Recently, the data transfer rate and the memory capacity of optical disc drives have been increasing dramatically. To obtain the high data transfer rate and greater memory capacity, the disc rotation speed and the laser power also need to be increased and these cause an increase in the temperature of the laser diode. Therefore, to develop the next generation optical disc drives, an enhanced cooling system is indispensable for the optical pick-up unit that contains the laser diode. As the temperature of the pick-up unit is influenced by the inside air flow induced by the disc rotation, it is quite necessary to grasp the velocity and temperature distribution inside the drive, and also the influence of the disc rotation speed on the temperature of the pick-up unit. Hence we applied PIV measurements and CFD simulations to visualize the flow field and the internal temperature. Then, during the actual disc recording process we measured the temperature of the pick-up unit and the internal air of the drive. As a result, we made clear the dependence of the disc rotation speed on the pick-up unit temperature. In addition, as an example for next generation optical disc drives, we evaluated the cooling system applying a small axial fan inside the drive and confirmed the validity of this fan system.
