Direct-Bonded Heat Pipe Assembly for Lower Chip Thermal Resistance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing cooling systems for microelectronic devices face inefficiencies due to high thermal resistance at interfacial boundaries and within the thermal interface materials, leading to reduced cooling efficiency and increased operating temperatures, which affect the performance, efficiency, and reliability of semiconductor devices.
Innovation Solution
The integration of a heat pipe with a semiconductor device using an organic material and a wick structure, attached via direct or hybrid bonding, directly transfers heat away from the device, reducing thermal resistance and enhancing cooling efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If thermal interface materials are used to facilitate heat transfer between chip and heat dissipation devices, then thermal coupling is enhanced, but thermal resistance at interfacial boundaries and within the material increases, reducing cooling efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the thermal interface material from the heat transfer path between the chip and heat dissipation device. By directly bonding the heat dissipation device to the chip using hybrid bonding techniques, the TIM layer is extracted entirely, eliminating its thermal resistance contribution while maintaining thermal coupling through direct contact.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the chip and heat dissipation device into a single integrated structure through direct bonding. The bonding interface combines dielectric and conductive features that simultaneously provide electrical isolation and thermal conduction, creating a unified thermal management system without intermediate materials.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple components are placed between heat dissipating sources and heat dissipation devices, then functional requirements are met, but system thermal resistance accumulates along heat transfer paths, raising chip junction temperatures
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes intermediate components (TIMs, heat spreaders, and other thermal interface elements) from the heat transfer path. By eliminating these components, the cumulative thermal resistance is reduced, allowing heat to flow more efficiently from the chip junction to the heat dissipation device.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from a multi-layer vertical stack (chip-TIM-heat spreader-TIM-heat sink) to a direct bonded interface, effectively reducing the dimensional complexity of the thermal path. This dimensional simplification removes intermediate thermal resistance barriers while maintaining all necessary functional capabilities through integrated design.
3Ease of manufacture
If conventional cooling systems are used with thermal interface materials, then heat transfer is facilitated, but combined thermal resistance of interface boundaries and materials inhibits heat transfer, reducing cooling efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the thermal interface material from the manufacturing process and final product. By eliminating TIM application steps and the TIM layer itself, the system achieves superior heat transfer efficiency without the energy losses associated with intermediate material thermal resistance.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical/chemical thermal interface material system with a direct physical bonding system. Hybrid bonding techniques create a permanent, low-resistance thermal interface that eliminates the need for TIMs, achieving both manufacturing simplicity and thermal efficiency.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach significantly reduces thermal resistance, allowing for more effective heat dissipation and improved energy efficiency in semiconductor devices by directly transferring heat from the device to a cooler, thereby maintaining optimal operating temperatures.
Implementation Method 1
The integration of a heat pipe with a semiconductor device using an organic material and a wick structure, attached via direct or hybrid bonding, directly transfers heat away from the device
Implementation Method 2
directly transfers heat away from the device, reducing thermal resistance and enhancing cooling efficiency
Implementation Method 3
The inner surface of the heat pipe shell includes a wick material
Data Source
AI summary
Embodiments herein provide for an integrated cooling assembly comprising a semiconductor device and a heat pipe. The heat pipe comprises a non-metal material attached to a backside of the semiconductor device, or a metal material attached to a backside of the semiconductor device via a flexible material structure. The heat pipe comprises a shell defining a heat pipe chamber. The shell having an inner surface and an outer surface, and the inner surface of the heat pipe chamber includes a wick material.