Nanotubes could improve thermal management in electronics

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Red graph lines show the temperature of a bare chip as increased power is applied while blue lines show the reduced temperatures of a chip equipped with a carbon nanotube cooling structure (pictured in the background). Solid and dashed lines represen ...
Red graph lines show the temperature of a bare chip as increased power is applied, while blue lines show the reduced temperatures of a chip equipped with a carbon nanotube cooling structure (pictured in the background). Solid and dashed lines represent experimental and computational results, respectively. Both natural and forced convection conditions are noted. Credit: Rensselaer/Robert Vajtai

As the electronics industry continues to churn out smaller and slimmer portable devices, manufacturers have been challenged to find new ways to combat the persistent problem of thermal management. New research published in the March 19 issue of Applied Physics Letters suggests that carbon nanotubes may soon be integrated into ever-shrinking cell phones, digital audio players, and personal digital assistants to help ensure the equipment does not overheat, malfunction, or fail.


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