Cooling for edge computing and heterogeneous computing electronic hardware

Abstract

In one embodiment, a cooling device for providing liquid cooling to a processor or computing hardware / system includes a first cooling plate having a first liquid distribution channel integrated therein. The first cooling plate is to be positioned on the top surface of the processor to extract heat from the top surface of the processor using a cooling liquid flowing through the first liquid distribution channel. The cooling device also includes a second cooling plate having a second liquid distribution channel integrated therein. The second cooling plate is to be positioned at the bottom surface of the processor to extract heat from the bottom surface of the processor using a cooling liquid flowing through the second liquid distribution channel. The cooling device also includes a mounting mechanism to mount the first cooling plate and the second cooling plate to the top and bottom of the processor so as to sandwich the processor therebetween in good thermal contact.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to data centers. More specifically, embodiments of the present invention relate to cooling devices for edge computing and heterogeneous computing electronic hardware. Background Art

[0002] Thermal management of high power density chips and processors is a critical issue, especially as the power density of high-end chips such as CPUs (central processing units) and GPUs (general purpose processing units) increases. The cooling device used in the cooling system design is used to maintain the thermal condition of the chip by removing the heat generated by the chip. If the temperature exceeds the limit of the thermal specification, the chip may not operate normally and throttling may occur, or even be damaged. In addition, by providing the chip with appropriate or better thermal conditions when the chip is working, better performance or lower power consumption can be achieved.

[0003] Edge computing has become increasingly important in the AI ​​era, especially when combined with 5G technology. Edge computing requires revolutionary changes in software and hardware architecture and infrastructure. Edge computing hardware is exposed to more challenging environments than servers in data centers. This means that these devices are designed to work in more severe environments. Data center thermal environments are well controlled. Edge computing hardware can experience any type of harsh environment.

[0004] Furthermore, heterogeneous packaging with HBM (High Bandwidth Memory), processors, and other electronic components packaged together and closer to each other has significantly changed the form factor and design of processors such as GPU (General Purpose Processing Unit) cards. New packaging approaches such as heterogeneous packaging significantly change the design of chips, which brings more challenges in the corresponding thermal management. Furthermore, in many use cases, most of these cards may require liquid cooling solutions, so a robust thermal design approach is key.

[0005] There are many solution providers that offer high-performance CPU and GPU solutions. Most of the solutions require customized thermal management solutions and cooling devices, such as air-cooled heat sinks or liquid-cooled cold plates. Not only are the form factors different, but the mounting methods are also significantly different. All of this leads to significant difficulties in designing and selecting appropriate cooling devices. Standardized designs can benefit chip vendors, cooling hardware vendors, and end users. Summary of the invention

[0006] One aspect of the present application provides a cooling device for providing liquid cooling to a processor, the cooling device comprising: a first cooling plate having a first liquid distribution channel embedded therein, the first cooling plate to be positioned on the top surface of the processor, wherein the first cooling plate will use the cooling liquid flowing in the first liquid distribution channel to extract heat from the top surface of the processor; a second cooling plate having a second liquid distribution channel embedded therein, the second cooling plate to be positioned at the bottom surface of the processor, wherein the second cooling plate will use the cooling liquid flowing in the second liquid distribution channel to extract heat from the bottom surface of the processor; and a mounting mechanism for mounting the first cooling plate onto the top surface of the processor, and mounting the second cooling plate onto the bottom surface of the processor to sandwich the processor therebetween.

[0007] Another aspect of the present application provides a processor card, which includes: a processor; a first cooling plate having a first liquid distribution channel embedded therein, the first cooling plate to be positioned on the top surface of the processor, wherein the first cooling plate will use the cooling liquid flowing in the first liquid distribution channel to extract heat from the top surface of the processor; a second cooling plate having a second liquid distribution channel embedded therein, the second cooling plate to be positioned at the bottom surface of the processor, wherein the second cooling plate will use the cooling liquid flowing in the second liquid distribution channel to extract heat from the bottom surface of the processor; and a mounting mechanism for mounting the first cooling plate onto the top surface of the processor, and mounting the second cooling plate onto the bottom surface of the processor to sandwich the processor therebetween.

