Natural-graphite-sheet based heat sinks

Novel staggered plate fin heat sinks made of natural graphite sheets are presented and their performance is demonstrated via a direct comparison with aluminum. Measurements in a simple wind tunnel with a diode acting as a heat source show that the junction-to-ambient thermal resistance of the graphite heat sink is 31% lower when no electrically insulating thermal interface material (TIM) is used due to the lower thermal contact resistance (TCR). This offers a possibility to eliminate thermal grease in applications where electrical insulation is not required. With TIM both graphite and aluminum perform comparably. The graphite heat sink was less than half the weight of the aluminum one.