Thermal pad, handling device, handling system, method for manufacturing an electronic component by handling thermal pads and electronic component

Abstract

The invention relates to a thermal pad, a handling device, a handling system, a method for manufacturing an electronic component by handling thermal pads, and an electronic component. The thermal pad (1) serves for heat conduction and / or electrical insulation on an electronic component (80) and comprises a substantially two-dimensional body (2) with at least two side surfaces (11, 12) bounding the body (2) and facing away from each other, and in the body (2) at least one incision (13) penetrating the body (2), which is designed to be penetrated at least partially by a volume element (86) on the contact surface (85) when the thermal pad (1) is positioned on a contact surface (85) of the electronic component (80), with material (14) of the body (2) bounding the incision being inverted (15). The thermal pad, handling device, handling system, method for manufacturing an electronic component by handling thermal pads, and electronic component proposed here provide solutions to reduce the effort required to mount thermal pads while simultaneously ensuring the necessary positional accuracy and reliability of the connection made between a thermal pad and a respective mounting surface.

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a thermal pad, a handling device, a handling system, a method for manufacturing an electronic component by handling thermal pads, and an electronic component.

[0002] Thermal pads or insulating films and their placement or assembly processes in electronic assemblies are known in a wide variety of designs.

[0003] In electronic assemblies, thermal pads serve to thermally couple a heat source—such as printed circuit board components like transistors, MOSFETs, discharge resistors, or board areas—to a heat sink, possibly via vias. They are also frequently used, either as an alternative or in addition, for electrical isolation of potentials on the circuit board from a housing component or heat sink.

[0004] Thermal interface materials (TIMs), also known as thermal pads or insulating films, are often cut from large sheets of silicone material for electronic applications. These materials are frequently filled with additives such as ceramic or glass particles to improve thermal conductivity. Furthermore, the material is sometimes reinforced with fiberglass fabrics to prevent cracking due to mechanical stress.

[0005] Cutting processes with and without material loss are used. The sheet material is often covered on both sides with protective films if it has an adhesive strength due to its material properties. The protective film on the top surface of the component is cut with the cutting tool and only removed immediately before assembly. The lower protective film often serves as a carrier film and thus as support during further handling and transport, and is therefore not cut, unless individual pads are to be produced.

[0006] Both the high adhesive strength of the silicone material and the protective films pose a challenge for handling in assembly areas.

[0007] The material's typically high adhesive strength allows for fixation within the assembly, but usually does not permit correction of a thermally conductive pad that may have been initially misplaced. Therefore, vacuum stamping is frequently used for manual assembly processes. This allows the operator to lift the pads from the backing film using negative pressure. A template with stop edges can then be used to position the pad at the assembly location. Placement lines in the PCB's component placement print or the use of physical component edges as mounting orientations are also common. While protective films are usually necessary for technical cleanliness to protect the adhesive surfaces of the thermally conductive pads during transport and storage, they are disadvantageous when handling them with gloves in a cleanroom environment.To remove the protective films during manual assembly, peel-off tabs are often attached in a separate step. However, this represents a costly additional process.

[0008] For larger production volumes and / or to avoid the aforementioned disadvantages of manual assembly, complex automation solutions are required.

[0009] Fig. Figure 1 shows a conventional electronic assembly 80, here using the example of a control unit. The electronic assembly 80 comprises a cover 81, which is fastened with screws, a printed circuit board 82, and several connectors with which the printed circuit board 82 can be attached to or in a housing 84. It is intended that several thermal pads 1 are arranged between the printed circuit board 82 and the cover 81 on a contact surface 85 of the printed circuit board 82. The thermal pads 1 are three separate elements, with the two smaller circular elements, for example, each having a diameter of 10 mm. Due to their small size, their placement relative to each other and to the larger thermal pad 1 is particularly challenging. Furthermore, the positions must be maintained during the bonding process in relation to the printed circuit board 82 and the cover 81.

[0010] For automated assembly, it would be necessary to align the linear axes moving the vacuum stamp with the thermal pad on the feed medium using a camera system in order to achieve high placement accuracy, which would involve a corresponding amount of effort.

