Thermal transistor

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10866039-B2
Application number	US-201816231992-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 25, 2018
Priority date	Dec 28, 2017
Publication date	Dec 15, 2020
Grant date	Dec 15, 2020

Abstract

A thermal transistor is provided. The thermal transistor includes a metallic thermal conductor, a non-metallic thermal conductor, and a thermal resistance adjusting unit. The metallic thermal conductor and the non-metallic thermal conductor are contact with each other to form a thermal interface. The thermal resistance adjusting unit is configured to generate an bias voltage U12 between the metallic thermal conductor and the non-metallic thermal conductor.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A thermal transistor, comprising: a metallic thermal conductor, a non-metallic thermal conductor, and a thermal resistance adjusting unit;
the metallic thermal conductor and the non-metallic thermal conductor are in contact with each other to form a thermal interface; wherein a material of the non-metallic thermal conductor is buckypaper with a density ranging from 1.2 g/cm 3 to 1.3 g/cm 3 ; and
the thermal resistance adjusting unit is configured to generate a bias voltage U12 between the metallic thermal conductor and the non-metallic thermal conductor.

2. The thermal transistor of claim 1 , wherein a thickness of the metallic thermal conductor ranges from 0.1 mm to 1 mm.

3. The thermal transistor of claim 1 , wherein a material of the metallic thermal conductor is selected from the group consisting of copper, aluminum, iron, gold, silver, and alloy thereof.

4. The thermal transistor of claim 1 , wherein the metallic thermal conductor and the non-metallic thermal conductor are disposed in a sealed space.

5. The thermal transistor of claim 1 , wherein the metallic thermal conductor and the non-metallic thermal conductor are disposed in a vacuum environment.

6. The thermal transistor of claim 1 , wherein the bias voltage U12 ranges from −3V to 3V.

7. The thermal transistor of claim 1 , wherein the thermal resistance adjusting unit comprises a voltage source electrically connected to each of the metallic thermal conductor and the non-metallic thermal conductor; the voltage source is configured to control electric potentials between the metallic thermal conductor and the non-metallic thermal conductor.

8. The thermal transistor of claim 7 , wherein the thermal resistance adjusting unit further comprises: a first control unit electrically connected to the voltage source, the first control unit comprises a memory storing a mapping table of the bias voltage U12 versus interfacial thermal resistance.

9. The thermal transistor of claim 1 , wherein the metallic thermal conductor comprises a first surface and a second surface; the non-metallic thermal conductor comprises a third surface and a fourth surface; the first surface and the third surface are in direct contact with each other to form the thermal interface.

10. The thermal transistor of claim 9 , wherein each of the second surface and the fourth surface is thermally connected to a heat source or thermal device.

Assignees

• Univ Tsinghua
• Hon Hai Prec Ind Co Ltd

Inventors

• Duan Zheng
• Liu Chang-Hong
• Fan Shou-Shan

Classifications

• H10K10/40

  Organic transistors · CPC title

• F28F13/16 Primary

  by applying an electrostatic field to the body of the heat-exchange medium · CPC title

• H10K85/221 Primary

  Carbon nanotubes · CPC title

• F28F2255/20

  with nanostructures · CPC title

• F28C3/005

  one heat-exchange medium being a solid (F28C3/10 takes precedence) · CPC title