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82 SMT007 MAGAZINE I MAY 2021 Article by Jeff Brandman AISMALIBAR NORTH AMERICA e omnipresent trend in power electron- ics for higher performance in smaller spaces requires a quick, effective, and cost-efficient heat transfer, within and out of, highly com- pact power modules. A well-designed, heat management concept from the beginning of a new design guarantees a longer lifetime of the electronic components and, by that, higher quality of the whole electronic power module. In numerous electronic applications, espe- cially in the field of power electronics, it is no longer sufficient to just transfer the heat generated by the electronic components to the ambient air via the printed circuit board. Instead, additional cooling of the components is required, which is achieved using an exter- nal, active, or passive cooled heat sink. e metal housing of the application is quite oen used to provide an additional cooling element for the power electronics. erefore, protection against accidental shock because of dielectric breakdown is required as an addi- tional safety precaution to guarantee personal protection. TIM dielectric eliminates or minimizes air inclusions to enable efficient heat transfer from the heat source to the heat sink. An efficient solution for the thermal and insulation chal- lenges in power electronics, both technically and commercially, can be found in an electri- Figure 1: Thermal coupling of a heat source (power module using banks of power components) through a TIM to an external heat sink is an important element in the entire cooling chain that needs to be considered in power electronics. (Source: Aismalibar)