SBIR Phase I: Ultra-High-Efficiency Thermal Interface Materials Based on Self-Aligned Graphene Fillers

这个小企业创新研究第一阶段项目旨在展示一种革命性的新型热界面材料（TIM）和工业环境中TIM分散的创新技术。高效的热管理是半导体和通信技术进一步发展的最重要要求之一。不断增长的散热密度需要新型的TIMs来从设备和芯片封装中散热。通过石墨烯片的新型功能化，可以实现导热性的增强，石墨烯片可以作为TIM基质中的填料。石墨烯的导热性是所有已知材料中最高的。该项目将有助于更好地理解含石墨烯填料的复杂复合材料中的热传输，并阐明纳米颗粒表面功能化对填料和基体之间热耦合的影响。该项目的智力贡献将超越热管理，并影响其他领域，将纳米结构统一起来，以提高先进材料的功能和性能。预计开发的石墨烯增强TIMs的热导率值将超过市售TIMs的一个数量级。该项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力源于创建一个更高效的TIM的重要性，该TIM具有在热管理方面取得革命性进步的潜力。拟议的石墨烯增强技术预计将在5亿美元的TIM市场产生革命性的变化。功能化石墨烯填料实现更好的散热，将对电子和汽车工业、通信、光伏发电、航空航天和国防部门产生持久的积极影响。所提出的技术通过提供更强的导热性增强和相应的热阻降低，以及工业上可行的TIM分散工艺，超越了竞争对手。最后，先进的、具有成本效益的tim将有助于保持国内在信息处理和通信等战略重要领域的技术领先地位。

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project aims at demonstration of a revolutionary new thermal interface material (TIM) and innovative technology for TIM dispersion in industrial environments. Efficient thermal management is one of the most important requirements for further progress in semiconductor and communications technologies. Growing densities of dissipated heat require new types of TIMs for heat removal from devices and chip packages. Strong enhancement of the thermal conductivity will be achieved via a novel functionalization of graphene flakes, which act as fillers in the TIM matrix. Graphene has the highest thermal conductivity of any known material. The project will lead to a better understanding of thermal transport in complex composites with graphene fillers and clarify the effect of nanoparticle surface functionalization on thermal coupling between the filler and matrix. The project's intellectual contributions will go beyond thermal management and impact other fields that unitize nanostructures for increased functionality and performance of advanced materials. It is expected that the graphene-enhanced TIMs to be developed will have the thermal conductivity values exceeding those of the commercially available TIMs by an order of magnitude. The broader impact/commercial potential of this project originates from the crucial importance of creating a more efficient TIM with the potential for a revolutionary advancement in thermal management. The proposed graphene-enhanced technology is expected to produce a transformative change in the $500 million TIM market. Better heat removal enabled by functionalized graphene fillers will produce a lasting positive effect on the electronic and automotive industries, communications, photovoltaic energy generation, and aerospace and defense sectors. The proposed technology surpasses the competition by offering much stronger enhancement in thermal conductivity with a corresponding reduction in thermal resistance, and an industrially feasible TIM dispersion process. Finally, the availability of superior, cost-effective TIMs will help to preserve domestic technological leadership in the strategically important areas of information processing and communications.