Introduction Traditional handbook-based reliability prediction methods for electronic products include Mil-Hdbk-217, Telcordia SR-332 (formerly Bellcore), PRISM, FIDES, CNET/RDF (European), and the Chinese GJB-299. These methods rely on analysis of failure data collected from the field and assume that the components of a system have inherent constant failure rates that are … [Read more...]
LED Thermal Standardization: A Hot Topic
Introduction The main topic of the article is how to cope with the increasing need for standardization of thermal characterization of LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) and LED-based products (see Fig.1 showing a typical LED package). The LED-business is growing much faster than analysts predicted five years ago. Unfortunately, the progress in thermal characterization has not kept … [Read more...]
Numerical Simulation of Complex Submicron Devices
Introduction Significant increases in temperature are believed to contribute to losses in reliability and performance, and can present serious complications to thermal management. The net thermal effect depends on a combination of factors related to the feature size, power densities, and material properties. In semiconductor devices, higher heat flux densities can result from … [Read more...]
Estimating Temperatures in an Air-cooled Closed Box Electronics Enclosure
Introduction In the majority of air-cooling applications, openings or vents are provided in the enclosure or box in which the electronic components are housed. The required cooling air is drawn in from outside the box by fans or blowers. In some applications, however, there may be airborne particulates or other substances in the air that would be injurious to the electrical … [Read more...]
Hot Spots in Data Centers
Heat loads of data processing equipment continue to increase at a rapid rate. This increasing heat load has been documented by a Thermal Management Consortium of 17 companies [1] as shown in Figure 1. Also shown in this figure are measured heat fluxes (based on product footprint) of some recent product announcements. The most recent shows a rack dissipating 28,500 watts, … [Read more...]