Method and system for evaluating refrigeration performance of semiconductor refrigerator

Abstract

The invention discloses a semiconductor cooler refrigeration performance evaluation method and system, and relates to the semiconductor refrigeration technology, and the method comprises the steps: building a TEC refrigeration model considering the Peltier effect, Joule heat, heat conduction and Thomson effect; solving the established TEC refrigeration model to obtain Seebeck coefficients, TEC average resistance and TEC average thermal conductivity under different hot surfaces; establishing a function mapping relation based on the Seebeck coefficients, the TEC average resistance and the TEC average thermal conductivity under different heat surfaces obtained by solving; and constructing a refrigerating capacity and refrigerating temperature equation according to the established function mapping relation to evaluate the TEC refrigerating effect. The TEC characteristic function relation changing along with the temperature can be established on the basis of a small amount of TEC measured data, and therefore the TEC refrigeration temperature, the refrigeration capacity, the control voltage, the control current and other performance data can be rapidly and accurately calculated.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to semiconductor refrigeration technology, and more particularly to a method and system for evaluating the refrigeration performance of a semiconductor refrigeration device. Background Technology

[0002] TEC (Semiconductor Cooling) is a cooling method used in electronic devices to solve localized heat dissipation problems. It is characterized by being noiseless, having a fast cooling speed, and being small in size. It is commonly used for cooling electronic components such as lasers, chips, and optocouplers. TEC coolers are generally used in specific cooling scenarios. The selection of a TEC cooler depends on the ambient temperature, the target heat dissipation, and the target cooling temperature. Based on the selected TEC, it is necessary to quickly assess whether the cooling temperature meets the requirements under the target cooling capacity and provide the control voltage and current values ​​for the TEC.

[0003] TEC's product characteristics include Qmax (maximum cooling capacity), Imax (maximum temperature difference control current), ΔTmax (maximum temperature difference), Umax (maximum temperature difference control voltage), and the values ​​of these parameters and related test curves at 2-3 hot surface temperatures. When the required hot surface temperature of the heat sink is not within the given data, it is impossible to quickly and accurately assess the cooling capacity and cooling temperature. Furthermore, commonly used algorithms ignore the Thomson effect, lacking temperature correction for parameters such as the Seebeck coefficient, resistance, and thermal conductivity, leading to reduced accuracy. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The embodiments of this application are used to establish a method for evaluating the cooling performance of a semiconductor cooler. By comprehensively considering the effects of the cooling process, a characteristic function relationship of the TEC as a function of temperature is established based on a small amount of measured TEC data, thereby quickly and accurately calculating the TEC cooling temperature, cooling capacity, control voltage, current and other performance data.

[0005] This application provides a method for evaluating the cooling performance of a semiconductor cooler, including:

[0006] Establish a TEC refrigeration model that considers the Peltier effect, Joule heating, heat conduction and Thomson effect, and distinguish the Seebeck coefficient between the cold end and the hot end of the TEC refrigeration model to obtain the difference in Seebeck coefficient between the cold end and the hot end under a specified temperature difference.

[0007] The established TEC refrigeration model is solved to obtain the Seebeck coefficient, average TEC resistance, and average TEC thermal conductivity under different hot surfaces.

[0008] Based on the Seebeck coefficient, average TEC resistance, and average TEC thermal conductivity obtained under different hot surfaces, a functional mapping relationship is established.

[0009] The cooling effect of TEC is evaluated by constructing an equation relating cooling capacity and cooling temperature based on the established function mapping relationship.

[0010] This application also provides a semiconductor cooler cooling performance evaluation system, including a processor and a memory. The memory stores a computer program, which, when executed by the processor, implements the steps of the semiconductor cooler cooling performance evaluation method as described above.

[0011] The method in this application comprehensively considers the effects of the cooling process, and establishes a characteristic function relationship of TEC with temperature variation based on a small amount of measured TEC data. This allows for the rapid and accurate calculation of TEC performance data such as cooling temperature, cooling capacity, control voltage, and current, enabling accurate and rapid selection of TEC and precise preset of control voltage and current under target cooling temperature and cooling capacity conditions.

[0012] The above description is only an overview of the technical solution of this application. In order to better understand the technical means of this application and to implement it in accordance with the contents of the specification, and to make the above and other objects, features and advantages of this application more obvious and understandable, the following are specific embodiments of this application. Attached Figure Description

[0013] Various other advantages and benefits will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading the following detailed description of preferred embodiments. The accompanying drawings are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of this application. Furthermore, the same reference numerals denote the same parts throughout the drawings. In the drawings:

[0014] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the basic process of the semiconductor cooler cooling performance evaluation method according to an embodiment of this application;

[0015] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the cooling capacity versus control current curve under a certain cooling temperature condition, according to an embodiment of this application.