[0008] Another aspect of the present application provides an electronic equipment rack, which includes a plurality of server racks, each of the server racks includes one or more servers, and each server includes one or more processor assemblies, wherein each processor assembly includes: a processor; a first cooling plate having a first liquid distribution channel embedded therein, the first cooling plate to be positioned on the top surface of the processor, wherein the first cooling plate will use the cooling liquid flowing in the first liquid distribution channel to extract heat from the top surface of the processor; a second cooling plate having a second liquid distribution channel embedded therein, the second cooling plate to be positioned at the bottom surface of the processor, wherein the second cooling plate will use the cooling liquid flowing in the second liquid distribution channel to extract heat from the bottom surface of the processor; and a mounting mechanism for mounting the first cooling plate onto the top surface of the processor, and mounting the second cooling plate onto the bottom surface of the processor to sandwich the processor therebetween. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] Embodiments of the invention are illustrated by way of example and not limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings in which like references indicate similar elements.

[0010] Figure 1is a block diagram showing a cooling device according to one embodiment.

[0011] Figure 2 is a block diagram showing a cooling device according to another embodiment.

[0012] Figure 3A and Figure 3B A cooling device according to another embodiment is shown.

[0013] Figure 4 A mounting mechanism of a cooling device according to one embodiment is shown.

[0014] Figure 5 A mounting mechanism of a cooling device according to one embodiment is shown.

[0015] FIG. 6A to FIG. 6C Different cooling device configurations are shown according to certain embodiments.

[0016] Fig. 7A and Figure 7B Different configurations of electronics racks are shown in accordance with certain embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] Various embodiments and aspects of the present invention will be described with reference to the details discussed below, and the accompanying drawings will illustrate various embodiments. The following description and accompanying drawings are explanations of the present invention and should not be construed as limiting the present invention. Many specific details are described to provide a thorough understanding of various embodiments of the present invention. However, in some cases, well-known or conventional details are not described in order to provide a concise discussion of embodiments of the present invention.

[0018] Reference to "one embodiment" or "an embodiment" in the specification means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in conjunction with the embodiment may be included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. The phrase "in one embodiment" appearing in various places in the specification does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment.

[0019] Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a cooling device design for edge computing electronic devices and heterogeneous packaging devices (such as GPU cards or SOC (system on chip) devices). The cooling design includes a cooling plate, which includes a liquid or coolant (e.g., water) distribution channel and / or liquid fins embedded therein. The cooling plate also includes a supply port and a return port for connecting to an external cooling source or cooling circuit. The cooling plate can be assembled on the bottom part, the top part, or both to thermally cover and connect to electronic devices such as processors and storage devices. The mounting mechanism is used to fix the cooling plate to the electronic device. A mounting rod can be used, and the mounting rod can be pre-fixed on the electronic device or designed as a separate unit. The mounting rod design needs to provide protection on the electronic device and at the same time ensure that sufficient pressure is loaded on the electronic device, which means a good thermal connection between the device and the cooling plate. Sufficient pressure is to ensure a good thermal connection between the cooling unit and the electronic device. The fluid inlet port and the outlet port can be assembled at multiple positions on the cooling device based on actual use, and the installation method can be flexibly changed and adjusted based on the actual design of the computing board and the cooling part. This solution can also be used on conventional server IT equipment with appropriate modifications.

[0020] According to one aspect, a cooling device for providing liquid cooling to a processor includes a first cooling plate (also referred to as a top cooling plate) having a first liquid distribution channel integrated therein. The first cooling plate will be positioned on the top surface of the processor to extract heat from the top surface of the processor using a coolant flowing through the first liquid distribution channel. The cooling device also includes a second cooling plate (also referred to as a bottom cooling plate) having a second liquid distribution channel integrated therein. The second cooling plate will be positioned at the bottom surface of the processor to extract heat from the bottom surface of the processor using a coolant flowing through the second liquid distribution channel. The cooling device also includes a mounting mechanism to mount the first cooling plate and the second cooling plate to the top and bottom of the processor to sandwich the processor with good thermal contact. It should be mentioned that the internal design of the cooling plate is not described in detail. Fluid channels can be integrated internally for fluid distribution, and fluid fins can be used to increase the heat transfer area.

[0021] In one embodiment, the cooling device also includes a first thermal pad (e.g., a thin layer of thermally conductive material) disposed between the first cooling plate and the top surface of the processor, wherein the first thermal pad is thermally conductive and dielectric. The cooling device also includes a second thermal pad disposed between the second cooling plate and the bottom surface of the processor, wherein the second thermal pad is thermally conductive and dielectric. The first thermal pad and the second thermal pad are designed to improve thermal conductivity by providing good contact between the cooling plate and the surface of the processor while preventing short circuits. The functions of the thermal pad or thermal interface material used in the present disclosure provide the following effects: 1) filling the air gap between the two contacting surfaces; 2) enhancing heat transfer; and 3) reducing the design complexity of the cooling plate.