[0011] However, manual assembly involves long processing times for removing protective films from the thermal pad, removing the thermal pad from the backing film, and gluing it at the placement location.

[0012] Furthermore, manual assembly presents numerous potential errors, such as accidentally sticking a thermal pad to its protective film, creating air pockets beneath the thermal pad, failing to completely remove detached protective films from the electronic component, and causing cracks during manual assembly. Additionally, the thermal pad may be misplaced on the assembly, for example, due to misalignment or deformation during manual assembly. This can result in cooling or insulation areas not being properly connected, necessitating rework or leading to subsequent application failure.

[0013] A typical placement process of several thermal pads 1 on a control unit designed as an electronic assembly 80 is shown. Fig. 2. In this process, due to components or volume elements 86 on the contact surface 85 forming one adhesive side of the printed circuit board 82, a large thermal pad 1 and two smaller thermal pads 1 are bonded. The assembly process was carried out using tweezers to peel the thermal pads 1 from a carrier film and to position the thermal pads 1 on the references of an adhesive template.

[0014] Different applications of thermal pads and their positions or mountings are known from the state of the art.

[0015] EP 2 114 113 A1 describes an assembly consisting of surface-mountable components which are pressed against a heat sink via thermal vias and an insulating and thermally conductive element, with the contact pressure being controlled by elastic springs. WO 2023 / 083823 describes a printed circuit board arrangement which exerts a force on a printed circuit board by means of spring-loaded retainers, thus enabling a thermally conductive connection to the heat sink without space-consuming screw connections.

[0016] EP 2 429 273 B1 describes an electrical device consisting of a housing part, a carrier plate and an electronic circuit, in which the electronic circuit of pressure domes consisting of silicone elements introduced into the housing part during the injection molding process is attached to the carrier plate as a heat sink.

[0017] Based on this, the present invention aims to reduce the effort required for mounting thermal pads while simultaneously ensuring the necessary positional accuracy and reliability of the connection between a thermal pad and a respective contact surface. This objective is achieved by the thermal pad according to claim 1, the handling device according to claim 4, the handling system according to claim 7, the method for manufacturing an electronic component by handling thermal pads according to claim 8, and the electronic component according to claim 10.

[0018] Advantageous embodiments of the thermal pad are specified in dependent claims 2 and 3, advantageous embodiments of the handling device are specified in dependent claims 5 and 6, and an advantageous embodiment of the method for manufacturing an electronic component by handling thermal pads is given in dependent claim 9.

[0019] The features of the claims can be combined in any technically meaningful way, taking into account the explanations from the following description as well as features from the figures, which include supplementary embodiments of the invention.

[0020] A first aspect of the present invention is a thermal pad for heat conduction and / or electrical insulation on an electronic component, comprising a substantially two-dimensional body with at least two side surfaces bounding the body and facing away from each other, and in the body at least one incision penetrating the body, which is configured to be penetrated at least partially by a volume element on the contact surface when the thermal pad is positioned on a contact surface of the electronic component, with material of the body bounding the incision being inverted.

[0021] A thermal pad, as used here, is a thermally conductive and electrically insulating layer, which can be in the form of a plate and serves to create a thermally conductive connection with a heat sink. Such a thermal pad can also be referred to as an insulating film.

[0022] The side surfaces are the two large surfaces of the body that allow it to be applied to surfaces to be cooled and / or insulated. Each of these two large side surfaces is significantly larger than a boundary surface that laterally delimits the body. The aforementioned cut penetrates the body from side surface to side surface. This cut can be designed as a slot-shaped separation.

[0023] When positioning the thermal pad on a contact surface of an electronic component, adhesion of the thermal pad to the contact surface may be achieved by adhesive, and / or another pressure force may be applied to the thermal pad in the direction of the contact surface in order to fix the thermal pad.

[0024] The indentation is achieved through the application of mechanical force, whereby the body of the thermal pad is designed with sufficient elastic or plastic deformability to enable this indentation. The indentation can, for example, be achieved by elastically bending the opening zone of the cut.

