SBIR Phase I: A Novel Heat Dissipation Product for Chip Testing and Internet of Things

这个小型企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力与半导体在过去几十年中经历的晶体管密度的显著增加密切相关。这使得从高性能服务器到物联网设备的许多技术进步成为可能。尽管如此，随着芯片技术的每一次进步，与芯片冷却相关的痛点继续增加。传统的热界面材料（TIM）解决方案，特别是在高温应用中，达不到要求。TIM有三个主要的细分市场：聚合物复合材料、金属材料和相变材料。商用碳纳米管（CNT）将创造第四个细分市场，取代现有的TIM，最初是在芯片测试市场，最终扩展到服务器、高性能计算和物联网设备。CNT研究人员和小企业在商业TIM产品方面进展甚微。除其他因素外，这种故障是由于在拥挤的低成本TIM空间中定位不佳造成的，目前该空间主要由导热油脂和导热垫主导。迈向可行解决方案的进展在于产品功能与行业痛点的战略一致性。小型企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目小型企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目旨在开发一种创新的碳纳米管（CNT）基热界面材料（TIM），该材料在高温应用中具有化学稳定性和低热阻。第一阶段SBIR的主要重点是一种耐用、可替代和低电阻的热界面材料，这将改变芯片测试市场。为此，将为芯片测试市场开发一种TIM，该TIM可以在2,000次热机械循环中保持其热性能，这是TIM中燃烧的预期使用寿命的几倍。此外，CNT-聚合物复合材料TIM将能够在其预期寿命期间无缝地适应模具尺寸的变化。最后，该技术将提供行业领先的热阻，为最终过渡到服务器、高性能计算和物联网市场的竞争做准备。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is intimately tied to the significant increase in transistor density that semiconductors have experienced over the past few decades. This has enabled many technological advances ranging from high performance servers to Internet of Things devices. Still with every advance in chip technology the pain points related to chip cooling continue to increase. Conventional thermal interface material (TIM) solutions, particularly in high temperature applications, fall short. Three major TIM market segments exist: polymer composites, metallic materials and phase-change materials. Commercial carbon nanotubes (CNT) will create a fourth market segment that will supplant existing TIMs, initially in the chip testing market and eventually extending into servers, high performance computing and Internet of Things devices. CNT researchers and small businesses have made little progress towards a commercial TIM product. Among other factors, this failure is driven by poor positioning in the crowded low-cost TIM space, which is currently dominated by thermal greases and pads. Progress towards a viable solution lies in the strategic alignment of product features with industry pain points. This Phase 1 SBIR aims to develop a CNT based thermal interface material capable of capturing this chip testing product opportunity.This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project aims to develop an innovative carbon nanotube (CNT) based thermal interface material (TIM) that demonstrates chemical stability and low thermal resistance in high temperature applications. The primary focus of this Phase I SBIR is a durable, fungible, and low resistance thermal interface material that will be transformative to the chip testing market. To this end, a TIM will be developed for the chip testing market that can maintain its thermal performance over 2,000 thermo-mechanical cycles - an extension of several multiples of the expected service life of a burn in TIM. Furthermore the CNT-polymer composite TIM will be capable of seamlessly accommodating changes in die size during its expected lifetime. Finally, the technology will deliver industry leading thermal resistances in preparation for an eventual transition to competition in the server, high performance computing and Internet of Things market.