Advanced graphite embedding capability for PCB thermal management
25 October 2023Editor's Choice
Manufacturing / Production Technology, Hardware & Services
Teledyne Labtech has announced a major new capability allowing the embedding of layers of synthetic graphite within RF and microwave PCBs. This provides weight savings for applications where size, weight, and power (SWaP) are key.
Heat management is a significant concern in many aerospace defence and space applications where SWaP are key attributes. Gallium nitride (GaN) solid state power amplifiers (SSPAs) are examples of increasingly common devices that benefit from careful heat management. This new technique allows efficient conduction of heat away from such devices, saving system weight and increasing their lifetime. Managing waste heat is a significant problem in today’s electronic systems, impacting reliability and requiring added expense and weight to control effectively. In the latest consumer mobile phones, it is common to employ sheets of self-adhesive synthetic graphite on top of critical semiconductor devices to conduct waste heat from small areas.
Aerospace, defence, and space applications require more precision, repeatability and area of coverage. To address this, Teledyne Labtech has developed a method of embedding thin layers of synthetic graphite inside the structure of the host PCB reliably, saving size and weight, while increasing the lifetime of active devices by permitting operation at cooler temperatures.
“Synthetic graphite is one quarter the mass of copper, and transfers heat four times more efficiently in the X-Y plane,” said John Priday, CTO of Teledyne Labtech. “Replacing PCB ground plane layers with graphite in critical applications such as T/R modules can cause devices to run up to 20°C cooler in our testing.”
Labtech has also demonstrated that thermal copper layers can be replaced with the new graphite technique, while experiencing minimal impact on the passage of microwave signals on grounding layers.
Reliable power solution Conical Technologies
Power Electronics / Power Management
The Mibbo MLD-120W-xxVx is a robust DIN-rail mounted DC-DC converter with a 120 W output capacity specifically designed for industrial and automation applications.
Read more...From the editor's desk: Is the current AI really what we want? Technews Publishing
Editor's Choice
The companies that develop LLMs need to change direction and concentrate on freeing up our time, not so that we can have more time to do the tasks we don’t want to do in the first place, but rather to allow us more time to do what we love.
Read more...ICs vs modules: Understanding the technical trade-offs for IoT applications NuVision Electronics
Editor's Choice DSP, Micros & Memory
As the IoT continues to transform industries, design decisions around wireless connectivity components become increasingly complex with engineers often facing the dilemma of choosing between ICs and wireless modules for their IoT applications.
Read more...Why bis means business for LTE Cat 1 IoT connections NuVision Electronics
Editor's Choice Telecoms, Datacoms, Wireless, IoT
Tomaž Petaros, product manager IoT EMEA at Quectel Wireless Solutions explains why the market for Cat 1bis IoT connections is getting busy.
Read more...Test cable designed for maximum ruggedness Conical Technologies
Interconnection
The Anoison PT test cable is designed for maximum ruggedness using a high-quality raw cable, connector, and smart armouring module.
Read more...Accelerating AI adoption in MCU manufacturing
Editor's Choice AI & ML
To gain the value of ML functionality, designers of MCU-based devices have to adopt a new development method and accept a new type of probabilistic rather than deterministic output.
printer friendly version