The thermal performance of a graphic module on graphic card is theoretically and experimentally investigated. Unlike prior benchmark studies, this study involves a practical electronic device operating in a real software environment. The temperatures at five locations on the module and at one point on the board are measured as a function of time during the operation of a series of computer games. The theoretical model is developed using Flotherm to simulate the transient thermal response. There is close agreement from 3% to 10% between the numerical steady state case prediction and test data. The calculated transient trends using Flotherm model closely agree with experimental results and demonstrate the rapid increase in temperature as the number of module operations increases during the games. The results for the maximum temperature are directly linked to the software operation and exhibit a superposition type behavior in which the observed maximum operating temperature can exceed that estimated by steady state conditions. As expected, the results demonstrate that a carefully constructed thermal simulation can accurately predict the thermal response of a module under actual operating conditions.
Comparison of Thermal Stress during Short-Circuit in Different Types of 1.2 kV SiC Transistors Based on Experiments and Simulations