Silicon-based micro oscillating heat pipes for thermal management of components for HEP experiments and space applications

by Timothee Frei (EPFL - Ecole Polytechnique Federale Lausanne (CH))

Wednesday 23 Jun 2021, 11:00 → 12:00 Europe/Zurich

CERN

High-energy physics (HEP) experiments and space missions share a common challenge: thermal management in harsh environments. The severe constraints in both fields make cooling of electronic components a major design concern. High thermal conductivity, radiation hard devices are developed for thermal management in HEP and space application with the help of micro-technologies.

Continuous advances in micro-engineering have opened the door to the development of smaller and more efficient cooling devices capable of handling increasing power densities with minimum mass and volume penalties. In this respect, previous works have focused on the use of micro-channels etched in single crystal silicon (ScSi) wafers to circulate a cooling fluid. However, whilst this technique represents the state-of-the-art for thermal management of silicon detectors, it poses several challenges, particularly those associated with the fluidic interconnections, compatibility with high operating pressures and coverage of large areas. A cooling scheme relying on two independent fluidic loops is proposed to overcome these limitations. The two cooling loops, referred to as the primary and the secondary cooling loops (i.e. PCL and SCL respectively), are connected through thermal and mechanical interfaces but do not share any fluidic interface. Both circuits work together to remove heat and control the temperature of multiple electronic components. The SCL transfers the heat generated at the source to the PCL, which transports it further away and dissipates it to the environment.

The project investigates the use of micro-oscillating heat pipes (μOHPs )as secondary cooling loops. These devices offer great potential, particularly if embedded in silicon substrates. However, a better understanding of the mechanisms responsible for their self-actuated, two phase flow is essential to produce high performance devices which meet the stringent requirements of particle detectors and spacecraft.

20210623_DT_training_v1.pdf