Apparatus for dense chip packaging using heat pipes and thermoelectric coolers

• US 20020062648A1
• Filed: 11/30/2000
• Published: 05/30/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Ghoshal, Uttam Shyamalindu
• Granted Patent: US 6,474,074 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 62/3.7
• CPC Class Codes: F25B 23/006 boiling cooling systems
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 19/006 Thermal coupling structure or interface
• CPC Class Codes: F28D 15/0233 the conduits having a particular shape, e.g. non-circular cross-section, annular F28D15/0241, F28D15/0266 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F28D 15/04 with tubes having a capillary structure
• CPC Class Codes: F28F 2210/02 with particular branching, e.g. fractal conduit arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 23/38 Cooling arrangements using the Peltier effect
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 23/427 Cooling by change of state, e.g. use of heat pipes by liquefied gas H01L23/445
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/00 Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/0002 Not covered by any one of groups H01L24/00, H01L24/00 and H01L2224/00

Abstract

An apparatus for dense chip packaging using heat pipes and thermoelectric coolers is provided. The apparatus includes an evaporator region, a condenser region, and a capillary region. The evaporator region includes one or more hot point elements used to transfer heat from a heat source to a transport fluid. The transport fluid changes state to a vapor when heat is applied to the transport fluid. The vapor travels to the condenser region via vapor channels and is condensed to a fluid once again by transferring heat from the vapor to a heat sink. The condensed fluid is then returned to the evaporator region by way of capillary forces and capillaries formed in a capillary structure. The capillaries formed in the capillary structure have a tree-like or fractal geometry. The apparatus may further include a flexible region that allows the apparatus to be bent around corners and edges.

Claims

1. An apparatus for cooling a heat source, comprising:

an evaporator region, having one or more hot point elements for transferring heat from the heat source to a transport fluid; and

a condenser region associated with a heat sink.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the transport fluid changes to a vapor when heat from the heat source is applied to the transport fluid.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the vapor is condensed to a condensed transport fluid by transferring heat from the vapor to the heat sink.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, further comprising a capillary region having capillaries for returning the condensed transport fluid to the evaporator region.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the capillaries in the capillary region are formed using at least one of tree-like, fractal and constructural geometries.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the apparatus is flexible.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the heat source is a hot integrated circuit chip.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the transport fluid is one of an alcohol, water or freon.

9. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the capillaries in the capillary region are formed by defining an area of the capillary region and using a fractal algorithm to fill the area of the capillary region.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the apparatus is formed using high thermal conductivity materials.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the one or more hot point elements are conically shaped hot point elements.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the one or more hot point elements terminate at a tapered point.

13. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the capillary region further includes vapor channels for transporting vapor from the evaporator region to the condenser region.

14. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the capillaries are formed in the capillary region by one of photolithographic masking and etching.

15. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the heat sink is one of a cold plate, a thermoelectric cooler, and heat dissipating fins.

16. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the evaporator region and condenser region are concentrically disposed.

17. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the apparatus has a linear geometry.

18. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein at least one of the evaporator region, capillary region and condenser region are flexible structures.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the flexible structures have notches etched out of substrates of the flexible structures to thereby make the substrates flexible.

20. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the heat source is a processor in a laptop computer and the heat sink is a heat dissipater in a top of the laptop computer.

21. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the heat source is a integrated circuit chip in a chip stack.

22. A method of cooling a heat source, comprising:

using an evaporator region, having one or more hot point elements to transfer heat from the heat source to a transport fluid to thereby convert the transport fluid to a vapor; and

using a condenser region associated with a heat sink to transfer the heat from the vapor to the heat sink, wherein the vapor is converted to condensed transport fluid.

23. The method of claim 22, further comprising returning the condensed transport fluid to the evaporator region via capillaries in a capillary region.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the capillaries in the capillary region are formed using at least one of tree-like, fractal and constructural geometries.

25. The method of claim 22, wherein the heat source is a hot integrated circuit chip.

26. The method of claim 22, wherein the transport fluid is one of an alcohol, water or freon.

27. The method of claim 22, wherein the one or more hot point elements are conically shaped hot point elements.

28. The method of claim 22, wherein the heat source is a processor in a laptop computer and the heat sink is a heat dissipater in a top of the laptop computer.

29. The method of claim 22, wherein the heat source is a integrated circuit chip in a chip stack.

30. A method of making an apparatus for cooling a heat source, comprising:

providing an evaporator region, having one or more hot point elements for transferring heat from the heat source to a transport fluid, wherein the transport fluid is converted to a vapor when the heat is transferred from the hot point elements to the transport fluid; and

providing a condenser region associated with a heat sink for condensing the vapor to a condensed transport fluid when heat is transferred from the vapor to the heat sink.

31. The method of claim 30, further comprising providing a capillary region having capillaries for returning the condensed transport fluid to the evaporator region.

32. The method of claim 31, wherein the capillaries in the capillary region are formed using at least one of tree-like, fractal and constructural geometries.

33. The method of claim 30, further comprising providing the transport fluid, wherein the transport fluid is one of an alcohol, water or freon.

34. The method of claim 31, wherein the capillaries in the capillary region are formed by defining an area of the capillary region and using a fractal algorithm to fill the area of the capillary region.

35. The method of claim 30, wherein the apparatus is formed using high thermal conductivity materials.

36. The method of claim 30, wherein the one or more hot point elements are conically shaped hot point elements.

37. The method of claim 31, further comprising providing vapor channels in the capillary region for transporting vapor from the evaporator region to the condenser region.

38. The method of claim 31, wherein the capillaries are formed in the capillary region by one of photolithographic masking and etching.

39. The method of claim 30, wherein the evaporator region and condenser region are concentrically disposed.

40. The method of claim 30, wherein the apparatus has a linear geometry.

41. The method of claim 31, wherein at least one of the evaporator region, capillary region and condenser region are flexible structures.

42. The method of claim 41, wherein the flexible structures have notches etched out of substrates of the flexible structures to thereby make the substrates flexible.