Highly Ordered BN⊥-BN⊥Stacking Structure for Improved Thermally Conductive Polymer Composites

The substantial heat generation in modern electronic devices is one of the major issues requiring efficient thermal management. This work demonstrates a novel concept for the design of thermally conducting networks inside a polymer matrix for the development of highly thermally conductive composites. Highly ordered hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) structures are obtained utilizing a freeze-casting method. These structures are then thermally sintered to get a continuous network of BN perpendicular to-BN(perpendicular to)of high thermal conductivity in which a polymer matrix can be impregnated, enabling a directional and thermally conducting composite. The highest achieved thermal conductivity (K) is 4.38 W m(-1)K(-1)with a BN loading of 32 vol%. The effect of sintering temperatures on theKof the composite is investigated to optimize connectivity and thermal pathways while maintaining an open structure (porosity approximate to 2.7%). The composites also maintain good electrical insulation (volume resistivity approximate to 10(14) omega cm). This new approach of thermally sintering BN perpendicular to-BN(perpendicular to)aligned structures opens up a new avenue for the design and preparation of filler alignment in polymer-based composites for improving the thermal conductivity while maintaining high electrical resistance, which is a topic of interest in electronic packaging and power electronics applications.