Cylindrical Heat Pipe Adapter for Component Carrier Thermal Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
Cylindrical heat pipes used in electronic devices face challenges in handling and bonding due to their cylindrical shape, leading to poor thermal and electric conductivity, and are prone to deformation under extreme temperatures, limiting their use in high-temperature applications like surface mount technology and reflow cycles.
Innovation Solution
A component carrier with a largely cylindrical heat pipe section is thermoconductively coupled using adapter means that enclose or abut the heat pipe, enhancing heat management and thermal connection through solid or paste-like adapters, and a method involving embedding or surface-mounting heat pipes with centering templates and thermal vias for improved alignment and conductivity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If cylindrical heat pipes are used for heat dissipation, then heat transfer efficiency is improved, but handling and bonding difficulty increases due to cylindrical shape
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an adapter component as an intermediary element that connects the cylindrical heat pipe to the PCB. The adapter has a cylindrical inner bore that receives the heat pipe and outer surfaces that can be bonded to the PCB, effectively mediating between the difficult-to-handle cylindrical heat pipe and the planar PCB structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The heat pipe system is segmented into separate components: the cylindrical heat pipe section and the adapter component. This segmentation allows the heat pipe to maintain its optimal cylindrical shape for heat transfer while the adapter handles the mechanical integration and bonding to the PCB.
2Temperature
If cylindrical heat pipes are used, then heat dissipation capacity is improved, but thermal and electric conductivity deteriorates due to poor contact
Solution Approach 1:
The adapter serves as a mediator that ensures reliable thermal and electric contact between the cylindrical heat pipe and the PCB. It provides a stable bonding interface with sufficient contact area, eliminating the poor contact issue while preserving the heat pipe's heat dissipation capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The adapter is pre-configured with bonding surfaces and structural features that ensure proper alignment and contact before the heat pipe is installed. This preliminary preparation of the bonding interface guarantees reliable thermal and electric conductivity from the start.
3Temperature
If cylindrical heat pipes are used in high-temperature applications, then heat management is improved, but deformation occurs under extreme temperatures
Solution Approach 1:
The adapter component provides structural support and constraint to the cylindrical heat pipe before thermal stress occurs. It cushions the heat pipe against deformation by providing a stable mounting structure that maintains the heat pipe's shape during high-temperature processing and operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The adapter allows for optimization of bonding parameters and structural configuration to accommodate thermal expansion and contraction. By controlling the bonding strength and structural design, the system can withstand extreme temperatures without deformation.
4Temperature
If cylindrical heat pipes are surface-mounted, then heat dissipation is improved, but alignment precision deteriorates due to cylindrical shape
Solution Approach 1:
The adapter acts as an intermediary that provides reference surfaces and alignment features for mounting the cylindrical heat pipe. It translates the cylindrical geometry into a form that can be precisely positioned and aligned on the PCB using standard manufacturing techniques.
Solution Approach 2:
The adapter introduces asymmetric features such as positioning pins, slots, or non-circular bonding surfaces that enable precise alignment of the cylindrical heat pipe during assembly, overcoming the alignment difficulties posed by its symmetric cylindrical shape.
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
The solution improves heat dissipation capacity, reduces PCB rejects, and allows safe connection of thermal vias to cylindrical heat pipes, enabling effective thermal management and handling of extreme temperatures without deformation.
Implementation Method 1
At a hot interface of the heat pipe a heat transfer fluid like a liquid that is in contact with a thermally conductive solid surface turns into a vapour by absorbing heat from that surface. The vapour then travels along the heat pipe to a cold interface and condenses there back into a liquid by release of the latent heat.
Implementation Method 2
A heat pipe is a heat-transfer device that combines the principles of both thermal conductivity and phase transition to efficiently manage the transfer of heat between two solid interfaces.
Implementation Method 3
the at least one solid adapter thermoconductively couples at least the largely cylindrical heat pipe section of the heat pipe with the at least one inner or outer layer of the component carrier body
Data Source
AI summary
The invention refers to a component carrier comprising at least one heat pipe, wherein the at least one heat pipe has at least a largely cylindrical heat pipe section with a largely cylindrical profile with an outer diameter. The at least one heat pipe is embedded within a recess of at least one inner layer or is surface-mounted on an outer layer of said component carrier, wherein at least the largely cylindrical heat pipe section of the heat pipe is thermoconductively coupled by means of at least one adapter means that directly contacts the heat pipe with at least one layer of the component carrier. Furthermore the invention refers to several methods for producing said component carrier.