Innovative Hybrid Thermal Management Component for High Heat Flux Semiconductor Device Cooling

Passive thermal management solutions for high power electronics are inadequate for advanced US Navy systems. Active cooling systems can provide superior heat dissipation, but may present significant packaging challenges. Foster-Miller proposes a hybridthermal management concept that combines a passive element (high thermal conductivity, low thermal expansion face plate) and an active element (liquid/vapor heat absorption and removal) into an integrated packaging scheme. Preliminary analysis indicatesthat the proposed cooler concept offers significant efficiency and reliability benefits compared to current thermal management approaches. The Foster-Miller team includes a renowned research institution internationally recognized in the area ofelectronics thermal management. In Phase I, the team will establish the feasibility of this hybrid cooling concept using component thermal modeling, constituent materials selection, device design, and demonstration article fabrication and characterizationand testing. We will demonstrate the innovative hybrid cooling concept for a specific Navy power electronics system and the concept utility towards other high flux applications: laser optics, automotive electronics, and thermonuclear fusion hardware.(P-030333) Foster-Miller, together with its team member, proposes to develop, fabricate, and test an innovative hybrid thermal management component for Navy high power electronics module application, especially suitable for IGBT cooling. Successfuldevelopment of our cooler concept for the above applications will be directly applicable to wide range of military and commercial electronics thermal management applications, including military and industrial optics and laser markets, telecommunications,and thermonuclear fusion power generation hardware.