ABSTRACT
The most popular device used for first-generation desktop computer cooling is the “active” heat sink. The currently used version consists of a small aluminum heat sink on which a small fan (e.g., 60 mm diameter) is mounted. Such a heat sink of 60 × 80 mm plan area has been found adequate to remove up to approximately 100 W. The device has evolved since it was first used with the Pentium processor. The major changes have been in the physical size of the heat sink and fan, and in use of a copper “heat spreader” to spread the heat from the ever decreasing Central Processor Unit (CPU) size. As a result of smaller CPU size and increased power, the heat flux at the CPU has significantly increased. This has resulted in great improvements of thermal interface material (TIM).
