Stacked PCB Power Assembly for Vertical Heat Dissipation
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Solution Overview
Problem
There is a need to improve the cooling of power electrical components, particularly those composed of silicon-carbide, gallium nitride, or gallium oxide, while maintaining a compact package size due to increased heat flux and cooling requirements.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of power electronic assemblies with a printed circuit board that includes multiple substrate layers, where electrical components are fully embedded and arranged in vertical columns, enabling efficient heat dissipation through stacked configurations and integrated cooling plates.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of moving object
If power electrical components are made from silicon-carbide, gallium nitride, or gallium oxide to reduce device footprint, then device footprint is reduced, but heat flux increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from planar heat dissipation to three-dimensional vertical heat dissipation by stacking multiple substrate layers with electrical components arranged in vertical columns. This dimensional change allows heat to be dissipated through the vertical axis rather than requiring larger horizontal area, thus reducing device footprint while managing the increased heat flux from wide-bandgap materials.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent divides the heat dissipation function across multiple substrate layers, with each layer containing embedded electrical components and integrated cooling plates. This segmentation distributes the heat generation and dissipation across several discrete units stacked vertically, enabling efficient heat management for high-power-density components without increasing overall footprint.
2Productivity
If multiple substrate layers with vertically stacked electrical components are implemented, then power density increases and assembly size is reduced, but heat dissipation requirements become more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the electrical component functionality with the heat dissipation function by integrating cooling plates directly within each substrate layer that contains electrical components. This combination ensures that heat generated by high-power-density components is immediately addressed at the source, simplifying the overall thermal management approach despite the multi-layer configuration.
Solution Approach 2:
Each substrate layer is designed to be self-sufficient thermally, with its own integrated cooling plate that directly manages the heat generated by the electrical components embedded in that same layer. This self-service approach to heat dissipation eliminates the need for complex external cooling systems and simplifies thermal management across the entire stacked assembly.
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 arrangement increases power density and reduces the size of the assembly by effectively dissipating heat, maintaining a compact design while enhancing cooling efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
enabling efficient heat dissipation through stacked configurations and integrated cooling plates
Data Source
AI summary
A power electronics assembly includes a printed circuit board including a plurality of substrate layers. The plurality of substrate layers include a first core layer and a second core layer stacked vertically below the first core layer, wherein the first core layer comprises a first electrical component embedded therein and the second core layer comprises a second electrical component embedded therein. The first electrical component and the second electrical component are arranged in a vertical column.