[0025] The thermal pad can be made of an elastic material with a Shore hardness of 5 to 90 Shore A.

[0026] An advantageous embodiment of the thermal pad provides that at least two incisions are arranged in the body of the thermal pad, the cutting paths of which merge into one another. For example, one incision can lead into another incision, or at least two incisions are arranged in the body of the thermal pad, the cutting paths of which intersect each other.

[0027] The cuts can, for example, be designed as right-angled, intersecting slits.

[0028] Even when the cuts overlap or intersect, they are designed to allow a volume element to penetrate, at least partially, the material of the body that defines the cut, causing it to indent. Such relief cuts in the thermal pad prevent collisions between the thermal pad and components in the area covered by the combined thermal pad.

[0029] A further aspect of the present invention is a handling device for handling thermally conductive pads for heat conduction and / or electrical insulation on an electronic component, comprising a receiving device for picking up a thermally conductive pad from a carrier film, wherein the handling device, as components of a first reference system, has at least two reference elements with which the position of the receiving device in a plane parallel to a side surface of the thermally conductive pad facing the handling device is defined in conjunction with a counter-reference system. The receiving device can, for example, have a release plunger with a vacuum device to suction and fix a thermally conductive pad by means of vacuum.Another component of the handling device can be a so-called release table with at least one opening for receiving one or more reference elements, so that such a reference element can penetrate the carrier film deeply enough.

[0030] The reference elements can be configured to interact with counter-reference elements designed as components of a respective counter-reference system on a carrier film carrying at least one thermal pad and / or in the electronic assembly, thus enabling a respective thermal pad to be received in a defined orientation from the carrier film and, with geometrically identical distances of reference elements and counter-reference elements from the carrier film as well as of counter-reference elements in the electronic assembly, to be positioned on the electronic assembly in the same defined orientation.

[0031] The defined orientation with which a respective thermal pad is to be received by the carrier film is here an orientation in two translational degrees of freedom parallel to the plane of the carrier film or to the side surface of the thermal pad and in one rotational degree of freedom about an axis perpendicular to the plane of the carrier film or to the side surface of the thermal pad.

[0032] The geometrically identical distances are the distances between the respective reference elements of a given reference system.

[0033] The reference elements on the receiving device can, for example, each be designed in the shape of a pin and be configured to be inserted into holes in the carrier film or in the electronic assembly that are designed as counter-reference elements.

[0034] Furthermore, the present invention provides a handling system for handling thermal pads, which includes a described handling device for handling thermal pads.

[0035] Furthermore, the handling system comprises at least one thermally conductive pad arranged on a carrier film, wherein at least two counter-reference elements are arranged on or in the carrier film as components of a film reference system forming a counter-reference system, which are configured to position the handling device in a defined orientation in relation to the carrier film in conjunction with the reference elements of the first reference system of the handling device.

[0036] Alternatively or additionally, it is provided that the handling system includes an electronic component which, as components of a component-reference system forming a counter-reference system, has at least two counter-reference elements which are designed to position the handling device in a defined orientation relative to a contact surface for the application of the thermal pad to the electronic component in conjunction with the reference elements of the first reference system.

[0037] For example, the counter-reference elements are holes into which reference elements of the handling device can be inserted.

[0038] The first reference system, the foil reference system, and the component reference system can have the same geometric distances between their respective reference elements, or alternatively, the geometric distances of reference elements in the first reference system and the foil reference system can be the same, while differing from the geometric distances between other reference elements in the first reference system and the reference elements in the component reference system. Similarly, different reference elements of the handling device can be used for removing the thermal pads from the carrier film and for attaching the thermal pads to the electronic component.