[0016] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the current-voltage relationship curve at a certain cooling temperature, plotted for an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0017] Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. While exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure are shown in the drawings, it should be understood that the present disclosure may be implemented in various forms and should not be limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the disclosure to those skilled in the art.

[0018] This invention solves the problem of accurately estimating the relationship between cooling capacity and cooling temperature under different hot surface settings based on at least three sets of TEC test data (Qmax, Imax, ΔTmax, Umax), and quickly calculating the control current and voltage at the target cooling capacity and cooling temperature. The TEC cooling algorithm comprehensively considers the Peltier effect, Joule heating, heat conduction, and Thomson effect, and refines the distinction between the effects of large temperature differences on the Seebeck coefficient. It considers the changes in the Seebeck coefficient, average resistance, and average thermal conductivity with temperature under different temperature environments. Specifically, this application provides a method for evaluating the cooling performance of a semiconductor refrigerator, including:

[0019] In step S101, a TEC refrigeration model considering the Peltier effect, Joule heating, heat conduction, and Thomson effect is established. The Seebeck coefficient in the TEC refrigeration model distinguishes between the cold and hot ends to obtain the difference in Seebeck coefficients between the cold and hot ends under a specified temperature difference. In TEC refrigeration calculations, the average Seebeck coefficient α is generally used, but under large temperature differences, the Seebeck coefficients between the cold and hot ends may differ. In some embodiments, establishing a TEC refrigeration model considering the Peltier effect, Joule heating, heat conduction, and Thomson effect includes:

[0020] The average Seebeck coefficient α is the cold end coefficient α. c Hot end coefficient α h The total voltage supplied by the TEC then satisfies:

[0021] (1)

[0022] Where U is the TEC loading control voltage, I is the power supply control current, and ΔT is the temperature difference between the cold and hot ends of the TEC.

[0023] Under the condition of maximum temperature difference, the maximum temperature difference voltage and the maximum temperature difference current also satisfy the relationship of Equation 1-1. Substituting into Equation (1), we can obtain Equation (2):

[0024] (2)

[0025] Where Umax is the maximum temperature difference control voltage, Imax is the maximum temperature difference control current, and ΔTmax is the maximum temperature difference. In this embodiment, the average Seebeck coefficient α is decomposed into the cold junction coefficient α. c Hot end coefficient α h This can effectively improve the accuracy of TEC cooling performance evaluation.

[0026] The TEC-powered cooling process involves the Peltier effect, Thomson effect, Joule heating effect, and Fourier effect. The Thomson effect is typically ignored in conventional cooling calculations. In some embodiments of this application, establishing a TEC cooling model that considers the Peltier effect, Joule heating, heat conduction, and the Thomson effect further includes:

[0027] Establish a refrigeration model that considers the Thomson effect, where the Thomson effect satisfies:

[0028] (3)

[0029] Where Qt is the heat generated by the Thomson effect, τ is the Thomson coefficient, I is the control current, and ΔT is the temperature difference between the hot and cold ends.

[0030] The Thomson coefficient can be simplified to equation (4):

[0031] (4)

[0032] Where Th is the hot end temperature and Tc is the cold end temperature.

[0033] The total cooling capacity model of TEC satisfies:

[0034] (5)

[0035] Q p Q represents the cooling capacity due to the Peltier effect. j Q is the calorific value of Joule heating. f Heat is conducted using the Fourier effect. The refrigeration and heat generation effects of the above refrigeration process are expressed using the Seebeck coefficient, control current, average resistance, and average thermal conductivity. Equation (5) can be expanded into equation (6):

[0036] (6)

[0037] Where R is the average resistance of the TEC and K is the average thermal conductivity of the TEC.

[0038] The refrigeration model of this application covers the above four major effects, which can improve the accuracy of TEC refrigeration performance evaluation.

[0039] In step S102, the established TEC refrigeration model is solved to obtain the Seebeck coefficient, average TEC resistance, and average TEC thermal conductivity under different hot surfaces.

[0040] In step S103, a function mapping relationship is established based on the Seebeck coefficient, average TEC resistance, and average TEC thermal conductivity obtained under different hot surfaces.

[0041] In step S104, the cooling capacity and cooling temperature equations are constructed based on the established function mapping relationship to evaluate the TEC cooling effect.

