IP Library Granted Patent US 12,538,458
Granted Patent B2
US 12,538,458 · App. 17/110,068 · Granted Jan 27, 2026

Cold plate system interface for liquid cooled devices

Inventors: Timothy Glen Hanna (Tigard, OR); Suchismita Sarangi (Hillsboro, OR); Carl D. Williams (Hillsboro, OR); Jordan Johnson (Albany, OR); Juan G. Cevallos Palomeque (Portland, OR); Mark E. Sprenger (Tigard, OR); Peipei Ding (Taipei, TW); Christian Amoah-Kusi (Portland, OR); Sean T. Sivapalan (Portland, OR); Rithi S. Soeung (Hillsboro, OR); Curtis A. Valentine (Scappoose, OR)
Assignee: Intel Corporation
H05K7/20772H05K7/20254H01L23/473
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,538,458
App. No.
17/110,068
Granted
Jan 27, 2026
Kind
B2
Abstract

An apparatus is described. The apparatus includes a cold plate. The ruler factor cold plate is to receive heat from semiconductor chips of a electronic component that is to be plugged into an electronic system. The cold plate has at least one of: a) a linearly advancing physical interface, the linearly advancing physical interface to make physical contact with a corresponding linearly advancing physical interface of a cooling component of the electronic system, the physical contact to create a thermal path from the cold plate to the cooling component; b) first fingers on a first face of the cold plate to make spring-force thermal contact with the semiconductor chips of the electronic component and second fingers on an opposite second face of the cold plate to make spring-force thermal contact with the respective semiconductor chips of another, neighboring electronic component.

Claims (29)

1 . An apparatus, comprising:

a cold plate, the cold plate to receive heat from semiconductor chips of a first electronic component and a second electronic component that is to be plugged into an electronic system; and

first fingers on a first face of the cold plate to make spring-force thermal contact with package lids of semiconductor chips of the first electronic component and second fingers on a second face of the cold plate to make spring-force thermal contact with package lids of semiconductor chips of the second electronic component, wherein the first and second fingers have a cantilever structure, wherein a first region of a finger of the first fingers is raised relative to a second region of the finger wherein the second region makes physical contact with the cold plate, and wherein the first region is to make thermal contact with one or more of the package lids of the semiconductor chips of the first electronic component; and

a fluidic channel, the fluidic channel having a cooled fluid input channel and a warmed fluid output channel that emanate from the cold plate, wherein ends of the fluidic channel are to face fluidic connectors of the electronic system that the cooled fluid input and warmed fluid output channels are to respectively couple to, wherein one of the cooled fluid input channel and the warmed fluid output channel comprises a first threaded region capable of engaging with a first rotating nut of the fluidic connectors of the electronic system, and wherein another of the cooled fluid input channel and the warmed fluid output channel comprises a second rotating nut capable of engaging with a second threaded region of the fluidic connectors of the electronic system.

2 . The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the cold plate is mounted to the fluidic connectors of the electronic system.

3 . The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the first electronic component is a solid state drive.

4 . The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the cold plate comprises a first half and a second half, wherein the first half has one half of the fluidic channel and the second half has another half of the fluidic channel, and wherein the first half and the second half are sealed together to form the fluidic channel.

5 . An electronic system, comprising:

an interface to a rack, the interface to the rack comprising liquid ports to receive/send liquid from/to the rack;

a motherboard;

electronic receptacles to receive corresponding electronic connectors of a plurality of electronic components;

a cold plate, the cold plate to receive heat from a first electronic component of the plurality of electronic components, wherein the cold plate is to be located between the first electronic component of the plurality of electronic components and a second electronic component of the plurality of electronic components;

first fingers on a first face of the cold plate that make spring-force thermal contact with package lids of semiconductor chips of the first electronic component of the plurality of electronic components wherein the first fingers have a cantilever structure, wherein a first region of a finger of the first fingers is raised relative to a second region of the finger, wherein the second region makes physical contact with the cold plate, and wherein the first region makes thermal contact with one or more of the package lids of semiconductor chips of the first electronic component of the plurality of electronic components; and