[0039] Another aspect of the present invention is a method for manufacturing an electronic component by handling thermal pads for arranging the thermal pads on an electronic component for the purpose of heat conduction and / or electrical insulation on an electronic component. In which a described handling system is provided, and through the interaction of reference elements of the first reference system of the handling device and the counter-reference elements of the foil reference system forming a counter-reference system, the handling device is positioned in a defined orientation relative to the carrier film, and at least one thermally conductive pad is removed from the carrier film by means of the receiving device. Furthermore, it is provided that through the interaction of reference elements of the first reference system of the handling device and the counter-reference elements of the component reference system forming a counter-reference system, the handling device is positioned in a defined orientation relative to the electronic component, and at least one thermally conductive pad is transferred from the receiving device to a contact surface of the electronic component by means of the receiving device.

[0040] Accordingly, two counter-reference systems are provided here that can interact with the first reference system of the handling device, namely the foil reference system as a second counter-reference system and the component unit reference system as a third counter-reference system.

[0041] The transfer of the thermal pad from the receiving device to a contact surface of the electronic component can be realized by placing and / or gluing the thermal pad to a corresponding contact surface of the electronic component.

[0042] The method for manufacturing an electronic component by handling thermal pads can be carried out in such a way that several thermal pads are provided on a carrier film, and after realization of the interaction of the reference elements of the first reference system of the handling device and the counter-reference elements of the film reference system forming a counter-reference system, the carrier film is deflected from its course in a first plane into a second plane, which runs at an acute angle to the first plane, so that a detachment of at least one thermal pad from the carrier film is promoted or achieved.

[0043] Because a thermal pad to be detached is located parallel to the first layer of the film before the film is deflected, and is picked up and fixed to the handling device in this orientation, the acute-angled deflection of the carrier film causes the thermal pad to detach from the film, while the thermal pad remains fixed to the handling device.

[0044] The invention also provides an electronic component comprising at least one described thermal pad, and / or at least one thermal pad applied according to the described method for manufacturing an electronic component by handling thermal pads, which rests against a contact surface of the electronic component.

[0045] The electronic component can, for example, be a control unit of an electromechanical drive unit.

[0046] The thermal pad can have a side surface facing a contact area of ​​the electronic component that is larger, for example, at least 10% larger, than the contact area and / or an area of ​​the electronic component to be cooled and / or electrically insulated. This larger side surface can be achieved, in particular, by combining several smaller thermal pads into a single larger thermal pad. Accordingly, it can be provided that a heat-conducting zone of the electronic component, from which heat is to be dissipated by means of the thermal pad, is at least 10% smaller than the side surface of the thermal pad facing this heat-conducting zone.

[0047] By combining traditionally separate thermal pads into a single thermal pad, handling effort can be reduced and the desired quality achieved.

[0048] The volume element on the mounting surface can, for example, be a component mounted on the surface of the circuit board, or a component that is attached to the electronic component by means of through-mounting or plug-in mounting.

[0049] The presented approaches propose an optimized design and manufacturing solution for thermal pads in a manual assembly process, which avoids the risk of incorrect pad placement and reduces the other aforementioned risks. Furthermore, the proposed approaches enable at least partially automated assembly.

[0050] The invention described above is explained in detail below against the relevant technical background with reference to the accompanying drawings, which show preferred embodiments. The invention is in no way limited by the purely schematic drawings, and it should be noted that the embodiments shown in the drawings are not limited to the dimensions depicted. It is illustrated in Fig. 1: A conventional electronic component in exploded view, Fig. 2: a conventional arrangement of thermal pads in the electronic assembly, Fig. 3: a thermally conductive pad designed according to the invention, Fig. 4: an arrangement of thermal pads according to the invention in the electronic assembly, Fig. 5: an indentation caused by the thermal pad in perspective view, Fig. 6: A handling device in a first perspective view, Fig. 7: the handling device in a second perspective view, Fig. 8: the handling device in sectional view, Fig. 9: the handling device when used on a carrier film 50 in perspective view, Fig. 10: the handling device when used on a carrier film 50 in top view, Fig. 11: the handling device when used on a carrier film 50 in an enlarged perspective view, and Fig. 12: The handling device when used on the electronic assembly, top view.

[0051] On the Fig. 1 and Fig. Reference has already been made to section 2 to explain the state of the art.