[0042] In some embodiments, step S105 further includes evaluating the TEC cooling effect and controlling the current and voltage based on the constructed cooling capacity and cooling temperature equation.

[0043] In some embodiments, solving the established TEC refrigeration model includes using the solve function in MATLAB to solve the equation set and obtain the Seebeck coefficient, average TEC resistance, and average TEC thermal conductivity under different hot surfaces.

[0044] In specific examples, TEC manufacturers typically provide (or measure) three sets of test values ​​for Qmax, Imax, ΔTmax, and Umax at different hot surface temperatures Th. Here, Imax is the maximum temperature difference control current, Qmax is the maximum cooling capacity, ΔTmax is the maximum temperature difference, and Umax is the control voltage at the maximum temperature difference.

[0045] To solve for the maximum temperature difference, equation (6) is transformed into equation (7).

[0046] (7)

[0047] When Qc=0, that is, the TEC heat absorption surface is in an adiabatic state, ΔT takes a maximum value, and the partial derivative of the temperature difference ΔT with respect to the current I is obtained as equation (8).

[0048] (8)

[0049] when When the current I satisfies equation (9), ΔT takes the extreme value ΔTmax:

[0050] (9)

[0051] By taking the second derivative, it can be determined that when I = Imax, ΔT takes the maximum value ΔTmax as shown in equation (10).

[0052] (10)

[0053] Taking the partial derivative of the cooling capacity Qc in equation (6) with respect to I, we get equation (11).

[0054] (11)

[0055] Make equation (11) equal to 0, that is When Qc reaches its extreme value, and when ΔT = 0, that is, when the temperature difference between the hot and cold ends is 0, Qc reaches its maximum value Qmax, as shown in equation (12):

[0056] (12)

[0057] By combining formulas (2), (9), (10), and (12), as well as the values ​​of Qmax, Imax, ΔTmax, and Umax given by the manufacturer at a specific hot surface temperature Th, the values ​​of α (αc, αh), R, and K at a specific hot surface temperature can be solved. When three sets of hot surface temperature-related parameters are given, three sets of α (αc, αh), R, and K values ​​can be solved.

[0058] The solve function in MATLAB can be used to solve the system of equations and obtain α (αc, αh), R, and K data under different thermal surfaces.

[0059] In some embodiments, the function mapping relationship is established based on the Seebeck coefficient, average TEC resistance, and average TEC thermal conductivity obtained under different hot surfaces using MATLAB.

[0060] Since the TEC performance parameters α(αc, αh), R, and K have a nonlinear mapping relationship with temperature, the three sets of α(αc, αh), R, and K data obtained above can be used to construct temperature relationship functions: αc(T), αh(T), R(T), and K(T). Taking the solution of the R(T) function as an example, the coefficients of the three temperature functions are calculated using the polyfit function in MATLAB, in the following form:

[0061] XX=[Th27-273 Th50-273 Th75-273]

[0062] YR=[R27 R50 R75]

[0063] PR=polyfit(XX,YR,nn)

[0064] Rg=polyval(PR,Thx-273)

[0065] Where Th27, Th50, and Th75 are three given hot surface temperatures, R27, R50, and R75 are the average resistances at these three hot surface temperatures obtained using the aforementioned method, PR is the coefficient array in the solved R(T) equation, Thx is an arbitrary temperature value, and Rg is the average resistance value at temperature Thx. Here, nn represents the function order. When the target hot surface temperature is within the range given by the manufacturer, a nonlinear mapping is established, and nn can be 2. When the target hot surface temperature exceeds the range given by the manufacturer, nn is set to 1, thus avoiding excessive curvature of the quadratic curve beyond the test endpoint, which could cause errors.

[0066] Specifically, when the function order n is 2, the equation takes the following form:

[0067] (13)

[0068] When the order of the function n is 1, the equation takes the following form:

[0069] (14)

[0070] In the above equations, p, q, m, and n are the coefficients to be solved. The coefficients in the equations αc(T), αh(T), and K(T) can be solved in sequence using this method.

