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54 DESIGN007 MAGAZINE I FEBRUARY 2019 Electrolube's Jade Bridges offers more advice about which product type you should select and use based on a thorough appraisal of the assem- bly, its application and environmental limita- tions, and the problems that are likely to arise during production. She also offers two golden rules to help you avoid those costly mistakes. Selecting the right type of thermal man- agement method that will suit a particular electronic assembly and its predicted oper- ating conditions is far from easy. There are a number of stages in the selection process that you should consider taking before you decide upon a particular material or material format, whether paste or pad. In this column on achieving effective thermal management of electronic assemblies, I will revisit our trusted question-and-answer format to bring you some essential pointers, beginning with a few cau- tionary notes on pain points—the occasional pangs of agony you will have to face during the decision-making process. 1. What key pain points are associated with thermal management products? Well, where do I begin? There are a host of materials and methods out there to choose from, and they serve a variety of purposes depending upon the physical constraints of the application, its environmental considerations, the severity of duty, component layout, assem- bly geometry, etc. When choosing an appropriate product, a first question to ask yourself is, "What data can be relied upon?" Certainly, there are some excellent technical data sheets out there that any self-respecting supplier will have taken great care to produce accurately and in good faith. But do you really know what thermal con- ductivity you will need, for example? And do you know how much material will be needed in the interface between component and heat sink to achieve a thermally stable assembly? Think about the practicalities and how you intend to apply the material. Will it be manual Thermal Management Materials: Golden Rules for Product Selection Sensible Design by Jade Bridges, ELECTROLUBE