GPU Heat Dissipation Core: Full Analysis of Ziitek's Three Commonly Used Thermal Interface Materials (TIM)

GPU Heat Dissipation Core: Full Analysis of Ziitek's Three Commonly Used Thermal Interface Materials (TIM)

The full utilization of GPU performance cannot be achieved without the support of a thermal management system. The thermal interface material (Thermal Interface Material, abbreviated as TIM), as the key core in the thermal conduction path, although hidden within the device, directly determines the heat dissipation efficiency and the long-term stability of the equipment. Ziitek will systematically analyze the three types of thermal interface materials commonly used in GPU heat dissipation scenarios, and explore their core advantages and typical applications, providing reference for relevant selection and design.

I. Thermal Conductive Silicone Film: The Main Choice for General Adaptation
The thermal conductive silicone film is one of the widely used TIM types in current GPU modules and server graphics cards for thermal management. It is made of organic silicone rubber as the base material, with conductive fillers such as aluminum oxide, boron nitride, and magnesium oxide added, and it possesses excellent flexibility, compressibility, and excellent electrical insulation properties. It can meet the requirements of most common cooling scenarios.

Core advantages:
- Excellent compressibility, capable of flexibly adapting to different assembly clearances and tolerance ranges, enhancing interface adhesion;
- High electrical insulation level, allowing direct attachment to electronic components, ensuring safe and reliable use and reducing the risk of short circuits;
- Supports automated assembly processes, suitable for mass production, improving manufacturing efficiency;
- Strong long-term stability, unlikely to experience failure issues such as overflow or cracking under normal conditions, with a long service life.

Typical applications:
GPU core module, graphics memory (VRAM) cooling, power inductor heat dissipation, server GPU array cluster, auxiliary cooling for regular desktop graphics cards.

II. Thermal Conductive Paste: A High Heat Conductivity Medium for High-Power Scenarios
Thermal conductive paste (also known as thermal paste) is a paste-like thermal conductive medium. With excellent wetting properties and interface infiltration capabilities, it can tightly fill the microscopic gaps between components and heat sinks, achieving low contact thermal resistance and being the core choice for short-term heat dissipation of high-power GPUs.

Core Advantages
- Outstanding thermal conductivity, suitable for the heat dissipation requirements of high-power GPUs;
- Can be applied as an ultra-thin coating, with low thermal resistance, improving heat transfer efficiency and reducing heat accumulation;
- Excellent short-term high-temperature stability, capable of stably handling heat dissipation conditions such as GPU full-load operation.

Typical Applications
High-performance desktop GPU cores, AI acceleration cards, GPU systems with liquid cooling architectures, professional graphics workstation graphics cards.

III. Thermal Conductive Adhesive: A New All-Round Material for High-End Scenarios
Thermal conductive adhesive is a new type of TIM material that has rapidly gained popularity in the high-end thermal management field in recent years. It combines the high thermal conductivity of thermal conductive paste with the structural stability of thermal conductive silicone sheets. It exists in a semi-solid state and possesses core characteristics such as being able to be dispensed, self-healing, having low volatility, and low stress. It is suitable for the complex heat dissipation requirements of high GPUs.

Core Advantages
- Excellent fluidity, capable of automatically filling irregular or complex interface gaps without the need for manual pre-treatment;
- Strong long-term reliability, not prone to cracking, pumping out, or volatilization under harsh conditions such as high temperatures and vibrations;
- Supports automated dispensing processes, suitable for intelligent manufacturing lines, improving production accuracy and efficiency;
- Stable low thermal resistance performance, capable of long-term adaptation to continuous high-temperature conditions, meeting the continuous heat dissipation requirements of high GPUs.

Typical Applications
Data center GPU server modules, vehicle-mounted GPU computing platforms, industrial AI computing devices, and GPU cooling systems for autonomous driving systems.

With the rapid development of AI computing platforms and autonomous driving technologies, the application scenarios of high-power GPUs continue to expand, and the requirements for thermal management are also constantly upgrading. As the core component of the cooling system, thermal interface materials are evolving towards higher thermal conductivity, lower thermal resistance, better environmental adaptability, and longer service life. Reasonable selection and accurate matching of scenarios are necessary to fully unleash the performance of GPUs and lay a solid foundation for thermal management in various computing applications.