Definition of Thermal Pad
Thermal Pad (thermally conductive or thermal interface pad) are a preformed square or rectangle of solid material (often silicone-based). These are commonly used underside of the heatsink to aid the conduction of heat away from the component being cooled (such as CPU or another chip) and into the heatsink.
The pad, and thermal compound in general, helps to fill air gaps caused by imperfectly flat or smooth surfaces which should be in thermal contact.
Product Categories
- According to the material bases:
+ Silicone based
The most commonly use Thermal Pad with its excellent feature of flexibility, temperature resistance and durability.
+ Non-silicone based
Avoid depositing silicone oil at room temperature, usually used in high-end medical equipment such as precision optics and LEDs. No volatiles to the optical window and will not contaminate the PCB. Otherwise, it is also used in many applications such as: IC, CPU, MOS, LED, M/B, P/S, Heat Sink, LCD-TV, Notebook PC, PC, Telecom Device, Wireless Hub, DDR II Module, DVD Applications, Hand-set applications, etc.
- According to the structure:
+ Thermal Pad with Adhesive
+ Thermal Pad Non-adhesive
Benefits of Thermal Pad over Thermal Paste
In comparation to Thermal Paste, the main advantage of the pads is that they are easier to place and replace. Since they are flexible in sizes – there’s no need to worry about overusing. Plus, there is no need to clean up the old dried-up paste from the heat spreader and the heatsink once it’s time to replace it.
Furthermore, the pads are pre-formed phase-change materials, meaning they have ability to change their physical characteristics. The pads easy to apply since they are firm at room temperature and flexible in sizes. They soften when temperatures rise to conform to both the processor and heatsink surfaces and fill any air gaps. As general rule, thermal pads are not as effective at removing heat as thermal paste, however, some CPU manufacturers do specify thermal pads with some of their processors.
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