Advanced thermal management IC test solutions

1 min read

Smiths Interconnect, a designer and manufacturer of IC Test Solutions for the Semiconductor Test industry, has announced enhancements to its Thermal Management Solutions product offering.

By using state-of-the-art system simulation models the company has been able to optimise each lid’s design for efficient heat dissipation through a variety of cooling mechanisms.

Traditional solutions including finned and liquid cooled heatsinks have been industry staples for many years but are limited in the amount of power they can support.

Smiths Interconnect has sort to refine these options by introducing a Hi-Perform Liquid Cooled lid integrated with a Chiller as well as a Heatpipe | Heatsink variant. These next generation solutions expand testing capabilities through the ability to dissipate 650W. These lids are able to stabilise the junction temperature within a desired range allowing for IC testing at a higher thermal power point for a longer duration resulting in a far more accurate test.

“As next generation logic IC packages, central processing units (CPU) and graphic processing units (GPU) become more powerful they are generating an exponentially increasing amount of heat,” explained Paul Harris, Sales & Marketing VP at Smiths Interconnect. “IC manufacturers and test houses must surmount thermal management challenges whilst maintaining low test costs, ensuring accurate test results and improving test throughput. Smiths Interconnect is positioned as a vital partner to meet these challenges with our thermal management solutions.”

The company's Thermal Management Solutions have been developed specifically to a user’s exact application and can provide a range of benefits, including:

  • Compatibility with conventional socket and lid-mounting design footprints allowing for simple conversion to an enhanced thermal management solution, therefore, increasing test accuracy.
  • Availability of a compact, table-top chiller unit consuming minimal space in a test lab.
  • Utilisation of existing test hardware, coolant mediums and air inlets, thereby requiring minimal investment for integration while reducing the overall cost of testing.