[0071] After solving the coefficients of equations αc(T), αh(T), R(T), and K(T), the output cold surface temperature of the TEC can be calculated based on the given heat dissipation requirements and the provided hot surface temperature. Control voltage and current values ​​are then provided based on the required target cold surface temperature of the TEC. In some embodiments, constructing the cooling capacity and cooling temperature equations based on the established functional mapping relationship to evaluate the TEC cooling effect includes:

[0072] Based on the established function mapping relationship and total cooling capacity model, and according to the given heat dissipation requirements and provided hot surface temperature, the output cold surface temperature of the TEC is calculated to satisfy:

[0073] (15)

[0074] Where Qc is the cooling capacity, Th is the hot surface temperature, and α is the temperature of the hot surface. c (Th), α h R(Th), K(Th), and T(Th) represent the Seebeck coefficient of the cold side, the Seebeck coefficient of the hot side, the average resistivity, and the average thermal conductivity at the hot side temperature Th, respectively. c Let Tc be the target cold surface temperature, and I be the control current. Following the aforementioned function mapping method, the specific numerical value is solved. With Tc being the target cold surface temperature, the equation has only one unknown, I. The control current I can be solved, and the cooling capacity versus control current curve under a certain cooling temperature condition can be plotted, as shown below. Figure 2 As shown.

[0075] In some embodiments, evaluating the TEC cooling effect based on the constructed cooling capacity and cooling temperature equation and controlling the current and voltage includes:

[0076] Based on the total TEC power supply voltage, and substituting the Seebeck coefficient of the cold side, the Seebeck coefficient of the hot side, the average resistance, and the target cold side temperature at the hot side temperature Th, the control voltage U is calculated.

[0077] Plot the current-voltage relationship curve at a specified cooling temperature.

[0078] Based on the voltage formula (1), substituting ac(Th), ah(Th), R(Th), and Tc, we get formula (16):

[0079] (16)

[0080] Where I is the current solved by Equation 4-1, αc(Th), αh(Th), and R(Th) are the Seebeck coefficient of the cold surface, the Seebeck coefficient of the hot surface, and the average resistance at the hot surface temperature Th, respectively, and Tc is the target cold surface temperature. The control voltage U can then be calculated. A current-voltage relationship curve at a certain refrigeration temperature is plotted, as shown below. Figure 3 As shown.

[0081] The method in this application takes into account the difference in Seebeck coefficient at the hot and cold ends, and comprehensively considers four effects including the Thomson effect. It also distinguishes the difference in Seebeck coefficient at the hot and cold ends under large temperature differences, making the influencing factors of the TEC refrigeration equation more comprehensive and improving the accuracy of the refrigeration equation in describing the refrigeration process.

[0082] The method in this application establishes a temperature nonlinear function for the parameters a, R, and K, which are significantly affected by temperature, along with a function selection method. Based on a small amount of product characteristic test data provided by TEC manufacturers, a MATLAB solution method for the a, R, and K functions under different hot surface temperatures is given, thereby improving the accuracy of the a, R, and K solution.

[0083] The method in this application comprehensively considers the Seebeck coefficient and the effects of four TEC cooling processes, and uses the a, R, and K parameters that change with temperature to conveniently solve the relationship between Qc, reference hot surface temperature, target cold surface temperature, control voltage, etc., and the solution accuracy is significantly improved, enabling accurate and rapid selection of TEC and precise preset of control voltage and current under target cooling temperature and cooling capacity conditions.

[0084] This application also proposes a semiconductor cooler cooling performance evaluation system, including a processor and a memory. The memory stores a computer program, which, when executed by the processor, implements the steps of the semiconductor cooler cooling performance evaluation method as described above.

[0085] It should be noted that, in the embodiments of this application, the terms "comprising," "including," or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such a process, method, article, or apparatus. Without further limitations, an element defined by the phrase "comprising one..." does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that includes that element.

[0086] The sequence numbers of the embodiments in this application are for descriptive purposes only and do not represent the superiority or inferiority of the embodiments.

[0087] Through the above description of the embodiments, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that the methods of the above embodiments can be implemented by means of software plus necessary general-purpose hardware platforms. Of course, they can also be implemented by hardware, but in many cases the former is a better implementation method. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of this application, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium (such as ROM / RAM, magnetic disk, optical disk) and includes several instructions to cause a terminal (which may be a mobile phone, computer, server, air conditioner, or network device, etc.) to execute the methods described in the various embodiments of this application.

[0088] The embodiments of this application have been described above with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, this application is not limited to the specific embodiments described above. The specific embodiments described above are merely illustrative and not restrictive. Those skilled in the art can make many other forms under the guidance of this application without departing from the spirit and scope of the claims. All of these forms are within the protection scope of this application.

Claims

1. A method for evaluating the cooling performance of a semiconductor cooler, characterized in that, include: Establish a TEC refrigeration model that considers the Peltier effect, Joule heating, heat conduction and Thomson effect, and distinguish the Seebeck coefficient between the cold end and the hot end of the TEC refrigeration model to obtain the difference in Seebeck coefficient between the cold end and the hot end under a specified temperature difference. The established TEC refrigeration model is solved to obtain the Seebeck coefficient, average TEC resistance, and average TEC thermal conductivity under different hot surfaces. Based on the Seebeck coefficient, average TEC resistance, and average TEC thermal conductivity obtained under different hot surfaces, a functional mapping relationship is established. The cooling effect of TEC is evaluated by constructing an equation relating cooling capacity and cooling temperature based on the established function mapping relationship.