[0022] In one embodiment, when the processor is implemented as part of a processor card (e.g., a processor package including a processor and other associated components such as a memory), the processor may be mounted or soldered on a printed circuit board (PCB) having electrical traces connected to other components of the processor card. In this configuration, the bottom surface of the processor is located on the top surface of the PCB. A second cooling plate is attached to the bottom surface of the PCB, and a second thermal pad may be disposed between the bottom surface of the PCB and the second cooling plate. In one embodiment, several thermal pads may be used on a separate electronic device instead of a single pad. In another embodiment, different thermal pads or different heat conductive materials may be used on the same package.

[0023] In one embodiment, each of the cooling plates includes an inlet port (also referred to as a supply port) and an outlet port (also referred to as a return port), the inlet port being used to receive cooling liquid from a liquid manifold, and the outlet port being used to return the cooling liquid carrying heat to the liquid manifold. In another embodiment, one of the cooling plates includes an inlet port to receive cooling liquid from a manifold. The cooling liquid flows through the cooling plate and enters another cooling plate via an intermediate channel or tube. The cooling liquid then flows through another cooling plate and is discharged from the outlet port of the cooling plate back to the liquid manifold. In one embodiment, the processor is one of a plurality of processors that share a cooling plate. In one embodiment, a cooling plate may have a plurality of fluid inlet ports and outlet ports. In one embodiment, an additional fluid device such as a manifold may be mounted on the cooling plate.

[0024] According to another aspect, a processor card includes one or more processors and a cooling device as described above that sandwiches the processors therein. According to another aspect, an electronic equipment rack includes a plurality of server racks. Each server rack includes one or more processor cards, and each processor card includes one or more processors sandwiched by one or more cooling devices as described above.

[0025] Figure 1 is a block diagram showing an example of a cooling device according to one embodiment. For illustration purposes, Figure 1 A processor card or processor package or a complete computing system (eg, a system on a chip or SOC system) is shown thermally protected by a cooling device. Figure 1 , the cooling device includes a first cooling plate 101 (also referred to as a top cooling plate) and a second cooling plate 102 (also referred to as a bottom cooling plate). The first cooling plate 101 includes a first liquid distribution channel integrated therein and the second cooling plate 102 includes a second liquid distribution channel integrated therein to provide liquid cooling to the electronic devices contained therein.

[0026] The cooling plate 101 is configured to be positioned on the top surface of the processor 103, and the cooling plate 102 is configured to be positioned at the bottom surface of the processor 103. Although only one processor is shown, more processors and other components or electronic devices 104A-104B can be positioned between the cooling plate 101 and the cooling plate 102 to receive liquid cooling. The cooling plate 101 is configured to extract heat from the top surface of the processor 103 using the cooling liquid flowing in the corresponding liquid distribution channel integrated therein. Similarly, the cooling plate 102 is configured to extract heat from the bottom surface of the processor 103 using the cooling liquid flowing in the corresponding liquid distribution channel integrated therein. Similarly, heat removal operations are performed on other components 104A-104B. The cooling liquid can be supplied and received from a liquid manifold (not shown) or any other cooling fluid source, flows through the cooling plates 101-102 to exchange heat from the processor 103, and then carries the heat exchanged from the processor 103 and other components 104A-104B back to the liquid manifold. In this design, theoretically, 100% of the heat generated by the electronics is captured by the cooling plate and the cooling fluid within the cooling plate.

[0027] In one embodiment, in order to maximize the thermal transfer area between the cooling plates 101-102 and the surface of the processor 103, a thermal pad 105 (e.g., a layer of thermally conductive material) may be placed between the cooling plates 101 and the top surface of the processor 103. Similarly, a thermal pad 106 may be placed between the cooling plates 102 and the bottom surface of the processor 103. The thermal pads 105-106 may be made of thermally conductive materials and dielectric materials. Similarly, for the components 104A-104B, thermal pads 107A-107B may be utilized. Figure 1 In the example shown in FIG. 1 , if the processor 103 and other components 104A-104B are mounted or soldered on the PCB 110, the thermal pad 106 may be placed between the bottom surface of the PCB 110 and the cooling plate 102. The thermal pad may also be considered and designed as a thermal cover or thermal cap.

