Thermal performance and reliability characterization of bonded interface materials (BIMs)

Abstract

Thermal interface materials (TIMs) are an important enabler for low thermal resistance and reliable electronics packaging for a wide array of applications. There is a trend towards bonded interface materials (BIMs) because of their potential for low thermal resistance (<;1 mm2-K/W). However, due to coefficient of thermal expansion mismatches between various layers of a package, thermomechanical stresses are induced in BIMs and the package can be prone to failures and integrity risks. Deteriorated interfaces can result in high thermal resistance in the package and degradation and/or failure of the electronics. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's (DARPA) Thermal Management Technologies (TMT) Program has addressed this challenge, supporting the development of mechanically compliant, low resistivity nano-thermal interface (NTI) materials. Prior development of these materials resulted in samples that met DARPA's initial thermal performance and synthesis metrics. In this present work, we describe the testing procedure and report the results of thermal performance and reliability characterization of an initial sample set of three different NTI-BIMs tested at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.