Thermal Modeling of a Microchannel Heatsink

Thermal management has become a critical aspect of today’s electronic systems, which often include many high-performance circuits that dissipate large amounts of heat. Many of these components require efficient cooling to prevent overheating. Some of these components, such as processors, require a heat sink with cooling fins that are exposed to forced air from a fan. This discussion develops the model of an aluminum microchannel heat sink whose manifolds work as flow dividers to improve its cooling performance.

This example models the temperature distribution in a microchannel heat sink mounted on an active electronic component. The model includes both Nonisothermal fluid flow and an energy balance to describe the conduction and convection.