thermal Interface Materials ◽  
Thermal Interface ◽  
Compression Set ◽  
Thermal Solution ◽  
Interface Materials

Thermal interface materials (TIMs) play a vital role in the performance of electronic packages by enabling improved heat dissipation. These materials typically have high thermal conductivity and are designed to offer a lower thermal resistance path for efficient heat transfer. For some semiconductor components, thermal solutions are attached directly to the bare silicon die using TIM materials, while other components use an integrated heat spreader (IHS) attached on top of the die(s) and the thermal solution attached on top of the IHS. For cases with an IHS, two TIM materials are used—TIM1 is applied between the silicon die and IHS and TIM2 is used between IHS and thermal solution. TIM materials are usually comprised of a polymer matrix with thermally conductive fillers such as silica, aluminum, alumina, boron nitride, zinc oxide, etc. The polymer matrix wets the contact surface to lower the contact resistance, while the fillers help reduce the bulk resistance by increasing the bulk thermal conductivity. TIM thickness varies by application but is typically between 25 μm and around 250 μm. Selection of appropriate TIM1 and TIM2 materials is necessary for the reliable thermal performance of a product over its life and end-use conditions. It has been observed that during reliability testing, TIM materials are prone to degradation which in turn leads to a reduction in the thermal performance of the product. Typical material degradation is in the form of hardening, compression set, interfacial delamination, voiding, or excessive bleed-out. Therefore, in order to identify viable TIM materials, characterization of the thermomechanical behavior of these materials becomes important. However, developing effective metrologies for TIM characterization is difficult for two reasons: TIM materials are very soft, and the sample thickness is very small. Therefore, a well-designed test setup and a repeatable sample preparation and test procedure are needed to overcome these challenges and to obtain reliable data. In this paper, we will share some of the TIM characterization techniques developed for TIM material down-selection. The focus will be on mechanical characterization of TIM materials—including modulus, compression set, coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE), adhesion strength, and pump-out/bleed-out measurement techniques. Also, results from several TIM formulations, such as polymer TIMs and thermal gap pads, will be shared.

Characterizing Bulk Thermal Conductivity and Interface Contact Resistance Effects of Thermal Interface Materials in Electronic Cooling Applications

2003 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vadim Gektin ◽  
Sai Ankireddi ◽  
Jim Jones ◽  
Stan Pecavar ◽  
Paul Hundt
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Conductivity ◽  
Thermal Resistance ◽  
Contact Resistance ◽  
Thermal Performance ◽  
Electronic Cooling ◽  
Thermal Interface Materials ◽  
Thermal Interface ◽  
Interface Contact ◽  
Interface Materials ◽  
Bulk Thermal Conductivity

Thermal Interface Materials (TIMs) are used as thermally conducting media to carry away the heat dissipated by an energy source (e.g. active circuitry on a silicon die). Thermal properties of these interface materials, specified on vendor datasheets, are obtained under conditions that rarely, if at all, represent real life environment. As such, they do not accurately portray the material thermal performance during a field operation. Furthermore, a thermal engineer has no a priori knowledge of how large, in addition to the bulk thermal resistance, the interface contact resistances are, and, hence, how much each influences the cooling strategy. In view of these issues, there exists a need for these materials/interfaces to be characterized experimentally through a series of controlled tests before starting on a thermal design. In this study we present one such characterization for a candidate thermal interface material used in an electronic cooling application. In a controlled test environment, package junction-to-case, Rjc, resistance measurements were obtained for various bondline thicknesses (BLTs) of an interface material over a range of die sizes. These measurements were then curve-fitted to obtain numerical models for the measured thermal resistance for a given die size. Based on the BLT and the associated thermal resistance, the bulk thermal conductivity of the TIM and the interface contact resistance were determined, using the approach described in the paper. The results of this study permit sensitivity analyses of BLT and its effect on thermal performance for future applications, and provide the ability to extrapolate the results obtained for the given die size to a different die size. The suggested methodology presents a readily adaptable approach for the characterization of TIMs and interface/contact resistances in the industry.

Surface Chemistry and Characteristics Based Model for the Thermal Contact Resistance of Fluidic Interstitial Thermal Interface Materials

2001 ◽  
Vol 123 (5) ◽  
pp. 969-975 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ravi S. Prasher
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Data ◽  
Thermal Conductivity ◽  
Contact Resistance ◽  
Thermal Contact Resistance ◽  
Thermal Contact ◽  
Thermal Interface Materials ◽  
Heat Spreader ◽  
Thermal Interface ◽  
Thermal Solution ◽  
Interface Materials

Microprocessor powers are increasing at a phenomenal rate, which requires very small thermal resistance between the die (chip) and the ambient, if the current economical methods of conduction and convection cooling are to be utilized. A typical thermal solution in flip chip technology utilizes two levels of thermal interface materials: between the die and the heat spreader, and between the heat spreader and the heat sink. Phase change materials and thermal greases are among the most prominent interstitial thermal interface materials (TIM) used in electronic packaging. These TIMs are typically polymeric matrix loaded with highly conducting filler particles. The dwindling thermal budget has necessitated a better understanding of the thermal resistance of each component of the thermal solution. Thermal conductivity of these particle-laden materials is better understood than their contact resistance. A careful review of the literature reveals the lack of analytical models for the prediction of contact resistance of these types of interstitial materials, which possess fluidic properties. This paper introduces an analytical model for the thermal contact resistance of these types of interstitial materials. This model is compared with the experimental data obtained on the contact resistance of these TIMs. The model, which depends on parameters such as, surface tension, contact angle, thermal conductivity, roughness and pressure matches very well with the experimental data at low pressures and is still within the error bars at higher pressures.