a liquid cooling component, the liquid cooling component comprising: an interface to the cold plate that places the cold plate between the first electronic component of the plurality of electronic components and the second electronic component of the plurality of electronic components wherein the interface to the cold plate includes fluidic connectors that are to couple to a cooled fluid input channel and a warmed fluid output channel that emanate from the cold plate, wherein one of the cooled fluid input channel and the warmed fluid output channel comprises a first threaded region capable of engaging with a first rotating nut of the interface of the liquid cooling component, and wherein another of the cooled fluid input channel and the warmed fluid output channel comprises a second rotating nut capable of engaging with a second threaded region of the interface of the liquid cooling component.

6 . The electronic system of claim 5 wherein the cold plate is mounted to fluidic connectors of the liquid cooling component.

7 . The electronic system of claim 5 wherein the plurality of electronic components are solid state drives.

8 . The electronic system of claim 5 wherein the liquid cooling component further comprises fluidic channels.

9 . The electronic system of claim 5 wherein the motherboard comprises a processor semiconductor chip.

10 . The apparatus of claim 5 wherein the cold plate comprises a first half and a second half, wherein the first half comprises one half of a fluidic channel and the second half comprises another half of the fluidic channel, and wherein the first half and the second half are sealed together to form the fluidic channel.

11 . A data center, comprising:

multiple racks mounted with multiple electronic systems that are at least partially interconnected with optical communication channels, wherein, the multiple racks comprise a rack mounted with electronic systems of the multiple electronic systems and liquid running to/from the electronic systems of the multiple electronic systems under the control of a controller, wherein, at least one of the electronic systems of the multiple electronic systems comprises:

an interface to the rack, the interface comprising liquid ports to receive/send at least a portion of the liquid from/to the rack;

a motherboard;

electronic receptacles to receive corresponding electronic connectors of a plurality of electronic components;

a cold plate, the cold plate to receive heat from a first electronic component of the plurality of electronic components, wherein the cold plate is located between the first electronic component and a second electronic component of the plurality of electronic components;

first fingers on a first face of the cold plate that make spring-force thermal contact with semiconductor chips of the first electronic component, wherein the first fingers have a cantilever structure, wherein a first region of a finger of the first fingers is raised relative to a second region of the finger, and wherein the second region makes physical contact with the cold plate; and

a liquid cooling component, the liquid cooling component comprising: an interface to the cold plate that places the cold plate between the first electronic component of the plurality of electronic components and the second electronic component of the plurality of electronic components wherein the liquid cooling component includes channels for fluid flow, wherein the liquid cooling component includes fluidic connectors that are coupled to a cooled fluid input channel and a warmed fluid output channel that emanate from the cold plate, and wherein the liquid cooling component is fluidically coupled to the liquid ports, wherein one of the cooled fluid input channel and the warmed fluid output channel comprises a first threaded region capable of engaging with a first rotating nut of the interface of the liquid cooling component, and wherein another of the cooled fluid input channel and the warmed fluid output channel comprises a second rotating nut capable of engaging with a second threaded region of the interface of the liquid cooling component.

12 . The data center of claim 11 wherein the plurality of electronic components are solid state drives.

13 . The apparatus of claim 11 wherein the cold plate comprises a first half and a second half, wherein the first half comprises one half of a fluidic channel and the second half comprises another half of the fluidic channel, and wherein the first half and the second half are sealed together to form the fluidic channel.

Assignments (1)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Dec 2, 2020
From: HANNA, TIMOTHY GLEN; SARANGI, SUCHISMITA; WILLIAMS, CARL D.; JOHNSON, JORDAN; CEVALLOS PALOMEQUE, JUAN G.; SPRENGER, MARK E.; DING, PEIPEI; AMOAH-KUSI, CHRISTIAN; SIVAPALAN, SEAN T.; SOEUNG, RITHI S.; VALENTINE, CURTIS A.
To: INTEL CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 054575/0542 →
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20210127529A1 · Apr 29, 2021
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