Development of Thermal Management Systems for High Power, Wide Band Gap Radar

"The DOD is currently investmenting in the development of high power, wide band gap phased array radar. The Army's objective is to increase interceptor kill probability by using higher power radars that decrease the interceptor handover error. GalliumNitride (GaN) is an emerging technology that potentially can enhance radar power by a factor of five to ten; however, there are several enabling technologies, including thermal management, which must be developed in support of GaN. It is likely that GaNtechnology development and insertion will be time phased, that is, initial deployment will use lower power GaN devices and higher power devices will be deployed as they are demonstrated. Similarly, a thermal management system comprised of technologiesthat spread heat from the device, move heat to an extraction point, extract the heat, and package the various technologies with minimal thermal barriers, will also be phased into the systems. This proposed program will identify candidate thermalmanagement technologies, develop concepts for three device power levels, analytically evaluate the concepts parametrically, and select the best concepts for each of the three power levels evaluated. Each of the concepts will be evaluated on the basis ofthermal performance and manufacturability. This program will develop a design methodology for assessing combinations of thermal management approaches required to maintain GaN devices at their limit