Ultra-Precision Metal Additive Manufacturing for Thermal Management of Microelectronics

Thermal management of microelectronic devices is an ongoing technological challenge that directly affects device-level and system-level performance and reliability [1]. The fundamental process of electron transport in a transistor device results in dissipation of heat. This causes temperature rise, which in turn limits device performance. For most semiconductor devices, performance goes down with increasing temperature due to reduced charge carrier mobility [2]. Several reliability concerns are also encountered at high temperature. Most semiconductor technologies have a specified peak temperature that the devices are capable of withstanding.