Efficient Single-Phase Cooling Techniques for Durable Power Electronics Module

This study explores the feasibility of single phase liquid channel cooling, pin fin cooling and spray cooling techniques for heat removal from a power electronic substrate. The substrate is formed using an AlN layer directly bonded to an AlSiC heat sink with a copper circuit layer. With a comparative assessment of the three cooling techniques using analytical modeling, the heat transfer coefficient and pressure drop in the package are optimized for a fixed coolant pumping power. Computational simulations of the three optimized geometries are performed to estimate the device temperatures and the maximum heat rates that can be dissipated with this pumping power. It is concluded that channel cooling yields the best thermal management performance and its use is recommended in the development of a packaged assembly.