Systems and methods for cooling an electronic device
View Patent ↗Systems and methods for cooling electronic devices via enhanced thermal conduction in the gap separating an electronic device from a heat sink are provided. In one embodiment, a system for cooling an electronic device comprises: a heat sink spaced from the integrated circuit by a gap; and a bubbler and an atomizer configured to feed a mixture comprising an atomized liquid and a carrier gas to the gap.
1. A system for cooling an electronic device, the system comprising: a heat sink spaced apart from the electronic device by a gap; and the heat sink configured to introduce one or more feedstreams into the gap, the one or more feedstreams comprising a mixture of micro liquid droplets that are initially atomized within a carrier gas; wherein a weight fraction of the atomized liquid droplets relative to the carrier gas, and a flow rate of the one or more feedstreams are such that first regions of the gap are occupied by the mixture of micro liquid droplets remaining atomized within the carrier gas, and second regions of the gap are occupied by liquid bumps formed form a coalescence of micro liquid droplets that are no longer atomized; and wherein; the first regions of the gap are occupied by the mixture of micro liquid droplets remaining atomized within the carrier gas corresponds to regions of greater distance between the electronic device and the heat sink, with respect to the second regions of the gap occupied by the liquid bumps formed form the coalescence of micro liquid droplets that are no longer atomized.
2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the weight fraction of the atomized liquid droplets relative to the carrier gas is less than about 1%.
3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the weight fraction of the atomized liquid droplets relative to the carrier gas is less than about 0.2%.
4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the flow rate of the one or more feedstreams is less than about 10 cc/min.
5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the micro liquid droplets have a dimension of less than about 2 micrometers.
6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the micro liquid droplets have a dimension of less than about 1 micrometer.
7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the micro liquid droplets comprise one or more of: water, methanol, ethanol, propanol, acetone, polymeric materials, and combinations thereof.
8. The system of claim 1 , wherein the carrier gas is an inert material comprising one or more of: helium, argon, hydrogen, nitrogen, and combinations thereof.
9. The system of claim 8 , wherein the carrier gas has a mean free path less than about 0.2 micrometers.
10. The system of claim 8 , wherein the carrier gas has a mean free path less than about 0.15 micrometers.
11. The system of claim 1 , further comprising:
a bubbler containing liquid used to produce the micro liquid droplets, the bubbler having the carrier gas input thereto;
an atomizer in fluid communication with the bubbler, the atomizer receiving a saturated carrier gas stream as an input thereto, the saturated carrier gas stream comprising the carrier gas saturated with the liquid used to produce the micro liquid droplets, wherein the atomizer combines the saturated carrier gas stream with an atomized liquid spray to produce the one or more feedstreams.
12. The system of claim 11 , further comprising one or more vacuum systems configured to remove liquid and gas materials from the gap.
13. A method of cooling an electronic device, the method comprising: introducing one or more feedstreams into a gap between a heat sink and the electronic device, the one or more feedstreams comprising a mixture of micro liquid droplets that are initially atomized within a carrier gas; wherein a weight fraction of the atomized liquid droplets relative to the carrier gas, and a flow rate of the one or more feedstreams are such that first regions of the gap are occupied by the mixture of micro liquid droplets remaining atomized within the carrier gas, and second regions of the gap are occupied by liquid bumps formed form a coalescence of micro liquid droplets that are no longer atomized; and;
the first regions of the gap are occupied by the mixture of micro liquid droplets remaining atomized within the carrier gas corresponds to regions of greater distance between the electronic device and the heat sink, with respect to the second regions of the gap occupied by the liquid bumps formed form the coalescence of micro liquid droplets that are no longer atomized.
14. The method of claim 13 , wherein the weight fraction of the atomized liquid droplets relative to the carrier gas is less than about 1%.
15. The method of claim 13 , wherein the weight fraction of the atomized liquid droplets relative to the carrier gas is less than about 0.20%.
16. The method of claim 13 , wherein the flow rate of the one or more feedstreams is less than about 10 cc/min.
17. The method of claim 13 , wherein the micro liquid droplets have a dimension of less than about 2 micrometers.
18. The method of claim 13 , wherein the micro liquid droplets have a dimension of less than about 1 micrometer.
19. The method of claim 13 , wherein the micro liquid droplets comprise one or more of: water, methanol, ethanol, propanol, acetone, polymeric materials, and combinations thereof.
20. The method of claim 13 , wherein the carrier gas is an inert material comprising one or more of: helium, argon, hydrogen, nitrogen, and combinations thereof.
21. The method of claim 20 , wherein the carrier gas has a mean free path less than about 0.2 micrometers.
22. The method of claim 20 , wherein the carrier gas has a mean free path less than about 0.15 micrometers.
23. The method of claim 13 , further comprising:
configuring a bubbler containing liquid to produce the micro liquid droplets, the bubbler having the carrier gas input thereto;
configuring an atomizer in fluid communication with the bubbler, the atomizer receiving a saturated carrier gas stream as an input thereto, the saturated carrier gas stream comprising the carrier gas saturated with the liquid used to produce the micro liquid droplets, wherein the atomizer combines the saturated carrier gas stream with an atomized liquid spray to produce the one or more feedstreams; and
configuring one or more vacuum systems to remove liquid and gas materials from the gap.