US20060101829A1 - Self-cooled vertical electronic component - Google Patents
Self-cooled vertical electronic component Download PDFInfo
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- US20060101829A1 US20060101829A1 US11/282,830 US28283005A US2006101829A1 US 20060101829 A1 US20060101829 A1 US 20060101829A1 US 28283005 A US28283005 A US 28283005A US 2006101829 A1 US2006101829 A1 US 2006101829A1
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
- H01L23/00—Details of semiconductor or other solid state devices
- H01L23/34—Arrangements for cooling, heating, ventilating or temperature compensation ; Temperature sensing arrangements
- H01L23/38—Cooling arrangements using the Peltier effect
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H10—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES; ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- H10N—ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- H10N10/00—Thermoelectric devices comprising a junction of dissimilar materials, i.e. devices exhibiting Seebeck or Peltier effects
- H10N10/10—Thermoelectric devices comprising a junction of dissimilar materials, i.e. devices exhibiting Seebeck or Peltier effects operating with only the Peltier or Seebeck effects
- H10N10/17—Thermoelectric devices comprising a junction of dissimilar materials, i.e. devices exhibiting Seebeck or Peltier effects operating with only the Peltier or Seebeck effects characterised by the structure or configuration of the cell or thermocouple forming the device
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
- H01L2924/00—Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
- H01L2924/0001—Technical content checked by a classifier
- H01L2924/0002—Not covered by any one of groups H01L24/00, H01L24/00 and H01L2224/00
Definitions
- the present invention relates to the cooling of electronic components. More specifically, the present invention relates to the cooling of a vertical monolithic circuit capable of conducting a one-way current entering or coming out through its rear surface.
- FIG. 1 is a simplified cross-section view of a vertical electronic component 1 made in monolithic form in a semiconductor substrate, or vertical monolithic circuit.
- Component 1 comprises a metallization 5 on a rear surface.
- a current flows through the component from one or several metallizations (not shown) formed on the front surface towards rear surface metallization 5 .
- metallization 5 is thermally connected to an element for carrying off the heat or heat sink 7 .
- Metallization 5 is generally electrically isolated from heat sink 7 by a thermally conductive element, generally a ceramic plate, a resin layer, or an isolating film 9 .
- the carrying off of the heat of heat sink 7 is performed by natural heat convection or by an airflow generated by a ventilator (not shown).
- a heat pipe area of small dimensions formed of an area comprising cavities in which a cooling fluid can flow, is sometimes formed in component 1 .
- Peltier coolers which enable cooling heat sources, are known.
- Such coolers are, for example, formed of elementary cells comprising thermoelectric elements of two opposite conductivity types N and P.
- FIG. 2 is a partial simplified cross-section view of the structure of a Peltier effect cell 10 on which is arranged a load to be cooled down.
- Cell 10 comprises a first N-type doped thermoelectric element 11 and a second P-type doped thermoelectric element 12 .
- First and second thermoelectric elements 11 and 12 are, for example, made of bismuth telluride (Bi 2 Te 3 ).
- Element 11 is selenium-doped (type N) while element 12 is doped with antimony (type P).
- Elements 11 and 12 are electrically connected in series and thermally connected in parallel. For this purpose, elements 11 and 12 are laterally isolated, electrically and thermally. Their front surfaces are connected to a same conductive wafer 14 .
- the rear surface of element 11 is integral with a metal plate 17 and the rear surface of element 12 is integral with a metal plate 18 .
- Plate 17 is connected to a current input terminal A.
- Wafer 18 is connected to a current output terminal B.
- a thermally conductive and electrically isolating plate 20 forms a tray on which a load to be cooled down can be laid.
- a thermally conductive and electrically isolating plate 22 thermally connects metallizations 17 and 18 to a heat sink 23 .
- the current flow direction is indicated by arrows in FIG. 2 .
- plate 14 becomes a cold source at a temperature on the order of ⁇ 10° C. for a current on the order of one ampere, while heat sink 23 becomes a hot source at a temperature from 30 to 50° C.
- Peltier coolers seem extremely attractive and exhibit at first sight many advantages with respect to conventional heat dissipation systems but have not found many practical applications except, possibly, to cool down devices under confined or dangerous atmosphere.
- One of their disadvantages is that they require an autonomous current source capable of providing a high current.
- the present invention aims at using such coolers in a manner adapted to the cooling of a vertical monolithic circuit.
- the present invention also aims at providing a system capable of self-adapting to the thermal power to be dissipated.