[0028] According to one embodiment, the cooling device further includes a mounting mechanism to mount and assemble the cooling plates 101-102 to the top and bottom surfaces of the components therein (such as the processor 103 and the components 104A-104B). Figure 1 In the example shown in , the mounting mechanism is implemented in the form of one or more mounting pins or mounting rods 108A-108B, wherein the mounting pins or mounting rods 108A-108B extend through corresponding mounting holes through the cooling plates 101-102. The tops of the mounting pins 108A-108B may be threaded to allow nuts or nuts to be screwed on to fasten the cooling plates 101-102 together.

[0029] Note that the middle portion between the cooling plate 101 and the cooling plate 102 represents a single high-performance processor such as a GPU card, or represents a complete system such as a customized edge computing device. Figure 1 A simplified version of a processor and other electronic devices such as HBM (high bandwidth memory) packaged on a motherboard is shown. In this thermal design, the top or surrounding of the electronic device including the PCB board is covered with TIM (thermal interface material) or a thermal pad or a cover or any other heat-conducting unit. The purpose is to provide heat conduction transfer and fill the gap between the two electronic devices and the cooling plate. Another purpose is to provide protection for the electronic devices. The third purpose is to achieve a highly simplified design requirement for the cooling plate. For example, one embodiment is to use a smooth shrinking surface design on the cooling plate instead of designing complex features to match multiple electronic components on the PCB. The cooling plate is then attached to the top and bottom of the unit and thermally connected.

[0030] Figure 2 is a block diagram showing an example of a cooling device according to one embodiment. In this example, the cooling plate 101 includes an inlet port 201A and an outlet port 201B, the inlet port 201A is used to receive the cooling liquid from the liquid manifold, and the outlet port 201B is used to return the cooling liquid to the liquid manifold after the cooling liquid travels through the distribution channel embedded therein. Similarly, the cooling plate 102 includes an inlet port 202A and an outlet port 202B, the inlet port 202A is used to receive the cooling liquid from the liquid manifold, and the outlet port 202B is used to return the cooling liquid to the liquid manifold after the cooling liquid travels through the distribution channel embedded therein. In this configuration, the distribution channels of the cooling plate 101 and the cooling plate 102 work independently. In one embodiment, the inlet port and the outlet port may be designed at the top of the cooling plate.

[0031] FIG. 3A to FIG. 3B is a block diagram showing an example of a cooling device according to another embodiment. FIG. 3A to FIG. 3B, in this example, the cooling plate 101 includes an inlet port 301 and an outlet port 302. The cooling plate 102 includes an inlet port 303 and an outlet port 304. The inlet port 301 is used to receive cooling liquid from the liquid manifold. The outlet port 302 of the cooling plate 101 is coupled to the inlet port 303 of the cooling plate 102 via an intermediate channel or tube 305. A quick release can be used to connect the fluid ports and the tube 305. The outlet port 304 of the cooling plate 102 is coupled to the liquid manifold to return the cooling liquid. Therefore, the cooling liquid enters the inlet port 301 of the cooling plate 101, exits the cooling plate 101 via the outlet port 302, enters the cooling plate 102 via the inlet port 303, and then exits the cooling plate 102 via the outlet port 304. Note that this configuration can be reversed between the cooling plate 101 and the cooling plate 102, wherein the cooling plate 102 receives the cooling liquid from the liquid manifold, and the cooling plate 101 returns the cooling liquid to the liquid manifold. In one embodiment, the outlet port 304 may be used to connect to another inlet of a cooling plate. This means that the two cooling plate systems are connected in series.

[0032] Figure 4 A processor card design according to one embodiment is shown. Figure 4 , use the mounting rods or mounting pins 108A-108B to mount the cooling plate 101 on top of the processor 103. Attach the cooling plate 101 to the top of the unit and then use the nuts 401 to secure and tighten the cooling plate 101 and the hardware. Use a threaded design on the tip of the mounting rods 108A-108B. Figure 4 Springs 402 are used at the positions shown in FIG. Springs 402 are used to provide cushioning and protection to the hardware to ensure that the appropriate amount of pressure and force is loaded on the electronic device. As for the mounting rods 108A-108B, the material can be a hard material or an elastic material. By using an elastic material, more cushioning can be provided for the positioning accuracy requirements of the hardware mounting rods and the cooling plate 101.