Comparison of Carbon-based Nanostructures with Commercial Products as Thermal Interface Materials

2009 ◽  
Vol 1158 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Rosshirt ◽  
Drazen Fabris ◽  
Christopher Cardenas ◽  
Patrick Wilhite ◽  
Thanh Tu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Conductivity ◽  
Thermal Performance ◽  
Heat Dissipation ◽  
Limiting Factors ◽  
Great Promise ◽  
Thermal Interface Materials ◽  
Thermal Interface ◽  
Commercial Products ◽  
Experimental Findings ◽  
Interface Materials

AbstractHeat dissipation in electronics packaging can be highly dependent on Thermal Interface Materials (TIM). TIM contact, compliance, and conductivity can be the dominant limiting factors in the overall conduction heat transfer across the interface. Mixing multiwall Carbon Nanotubes (CNTs), which have high thermal conductivity, with other thermally conducting materials holds great promise as TIM fillers and has been shown to have higher thermal performance than commercial TIM ‘1’. Such mixtures possess greater thermal conductivity as a result of increased thermal conduction paths through highly conductive, high aspect ratio CNTs.In this work, we develop and test an advanced apparatus based on the ASTM D5470-06 standard to measure thermal interface resistance. Our experimental findings quantify the thermal performance trends of industry-standard TIM Arctic Silver® 5 along with hybrid TIM mixtures of Arctic Silver®5 and varying weight ratios of CNTs. Early experimental findings show that Arctic Silver®5 mixed with 0.5 to 1% multiwall CNT by weight may improve thermal conductivity over pure Arctic Silver®5.The goal of this research is to investigate the viability of integrating CNTs with commercial products as improved TIM for electronic cooling in chip packages.

Predicting Thermal Characteristics of Particle Laden Thermal Interface Materials

2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Reza H. Khiabani ◽  
Yogendra Joshi ◽  
Cyrus Aidun
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Conductivity ◽  
Thermal Performance ◽  
Volume Fraction ◽  
Particle Volume Fraction ◽  
Thermal Characteristics ◽  
Thermal Conductivity Ratio ◽  
Thermal Interface Materials ◽  
Particle Volume ◽  
Thermal Interface ◽  
Interface Materials

Particle laden Thermal Interface Materials (TIMs) are used extensively in thermal packaging of electronic components to enhance the heat transfer between heat dissipating components and the thermal management layers. In this paper, the thermal performance of particle laden TIMs is studied numerically, using the Lattice Boltzmann method. The effect of particle volume fraction, particle size and the thermal conductivity ratio on the thermal performance of particle laden TIMs are examined. The results for the effective thermal conductivity of particle laden greases are in agreement with the existing analytical and experimental results reported in the literature.

scholarly journals Graphene-Based Thermal Interface Materials: An Application-Oriented Perspective on Architecture Design

Polymers ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 1201 ◽  
Author(s):  
Le Lv ◽  
Wen Dai ◽  
Aijun Li ◽  
Cheng-Te Lin
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Conductivity ◽  
High Performance ◽  
Electronic Devices ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Thermal Interface Materials ◽  
Research Directions ◽  
Thermal Interface ◽  
Future Research Directions ◽  
Interface Materials

With the increasing power density of electrical and electronic devices, there has been an urgent demand for the development of thermal interface materials (TIMs) with high through-plane thermal conductivity for handling the issue of thermal management. Graphene exhibited significant potential for the development of TIMs, due to its ultra-high intrinsic thermal conductivity. In this perspective, we introduce three state-of-the-art graphene-based TIMs, including dispersed graphene/polymers, graphene framework/polymers and inorganic graphene-based monoliths. The advantages and limitations of them were discussed from an application point of view. In addition, possible strategies and future research directions in the development of high-performance graphene-based TIMs are also discussed.

scholarly journals Thermal Properties of the Graphene Composites: Application of Thermal Interface Materials

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (4.33) ◽  
pp. 530
Author(s):  
Mazlan Mohamed ◽  
Mohd Nazri Omar ◽  
Mohamad Shaiful Ashrul Ishak ◽  
Rozyanty Rahman ◽  
Zaiazmin Y.N ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Conductivity ◽  
Thermal Contact Resistance ◽  
Thermal Contact ◽  
Matrix Material ◽  
Thermal Interface Material ◽  
Thermal Interface Materials ◽  
Uniform Thickness ◽  
Thermal Interface ◽  
Interface Materials ◽  
Main Material

Epoxy mixed with others filler for thermal interface material (TIM) had been well conducted and developed. There are problem occurs when previous material were used as matrix material likes epoxy that has non-uniform thickness of thermal interface material produce, time taken for solidification and others. Thermal pad or thermal interface material using graphene as main material to overcome the existing problem and at the same time to increase thermal conductivity and thermal contact resistance. Three types of composite graphene were used for thermal interface material in this research. The sample that contain 10 wt. %, 20 wt. % and 30 wt. % of graphene was used with different contain of graphene oxide (GO).  The thermal conductivity of thermal interface material is both measured and it was found that the increase of amount of graphene used will increase the thermal conductivity of thermal interface material. The highest thermal conductivity is 12.8 W/ (mK) with 30 w. % graphene. The comparison between the present thermal interface material and other thermal interface material show that this present graphene-epoxy is an excellent thermal interface material in increasing thermal conductivity.  

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