2. The method for evaluating the cooling performance of a semiconductor cooler as described in claim 1, characterized in that, It also includes evaluating the TEC cooling effect and controlling the current and voltage based on the constructed cooling capacity and cooling temperature equation.

3. The method for evaluating the cooling performance of a semiconductor cooler as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The TEC refrigeration model, which considers the Peltier effect, Joule heating, heat conduction, and Thomson effect, includes: The average Seebeck coefficient α is the cold end coefficient α. c Hot end coefficient α h The total voltage supplied by the TEC then satisfies: Where U is the TEC loading control voltage, I is the power supply control current, and ΔT is the temperature difference between the cold and hot ends of the TEC.

4. The method for evaluating the cooling performance of a semiconductor cooler as described in claim 3, characterized in that, Establishing a TEC refrigeration model that considers the Peltier effect, Joule heating, heat conduction, and Thomson effect also includes: Establish a refrigeration model that considers the Thomson effect, where the Thomson effect satisfies: Where Qt is the heat generated by the Thomson effect, τ is the Thomson coefficient, I is the control current, and ΔT is the temperature difference between the hot and cold ends; The total cooling capacity model of TEC satisfies: Q p Q represents the cooling capacity due to the Peltier effect. j Q is the calorific value of Joule heating. f Heat is conducted using the Fourier effect.

5. The method for evaluating the cooling performance of a semiconductor cooler as described in claim 4, characterized in that, Solving the established TEC refrigeration model involves using the solve function in MATLAB to solve the equations and obtain the Seebeck coefficient, average TEC resistance, and average TEC thermal conductivity for different hot surfaces.

6. The method for evaluating the cooling performance of a semiconductor cooler as described in claim 3, characterized in that, Based on the Seebeck coefficient, average TEC resistance, and average TEC thermal conductivity obtained from the solution for different hot surfaces, the following functional mapping relationships are established: The coefficients of three temperature functions are calculated using MATLAB's polyfit function, which satisfies the following: XX=[Th27-273 Th50-273 Th75-273] YR=[R27 R50 R75] PR=polyfit(XX,YR,nn) Rg=polyval(PR,Thx-273) Where Th27, Th50, and Th75 are three given hot surface temperatures, R27, R50, and R75 are the average resistances obtained at the three hot surface temperatures, PR is the array of coefficients obtained, Thx is an arbitrary temperature value, Rg is the average resistance value at temperature Thx, and nn is the function order. When the target hot surface temperature is within the range of the hot surface temperature given by the manufacturer, a nonlinear mapping is established, where n is taken as 2; When the target hot surface temperature exceeds the range specified by the manufacturer, a linear mapping is established, with nn set to 1.

7. The method for evaluating the cooling performance of a semiconductor cooler as described in claim 2, characterized in that, The evaluation of TEC cooling effect involves constructing an equation for cooling capacity and cooling temperature based on the established function mapping relationship, including: Based on the established function mapping relationship and total cooling capacity model, and according to the given heat dissipation requirements and provided hot surface temperature, the output cold surface temperature of the TEC is calculated to satisfy: Where Qc is the cooling capacity, Th is the hot surface temperature, and α is the temperature of the hot surface. c (Th), α h R(Th), K(Th), and T(Th) represent the Seebeck coefficient of the cold side, the Seebeck coefficient of the hot side, the average resistivity, and the average thermal conductivity at the hot side temperature Th, respectively. c I represents the target cold surface temperature, and I represents the control current.

8. The method for evaluating the cooling performance of a semiconductor cooler as described in claim 7, characterized in that, The TEC cooling effect is evaluated based on the constructed equation of cooling capacity and cooling temperature. Control of current and voltage includes: Based on the total TEC power supply voltage, and substituting the Seebeck coefficient of the cold side, the Seebeck coefficient of the hot side, the average resistance, and the target cold side temperature at the hot side temperature Th, the control voltage U is calculated. Plot the current-voltage relationship curve at a specified cooling temperature.

9. A system for evaluating the cooling performance of a semiconductor cooler, characterized in that, It includes a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores a computer program, which, when executed by the processor, implements the steps of the semiconductor cooler cooling performance evaluation method as described in any one of claims 1-8.

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