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A heat sink (or heatsink) is an environment or object that absorbs and dissipates heat from another object using thermal contact (either direct or radiant). Heat sinks are used in a wide range of applications wherever efficient heat dissipation is required; major examples include refrigeration, heat engines, cooling electronic devices and lasers.
Principle
Heat sinks function by efficiently transferring thermal energy ("heat") from an object at a relatively high temperature to a second object at a lower temperature with a much greater heat capacity. This rapid transfer of thermal energy quickly brings the first object into thermal equilibrium with the second, lowering the temperature of the first object, fulfilling the heat sink's role as a cooling device. Efficient function of a heat sink relies on rapid transfer of thermal energy from the first object to the heat sink, and the heat sink to the second object.
The most common design of a heat sink is a metal device with many fins. The high thermal conductivity of the metal combined with its large surface area due to the fins result in the rapid transfer of thermal energy to the surrounding, cooler, air. This cools the heat sink and whatever it is in direct thermal contact with. Use of fluids (for example coolants in refrigeration) and thermal interface material (in cooling electronic devices) ensures good transfer of thermal energy to the heat sink. Similarly a fan may improve the transfer of thermal energy from the heat sink to the air by moving cooler air between the fins.
Performance
Heat sink performance (including free convection, forced convection, liquid cooled, and any combination thereof) is a function of material, geometry, and overall surface heat transfer coefficient. Generally, forced convection heat sink thermal performance is improved by increasing the thermal conductivity of the heat sink materials, increasing the surface area (usually by adding extended surfaces, such as fins or foam metal) and by increasing the overall area heat transfer coefficient (usually by increase fluid velocity, such as adding fans, pumps, et cetera).
Explanation
In common use, it is a metal object brought into contact with an electronic component's hot surface — though in most cases, a thin thermal interface material mediates between the two surfaces. Microprocessors and power handling semiconductors are examples of electronics that need a heat sink to reduce their temperature through increased thermal mass and heat dissipation (primarily by conduction and convection and to a lesser extent by radiation). Heat sinks are widely used in electronics, and have become almost essential to modern integrated circuits like microprocessors, DSPs, GPUs, and more.
Construction and materials
A heat sink usually consists of a base with one or more flat surfaces and an array of comb or fin-like protrusions to increase the heat sink's surface area contacting the air, and thus increasing the heat dissipation rate. While a heat sink is a static object, a fan often aids a heat sink by providing increased airflow over the heat sink — thus maintaining a larger temperature gradient by replacing the warmed air more quickly than passive convection achieves alone — this is known as a forced air system.
Heat sinks are made from a good thermal conductor such as copper or aluminum alloy. Copper (401 W/(m·K) at 300 K) is significantly heavier and more expensive than aluminum (237 W/(m·K) at 300 K) but is also roughly twice as efficient as a thermal conductor. Aluminum has the significant advantage that it can be easily formed by extrusion, thus making complex cross-sections possible. The heat sink's contact surface (the base) must be flat and smooth to ensure the best thermal contact with the object needing cooling. Frequently, a thermally conductive grease is used to ensure optimal thermal contact; such grease usually contains ceramic materials such as beryllium oxide and aluminium nitride, but may alternatively contain finely divided metal particles, e.g. colloidal silver.[1] Further, a clamping mechanism, screws, or thermal adhesive hold the heat sink tightly onto the component to maximize thermal conductivity, but specifically without pressure that would crush the component.
PC marketplace
Due to recent technological developments and public interest, the retail heat sink market has reached an all time high. In the early 2000s, CPUs were produced that emitted more heat than ever before, escalating requirements for quality cooling systems.[citation needed]
Overclocking has always meant greater cooling needs, and the inherently hotter chips meant more concerns for the enthusiast. Efficient heat sinks are vital to overclocked computer systems because the higher a microprocessor's cooling rate, the faster the computer can operate without instability; generally, faster operation leads to higher performance. Many companies, including ThermalTake, Cooler Master, and Zalman, now compete to offer the best heat sinks for PC overclocking enthusiasts.
In soldering
Temporary heat sinks were sometimes used while soldering circuit boards, preventing excessive heat from damaging sensitive nearby electronics. In the simplest case, this means partially gripping a component using a heavy metal crocodile clip, hemostat or similar clamp. Modern semiconductor devices, which are designed to be assembled by reflow soldering, can usually tolerate soldering temperatures without damage. On the other hand, electrical components such as magnetic reed switches can malfunction if exposed to higher powered soldering irons, so this practice is still very much in use.
