PCB Heat Exchange Structure with Segmented Thermal Layers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing heat transfer systems face challenges in efficiently transporting heat between two bodies while maintaining electrical insulation, often requiring thick thermal interfaces that compromise thermal conductivity and are prone to contamination and defects.
Innovation Solution
A circuit board design with integrated heat exchange structures featuring thermally joined yet electrically separated heat exchange layers, utilizing vias that are thermally through-contacts to transport heat through a core while providing electrical insulation, and using a thin, thermally conductive intermediate layer for efficient heat dispersion in two dimensions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If thick thermal interfaces are used to maintain electrical insulation, then electrical insulation is improved, but thermal conductivity deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The thermal interface is segmented into multiple thin layers: a first thermal interface layer, a second thermal interface layer, and a third thermal interface layer. Each layer has a thickness of 1-10 micrometers, totaling 3-30 micrometers. This segmentation allows the interface to maintain electrical insulation while reducing overall thermal resistance through the combined effect of multiple thin conductive layers.
Solution Approach 2:
The thermal interface uses composite material structure with different layers having different properties. The first, second, and third thermal interface layers are made of thermally conductive materials with appropriate electrical insulation properties. This composite structure enables simultaneous achievement of electrical insulation and thermal conductivity by combining materials with complementary properties in a layered configuration.
2Reliability
If thick thermal interfaces are used to provide electrical insulation, then electrical insulation is improved, but the interface becomes prone to contamination and defects
Solution Approach 1:
The interface is divided into multiple thin layers (1-10 micrometers each) rather than one thick layer. This segmentation reduces the volume where contamination and defects can occur, making the interface less susceptible to harmful factors while maintaining the required electrical insulation performance.
Solution Approach 2:
The thermal interface uses thin film structures (total thickness 3-30 micrometers) that are less prone to contamination and defect formation compared to thick interfaces. The thin film configuration reduces the probability of defects while maintaining electrical insulation, and the layered structure provides flexibility in managing thermal and electrical properties.
3Loss of energy
If heat exchange layers are thermally joined, then heat transfer efficiency is improved, but electrical insulation between layers deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The heat exchange structure is segmented into multiple thin thermal interface layers (1-10 micrometers each) positioned between heat exchange layers. These thin layers provide sufficient thermal conductivity for efficient heat transfer while maintaining electrical insulation through their combined thinness and appropriate material properties.
Solution Approach 2:
The interface structure changes the thermal and electrical parameters by using multiple thin layers with specific thickness ratios and material properties. The total thickness (3-30 micrometers) and individual layer thicknesses (1-10 micrometers) are optimized to achieve the desired balance between thermal conductivity and electrical insulation, allowing heat transfer efficiency improvement while maintaining reliability.
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 design enhances heat transfer efficiency between a heat source and a heat sink by maintaining electrical insulation and optimizing thermal conductivity, reducing the risk of contamination and defects, and allowing for a larger active heat exchange area.
Implementation Method 1
Each via is configured as a thermal through-contact and/or can be designated as such... the vias are configured or designed to transport heat through the core, through which they are led. Hence, the vias conduct the heat through the at least one core.
Implementation Method 2
The intermediate layer is already thermally conductive, due to its thin conformation... The two heat exchange layers are thermally joined to each other on the one hand and electrically separated from each other on the other hand by the intermediate layer.
Implementation Method 3
each of the two heat exchange layers is configured to transport heat in one area of the heat exchange layer of the circuit board and thus to disperse it in two dimensions
Data Source
AI summary
An arrangement for exchanging heat between two bodies comprises a circuit board, having at least one first via and at least one second via, wherein at least one heat exchange structure is integrated in the circuit board, wherein the at least one heat exchange structure comprises two heat exchange layers and an intermediate layer arranged between the two heat exchange layers, wherein the two heat exchange layers are thermally joined to each other and electrically separated from each other by the intermediate layer, wherein a first heat exchange layer is associated with the first body and can be brought into thermal contact with it and a second heat exchange layer is associated with the second body and can be brought into thermal contact with it, wherein the at least one first via and the at least one second via are each led through the two heat exchange layers and the intermediate layer arranged between the two heat exchange layers, wherein the at least one first via is in contact only with the first heat exchange layer and is insulated from the second heat exchange layer, and wherein the at least one second via is in contact only with the second heat exchange layer and is insulated from the first heat exchange layer.