[0052] Fig. Figure 3 shows a thermally conductive pad 1 designed according to the invention, which incorporates the Fig. 1 and Fig. The two individual thermal pads 1 shown are combined to form a single, common thermal pad 1. This thermal pad 1 comprises a body 2 that has a very low height, so that the thermal pad 1 is almost two-dimensional. A first side surface 11 is designed to attach to a Fig. 1 to be applied to the lid 81 shown, wherein the second side surface 12 facing away from the first side surface 11 is arranged to be applied to a contact surface 85 of the circuit board 82 in order to create an insulating bore between circuit board 82 and lid 81 and / or to transfer heat from the circuit board 82 to the lid 81.

[0053] The thermal pad 1 shown has two cross-shaped incisions 13. These incisions 13 are arranged at positions where volume elements 86 are present on the circuit board 82, which are formed, for example, by individual electronic components.

[0054] The incisions 13 are designed so that the volume elements 86 can penetrate the thermal pad, as shown in Fig. Figure 5 shows that a volume element 86 displaces material 14 that limits the incision, thereby causing an upturn 15 of this material.

[0055] This makes it possible to use the thermal pad 1, as shown in Fig. 4 shown, to be laid flat with the second side surface 12 onto the contact surface 85, without causing any significant wrinkling of the thermal pad 1.

[0056] The incisions 13 can be made using a cutting process without material removal or loss. These incisions 13, known as relief cuts, allow the thermal pad 1 to be opened in the area of ​​volume elements 85 and prevent permanent stress from being introduced into the thermal pad 1, which could lead to cracking.

[0057] The Fig. Figures 6-8 show a handling device 20 in different views. The handling device 20 comprises a receiving device 21 for receiving a thermal pad 1, as described in the Fig. 3-5. A component of the receiving device 21 is a receiving device housing 22, which forms an intake port 23 to which a vacuum device (not shown here), such as a vacuum pump, can be connected. On the side facing away from the intake port 23, a plurality of nozzles 24 are arranged in a plane so that, when a vacuum is created, a relevant object, such as a thermal pad, can be held against the plane of the nozzles 24. In Fig. Figure 8 shows the flow pattern of the drawn-in air with arrows.

[0058] Another component of the handling device 20 is a first reference system 30, which comprises a first reference element 31 of the first reference system 30 and a second reference element 32 of the first reference system 30. These two reference elements 31, 32 are essentially pin-shaped and arranged at defined positions relative to the nozzles 24.

[0059] Fig. Figure 9 shows the use of the handling device 20 on a release table 40. This release table 40 includes several rollers 41 to allow a carrier film 50 with several thermally conductive pads 1 arranged on the release table 40 to be easily moved along the longitudinal direction of the release table 40. The handling device 20 is placed on the release table 40 to detach a thermally conductive pad 1, and a vacuum is created to fix the thermally conductive pad 1 to the handling device 20.

[0060] Fig. Figure 10 shows the carrier film 50 with thermally conductive pads 1 arranged on it, as well as a film reference system 60 as a counter-reference system to the first reference system 30 of the handling device 20. The film reference system 60 comprises, as the first counter-reference element 61 and as the second counter-reference element 62, holes in the carrier film 50. These holes are formed at regular intervals along the longitudinal direction of the carrier film 50 and are designed so that the pin-shaped reference elements 31, 32 of the first reference system of the handling device 20 can be inserted into these holes or counter-reference elements 61, 62. This ensures a defined alignment of the handling device 20 on the carrier film 50 and thus with respect to the individual thermally conductive pads 1.

[0061] Accordingly, the carrier film not only serves to provide the thermal pads 1, but also to define the orientation of the thermal pads 1.

[0062] In Fig. 10 are also in the Fig. The elongated holes 42 shown in the detachable table 40 are indicated, which are designed so that the pin-shaped first and second reference elements of the first reference system 30 can completely penetrate the carrier film 50 through the hole-shaped counter-reference elements 61,62.

