Quantifying Burn-In of Phase Change Thermal Interface Materials

(16:20 + Q&A) Anastasia Patterson, Qnity Electronics — Phase change materials (PCMs) are the thermal interface materials of choice when an application calls for both superior thermal and reliability performance. To achieve both, PCMs need to have the right combination of capabilities: first to be “burned in” during installation (to make good contact with the substrates and thin down to a minimum bondline), and second to remain in place without pumping out over thousands of cycles during the lifetime of the device. In manufacturing, the consistent success of the burn-in process is crucial to achieving high yields and reduce rework time, yet every customer’s application and process is different. How do we engineer a material to meet all of these requirements, and test that material to ensure it delivers good performance consistently? We have developed a test vehicle that closely mimics real-world applications to evaluate the performance of TIMs under different assembly and operating conditions. One of the primary objectives of this tester is to ensure that it accurately represents customer applications, incorporating features such as a smart silicon die. Additionally, the tester is engineered to simulate not only typical operating/assembly conditions but also extreme thermal scenarios. Testing using this dual capability guarantees that the phase change material can perform optimally under a wide range of thermal conditions, enhancing reliability and performance in real-world applications. Using this test vehicle as a tool, we developed a new phase change material with lower burn-in temperatures that delivers the same long-term reliability that is expected of our Tpcm™ 7000 product: Tpcm™ 7000Plus.
Anastasia Patterson is a Lead Scientist in R&D at Qnity, DuPont Electronics, where she leads the phase change material platform within Laird Performance Materials. Her expertise is in polymer systems design and characterization, with prior experience at DuPont in optical film development for display and image sensing applications. She received her Ph.D. in Materials from UC Santa Barbara, and B.S. in Chemistry from Harvey Mudd College.

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