[0033] exist Figure 4 In the method shown in , the mounting bar 108A and its components such as spring 402 or threaded portion are part of the electronic hardware. As an example, a GPU card may have four mounting bars mounted on its PCB 110. When the PCB is attached to the server chassis, the mounting bar 108A may be removed. Figure 4 As an example, when the method is applied on a GPU card, the thermal pad 106 can be removed because the bottom part will be assembled to the motherboard.

[0034] Figure 5 Another design of a processor card according to one embodiment is shown. Figure 5In this design, teeth 410 are used on the tip of the mounting rod. The teeth provide a locking function when the cooling plate 101 is pushed into a specific position. Likewise, spring 411 is used to ensure proper pressure loading on the hardware. Once the spring 411 reaches a limited length, it will prevent any additional movement of the cooling plate 101. Figure 5 In the embodiment, it is also shown that the mounting bars 108A-108B can be a separate unit instead of being pre-assembled with the hardware. It can be used as a separate unit for mounting, fixing and positioning electronic devices and cooling devices. It should be mentioned that this method can be applied to a system with a double-sided cooling plate attached.

[0035] Fig. 6A The concept is shown for use on a server motherboard with multiple high performance or heterogeneous computing devices packaged. Note that for illustration purposes, fluid conduits are not shown. Figure 6B Multiple cold plates are shown assembled together as a single cold plate attached directly to the server motherboard, and utilizing mounting bars on each of the processor modules. Figure 6C Shown with Figure 6B A similar design as shown in , however, the mounting bars are provided on the edge or surrounding area. Figure 6C The method shown in eliminates any requirement for a GPU card, and the mounting bars come pre-assembled on the motherboard.

[0036] FIG. 6A to FIG. 6C The design shown in can be implemented as an insertable Fig. 7A Alternatively, the processor card as described above may be inserted vertically into the server rack, such as in the server slot of the electronic equipment rack or the server rack of any of the server racks shown in FIG. Figure 7B As shown in , where a server rack may include multiple processor cards or IT equipment. In another embodiment, the rack may also be understood as an edge device cabinet, which presents a deployment form for multiple edge computing systems. Rack or cabinet level cooling design is not given in the present invention. For data center applications, existing rack-level liquid cooling solutions can be used. For edge cabinets, using similar rack solutions or new design methods will work.

[0037] In the above description, embodiments of the present invention have been described with reference to specific exemplary embodiments of the present invention. It will be apparent that various modifications may be made to the present invention without departing from the broader spirit and scope of the present invention as set forth in the appended claims. Therefore, this specification and the accompanying drawings should be understood in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense.

Claims

1. A cooling device for providing liquid cooling to a processor, the cooling device comprising: a first cooling plate having a first liquid distribution channel embedded therein, the first cooling plate to be positioned on a top surface of a processor, wherein the first cooling plate will extract heat from the top surface of the processor using a cooling liquid flowing in the first liquid distribution channel; a second cooling plate having a second liquid distribution channel embedded therein, the second cooling plate being located on a bottom surface of a printed circuit board on which the processor is mounted, the second cooling plate to extract heat from the bottom surface of the printed circuit board using a cooling liquid flowing in the second liquid distribution channel; and a mounting mechanism including a plurality of mounting rods for mounting the first cooling plate onto the top surface of the processor and mounting the second cooling plate onto the bottom surface of the printed circuit board to sandwich the processor therebetween; The mounting mechanism also includes teeth on the tip of each mounting rod to provide a locking function, and each mounting rod has a spring between the first cooling plate and the printed circuit board, the spring being used to ensure appropriate pressure loading on the first cooling plate and the printed circuit board.

2. The cooling device of claim 1 , further comprising a first thermal pad disposed between the first cooling plate and the top surface of the processor, wherein The first thermal pad is thermally conductive.

3. The cooling device according to claim 2, wherein: The first thermal pad includes a dielectric material.

4. The cooling device of claim 1 , further comprising a second thermal pad disposed between the second cooling plate and the bottom surface of the processor, wherein: The second thermal pad is thermally conductive.

5. The cooling device according to claim 4, wherein: The second thermal pad includes a dielectric material.

6. The cooling device according to claim 4, wherein: The bottom surface of the processor is disposed on a top surface of the printed circuit board.