[0063] Fig.Figure 11 shows the detachment process of a thermal pad 1 from the carrier film 50. As already described, a handling device 20 has been brought into contact with the top surface of a thermal pad 1 and adheres to it due to negative pressure. The carrier film 50 has been moved on the release table 40 towards an end edge 43 of the table, around which the carrier film 50 is deflected 53, so that the carrier film 50 is moved from a first level 51 on the top surface of the release table 40 into a second level 52 extending at an acute angle to the first level 51. This, and the adhesion of the thermal pad 1 to the handling device 20, leads to the detachment of the thermal pad 1 from the carrier film 50, so that the thermal pad 1 is only held or suctioned by the handling device 20.

[0064] The next thermal conductivity pad 1 is already ready for removal or detachment due to the advancement process of the carrier film 50, which can be done manually or automatically.

[0065] By moving the handling device, the attached thermal pad 1 can now be positioned on the surface or contact area 85 of a printed circuit board 82. For this purpose, a component reference system 70 is used, which comprises a first counter-reference element 71 of the component reference system 70 and a second counter-reference element 72 of the component reference system 70. The positions of these two counter-reference elements 71, 72 correspond to the geometric positions of the first reference element 31 of the first reference system 30 and the second reference element 32 of the first reference system 30, and thus also to the positions of the first counter-reference element 61 of the foil reference system 60 and the second counter-reference element 62 of the foil reference system 60, so that the thermal pad can be placed on the contact area 85 in a defined orientation and fixed there.

[0066] Thanks to the fixture-supported assembly, placement deviations are only possible within the limits of the individual part and tool tolerances.

[0067] Since no individual thermal pads 1 are traded, no individual protective films can be forgotten in the electronic assembly 80.

[0068] The presence of the thermal pad 1 itself can be verified by camera inspection or, more simply, by an electrical continuity test using a spring-loaded test probe. The movement of the handling device 20 can be achieved, for example, by means of a three-axis linear unit with servo motors.

[0069] The described method results in only a small quantity of thermal pads 1 with open adhesive surfaces, so that contamination with particles can only occur to a limited extent.

[0070] The thermal pad, handling device, handling system, method for manufacturing an electronic component by handling thermal pads, and electronic component proposed here provide solutions to reduce the effort required to mount thermal pads while simultaneously ensuring the necessary positional accuracy and reliability of the connection made between a thermal pad and a respective mounting surface. Reference symbol list 1 thermal pad 2 bodies 11 First side surface 12 Second side surface 13 cut 14 material limiting the incision 15 Inversion 20 handling equipment 21 Reception facility 22 Recording device housings 23 Intake manifold 24 nozzle 30 first reference system 31 first reference element of the first reference system 32 second reference element of the first reference system 40 Detachment table 41 roll 42 Slotted hole 43 Table edge 50 carrier film 51 first level 52 second level 53 Deflection 60-slide reference system 61 First counter-reference element of the slide reference system 62 Second counter-reference element of the slide reference system 70 Unit Reference System 71 First counter-reference element of the component reference system 72 Second counter-reference element of the component reference system 80 Electronic component 81 lids 82 circuit boards 84 cases 85 m² of installation area 86 Volume element QUOTES INCLUDED IN THE DESCRIPTION

[0000] This list of documents cited by the applicant was automatically generated and is included solely for the reader's convenience. The list is not part of the German patent or utility model application. The DPMA accepts no liability for any errors or omissions. Cited patent literature

[0000] EP 2 114 113 A1

[0015] WO 2023 / 083823

[0015] EP 2 429 273 B1

[0016]

