Keeping electronics cool: Purdue University investigates

This is not only bad news for the end user, who may get several years’ use out of the device, but also in the grand scheme of electronics waste - which is continually growing. 

Amy Marconnet, Professor of Mechnical Engineering at Purdue University, is exploring a wide range of technologies to develop cooling and thermal management techniques focused on reducing the amount of heat produced. Her work has received funding from a consortium of companies under the Cooling Technologies Research Center at Purdue.

“On the semiconductor side, we’re mainly looking at improving thermal management to let electronics run at higher powers,” explained Marconnet. “With wearable electronics, there’s tighter temperature controls required because it’s directly in contact with people at all times or when it’s in use and getting hot.”

Marconnet is researching materials that can better transfer heat in a system, without adding additional weight or manufacturing costs to the device, such as phase change materials, which provide thermal management by absorbing or releasing heat during melting or solidifying depending on conditions, which are also being looked at for power electronics in electric vehicles.

“So, you can have the materials melting while you’re, say, using your VR (virtual reality) goggles,” Marconnet said. “And then when you’re recharging your goggles or overnight, they will solidify, and you can use the device with higher intensity the next day.”

By melting, these materials absorb the heat being produced - solidifying releases the heat. Marconnet recently tested using a metallic alloy within a chip to keep the system compact.

Another area which has been explored is the viability of thermal greases, a pastelike material which is situated between a silicon chip and heat-spreading components. These greases are pumped out between the chips and components.

“We’re trying to figure out a fast test method right now for identifying which materials will perform well and which will perform poorly without having to wait for a year or more of an actual use of the system,” Marconnet added.

Marconnet and Xiulin Ruan, a professor at the School of Mechanical Engineering, have collaborated on developing a compressible foam designed to extend device longevity. This foam not only helps dissipate heat but also provides insulation against lower temperatures. The Purdue Innovates Office of Technology Commercialisation has submitted a patent application for this innovation.