Embedded Heat Pipes

Embedding Heat Pipes into a heat sink is an effective cooling alternative to heavy duty 'sinks or, in some cases, liquid cooled solutions by greatly enhancing heat sink performance with minimal design changes.

By embedding Heat Pipes into an aluminium or copper heat sink, Heat Pipes spread heat more evenly across the base of that heat sink, thus the thermal spreading resistance is reduced and thermal performance enhanced as a result.

For example, in the heat sink shown (below, centre) heat pipes were embedded under each of eight power amplifier modules. The heat pipes were 8mm diameter flattened into grooves in the heat sink base with a thermal epoxy at the interface. This approach reduced the thermal resistance of the heat sink by 50%.