3D printing micro flow liquid cooling heatsink technology
IQ Evolution is a professional enterprise that develops and manufactures complex geometric and microstructure components based on metal 3D printing technology. They focus on designing advanced liquid cooled radiators that have high cooling performance, while also being lightweight and small in size. These radiators are usually prioritized for cooling electric vehicles and power electronic equipment.
To address the heat dissipation bottleneck of high-performance semiconductor devices, develop micro heat sinks for 3D printing technology, such as cooling for TO packaging, module cooling, high-power laser diode cooling, etc. In a very small space, these micro heat sinks with a heat flux density of hundreds of W/cm2 are used to cope with the enormous heat generated by power semiconductors.
The stainless steel heat sink for 3D printing has already entered the electronic development laboratory, and its cooling performance and cooling power output are impressive in the application of silicon carbide power semiconductors. These SiC components can transmit very high power with an efficiency of 97% to 99%, but they can only be stable and practical after eliminating the heat dissipation limitation caused by power loss. At this point, the reliable dissipation of heat loss determines the performance of power electronic devices.
The 3D printed micro heat sink can be used reliably and in a space saving manner for cooling the vehicle sensor data graphics processing chip (SoC) without significantly expanding the device casing.
Evaluating the price of 3D printing heat sinks requires consideration of the entire system integration level. Usually, due to the adoption of more efficient cooling schemes, expensive semiconductor devices can be reduced where design allows. IQ evolution's solution is to Use a micro heat sink with dual sided cooling capacity, with a single side cooling capacity of 700 W and a dual side cooling capacity of 1.4 kW. When using Semitop modules produced by manufacturer Semikron, only 3 IQ Bigs 53 need to be placed on 6 modules to provide the cooling capacity required for a 210 kW output. The overall volume of the system has been greatly reduced, with a weight reduction of approximately 20 times from around 10 kilograms to less than 500 grams, making it highly advantageous in weight sensitive applications.
According to the requirements of the solution, different metals and metal alloys can be used to make heat sinks during the 3D printing process. The requirements for heat resistance, thermal conductivity, cooling capacity, thermal expansion or conductivity determine the selection of radiator materials. If necessary, special alloys can be used or new metal combinations can be developed, or mixed components composed of multiple materials can be produced.