7. The cooling device according to claim 6, wherein: The second thermal pad is disposed between the bottom surface of the printed circuit board and the second cooling plate.

8. The cooling device according to claim 1, wherein: Each of the first and second liquid distribution channels includes an inlet port for receiving cooling liquid from a liquid manifold and an outlet port for returning the cooling liquid carrying heat extracted from the processor to the liquid manifold.

9. The cooling device according to claim 1, wherein: The first liquid dispensing channel includes a first inlet port and a first outlet port, and wherein the second liquid dispensing channel includes a second inlet port and a second outlet port.

10. The cooling device according to claim 9, wherein: The first outlet port is connected to the second inlet port via an intermediate pipe so that the coolant travels through the first cooling plate and the second cooling plate.

11. The cooling device according to claim 10, wherein: The first inlet port is configured to receive the cooling liquid from a liquid manifold, and wherein the second outlet port is configured to return the cooling liquid carrying the heat extracted from the processor to the liquid manifold.

12. The cooling device according to claim 1, wherein: The first cooling plate and the second cooling plate are configured to also provide liquid cooling to a storage device associated with the processor and disposed between the first cooling plate and the second cooling plate.

13. The cooling device according to claim 1, wherein: The processor is one of a plurality of processors sandwiched between the first cooling plate and the second cooling plate.

14. A processor card comprising: processor; a first cooling plate having a first liquid distribution channel embedded therein, the first cooling plate to be positioned on a top surface of the processor, wherein the first cooling plate will extract heat from the top surface of the processor using a cooling liquid flowing in the first liquid distribution channel; a second cooling plate having a second liquid distribution channel embedded therein, the second cooling plate to be positioned at a bottom surface of a printed circuit board on which the processor is mounted, the second cooling plate to extract heat from the bottom surface of the printed circuit board using a cooling liquid flowing in the second liquid distribution channel; and a mounting mechanism including a plurality of mounting rods for mounting the first cooling plate onto the top surface of the processor and mounting the second cooling plate onto the bottom surface of the printed circuit board to sandwich the processor therebetween; The mounting mechanism also includes teeth on the tip of each mounting rod to provide a locking function, and each mounting rod has a spring between the first cooling plate and the printed circuit board, the spring being used to ensure appropriate pressure loading on the first cooling plate and the printed circuit board.

15. The processor card of claim 14, further comprising a first thermal pad disposed between the first cooling plate and the top surface of the processor, wherein The first thermal pad is thermally conductive and includes a dielectric material.

16. The processor card of claim 14, further comprising a second thermal pad disposed between the second cooling plate and the bottom surface of the processor, wherein The second thermal pad is thermally conductive and the second thermal pad includes a dielectric material.

17. The processor card of claim 16, wherein: The bottom surface of the processor is disposed on a top surface of the printed circuit board.

18. An electronic equipment rack, comprising: A plurality of server racks, each of the server racks comprising one or more servers, and each server comprising one or more processor assemblies, wherein each processor assembly comprises: processor; a first cooling plate having a first liquid distribution channel embedded therein, the a first cooling plate to be positioned on a top surface of the processor, wherein the first cooling plate will extract heat from the top surface of the processor using the cooling liquid flowing in the first liquid distribution channel; a second cooling plate having a second liquid distribution channel embedded therein, the second cooling plate to be positioned at a bottom surface of a printed circuit board on which the processor is mounted, the second cooling plate to extract heat from the bottom surface of the printed circuit board using a cooling liquid flowing in the second liquid distribution channel; and a mounting mechanism including a plurality of mounting rods for mounting the first cooling plate onto the top surface of the processor and mounting the second cooling plate onto the bottom surface of the printed circuit board to sandwich the processor therebetween; The mounting mechanism also includes teeth on the tip of each mounting rod to provide a locking function, and each mounting rod has a spring between the first cooling plate and the printed circuit board, the spring being used to ensure appropriate pressure loading on the first cooling plate and the printed circuit board.

19. The electronic equipment rack of claim 18, wherein: Each processor assembly also includes a first thermal pad disposed between the first cooling plate and the top surface of the processor, wherein the first thermal pad is thermally conductive and includes a dielectric material.

20. The electronic equipment rack of claim 18, wherein: Each processor assembly also includes a second thermal pad disposed between the second cooling plate and the bottom surface of the processor, wherein the second thermal pad is thermally conductive and comprises a dielectric material.

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