Claims

[1] Thermal pad (1) for heat conduction and / or electrical insulation on an electronic component (80), comprising a substantially two-dimensional body (2) with at least two side surfaces (11, 12) bounding the body (2) and facing away from each other, and in the body (2) at least one incision (13) penetrating the body (2), which is configured to be penetrated at least partially by a volume element (86) on the contact surface (85) when the thermal pad (1) is positioned on a contact surface (85) of the electronic component (80), with material (14) of the body (2) bounding the incision being inverted (15). [2] Thermal pad according to claim 1, characterized by , that in the body (2) of the thermal conducting pad (1) at least two incisions (13) are arranged, the cutting paths of which merge into each other. [3] Thermal pad according to claim 2, characterized by, that in the body 2 of the thermal pad (1) at least two incisions (13) are arranged, the cutting paths of which intersect each other. [4] Handling device (20) for handling thermal pads (1) for heat conduction and / or electrical insulation on an electronic assembly (80), comprising a receiving device (21) for receiving a thermal pad (1) from a carrier film (50), wherein the handling device (20) comprises at least two reference elements (31, 32) as components of a first reference system (30), with which the position of the receiving device (21) in a plane parallel to a side surface (11) of the thermal pad (1) facing the handling device (20) is defined in conjunction with a counter-reference system. [5] Handling device according to claim 4, characterized by, that the reference elements (31, 32) are configured to interact with counter-reference elements (61, 62) designed as components of a respective counter-reference system, a carrier film (50) carrying at least one thermal pad (1), and / or in the electronic assembly (80), and thus enable a respective thermal pad (1) to be received in a defined orientation from the carrier film (50), and to position the thermal pad (1) on the electronic assembly (80) in the same defined orientation when the reference elements (31, 32) and counter-reference elements (61, 62) are geometrically identical from the carrier film (50) and from the counter-reference elements (71, 72) in the electronic assembly (80). [6] Handling device according to claim 5, characterized by, that the reference elements (31,32) on the receiving device (21) are each designed in the shape of a pin and are designed to be inserted into holes in the carrier film (50) or in the electronic assembly (80) designed as counter-reference elements (61,62, 71,72). [7] Handling system for handling thermal pads, comprising a handling device (20) for handling thermal pads (1) according to any one of claims 4 to 6, and comprising i) at least one thermally conductive pad (1) arranged on a carrier film (50), wherein at least two counter-reference elements (61, 62) are arranged on or in the carrier film (50) as components of a film reference system (60) forming a counter-reference system, which are configured to position the handling device (20) in a defined orientation relative to the carrier film (40) in conjunction with the reference elements (31, 32) of the first reference system (30) of the handling device (20), and / or ii) an electronic component (80) which, as components of a component-reference system (70) forming a counter-reference system, has at least two counter-reference elements (71, 72) which are configured to position, in conjunction with the reference elements (31, 32) of the first reference system (30), the handling device (20) in a defined orientation relative to a contact surface (85) for the application of the thermal pad (1) to the electronic component (80). [8] Method for manufacturing an electronic component by handling thermal pads for arranging the thermal pads on an electronic component for heat conduction and / or electrical insulation on an electronic component, in which a handling system according to claim 7 is provided, and by interaction of reference elements (31, 32) of the first reference system (30) of the handling device (20) and the counter-reference elements (61, 62) of the foil reference system (60) forming a counter-reference system, the handling device (20) is positioned in a defined orientation with respect to the carrier foil (50), and at least one thermal pad (1) is removed from the carrier foil (50) by means of the receiving device (21), and by interaction of reference elements (31, 32) of the first reference system (30) of the handling device (20) and the counter-reference elements (7 ...).72) of the component reference system (70) forming a counter-reference system, the handling device (20) is positioned in a defined orientation relative to the electronic component (80) and at least one thermal pad (1) is transferred from the receiving device (21) to a contact surface (85) of the electronic component (80) by means of the receiving device (21). [9] Method for manufacturing an electronic component by handling thermal pads according to claim 8, wherein several thermal pads 1 are provided on a carrier film (50), and after realization of the interaction of the reference elements (31, 32) of the first reference system (30) of the handling device (20) and the counter-reference elements (61, 62) of the film reference system (60) forming a counter-reference system, the carrier film (50) is deflected from the course in a first plane (51) into a second plane (52) which runs at an acute angle to the first plane (51), so that a detachment of at least one thermal pad (1) from the carrier film (50) is promoted or achieved. [10] Electronic assembly (80) comprising at least one thermal pad 1 according to one of claims 1 to 3, and / or at least one thermal pad 1 applied according to the method for manufacturing an electronic assembly by handling thermal pads according to one of claims 8 and 9, which is in contact with a contact surface (85) of the electronic assembly (80).

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