- the present invention provides placing against a vertical monolithic circuit a Peltier cooler so that the cold surface of the cooler is in thermal contact with the circuit and that the D.C. current flowing through the circuit also forms the current generating the Peltier effect.
- the assembly thus formed is a self-cooled electronic component.
- the cooler comprises an odd number of concentric regions of a thermoelectric semiconductor material, of alternate conductivity types, laterally isolated, and electrically connected in series, a surface of the central region corresponding to a first terminal, and an opposite surface of the external region corresponding to a second terminal.
- the cooler comprises three concentric regions: a central region of a first conductivity type; a ring-shaped region of a second conductivity type extending around the central region and being laterally electrically and thermally isolated from the central region; and a peripheral region of the first conductivity type extending around the ring-shaped region and being electrically and thermally laterally isolated from the ring-shaped region; the central, ring-shaped, and peripheral regions being of the same depth; the central and ring-shaped regions being thermally and electrically interconnected by a central metal plate on a first hot or cold surface of the cooler; and the ring-shaped and peripheral regions being thermally and electrically interconnected by a ring-shaped metal plate on a second cold or hot surface of the cooler.
- the central region is integral with a first current input/output metallization; and the peripheral region is integral with a second current input/output metallization, the first and second current input/output metallizations being formed on opposite surfaces of the cooler and being thermally and electrically isolated from the neighboring metal plate of interconnection of the central region to the ring-shaped region or of the ring-shaped region to the peripheral region.
- the surface areas of the central, ring-shaped, and peripheral regions are equal.
- the current coming from the circuit enters the cooler through the first metallization and comes out through the second metallization, the first conductivity type being type P and the second conductivity type being type N.
- a full-plate metallization extends over the entire surface of the system comprising the metal plate of interconnection of the central region to the ring-shaped region, and is electrically isolated form said interconnection metal plate.
- FIG. 1 illustrates, in a partial simplified cross-section view, a vertical monolithic component associated with a heat carry-off heat sink
- FIG. 2 illustrates, in a partial simplified cross-section view, a conventional Peltier cooler
- FIG. 3 illustrates, in partial simplified cross-section view, a system for cooling a vertical monolithic circuit according to an embodiment of the present invention
- FIG. 4 is a partial simplified top view of an internal portion of the structure of FIG. 3 observed in plane A-A;
- FIG. 5 is a simplified view of a self-cooled electronic component according to the present invention.
- FIG. 3 is a partial simplified cross-section view of a cooling system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
- the rear surface of a monolithic, vertical, one-way electronic component 30 comprises a current output metallization 31 .
- Metallization 31 rests on a planar surface having a central conductive portion 40 in electric and thermal contact with a region 51 of a cell of a Peltier cooler 50 .
- central portion 40 is a metal plate.
- the Peltier cooler comprises a central P-type region 51 , a ring-shaped N-type region 52 extending around central region 51 , and a peripheral P-type region 54 extending around ring-shaped region 52 .
- Central region 51 , ring-shaped region 52 , and peripheral region 54 are semiconductor regions of a thermoelectric semiconductor substrate.
- the upper and lower surfaces of central region 51 , ring-shaped region 52 , and peripheral region 54 are coplanar.
- Central region 51 is laterally thermally and electrically isolated from ring-shaped region 52 by an isolation wall 56 .
- Ring-shaped region 52 is laterally thermally and electrically isolated from peripheral region 54 by an isolation wall 57 .
- Central region 51 , ring-shaped region 52 , and peripheral region 54 are electrically connected in series and thermally connected in parallel two-by-two, as described hereafter in relation with FIG. 3 .
- Central region 51 is electrically and thermally connected to ring-shaped region 52 by a conductive plate 42 .
- Plate 42 is opposite to plate 40 of connection to metallization 31 of component 30 , for example, at the rear surface.
- a ring-shaped plate 44 electrically and thermally connects ring-shaped region 52 and peripheral region 54 .
- Ring-shaped plate 44 extends around central plate 40 and is electrically and thermally isolated therefrom by isolation wall 56 .
- Ring-shaped plate 44 is electrically isolated but thermally coupled to metallization 31 of component 30 by an isolation element 60 , for example, made of ceramics.
- the upper surface of isolating element 60 is coplanar with the upper surface of central plate 40 .
- peripheral region 54 is connected via an electrically and thermally conductive ring-shaped plate 46 to a rear surface metallization 48 of the cooling system.
- Plate 46 extends around plate 42 .
- Isolation wall 57 laterally isolates plate 42 from ring-shaped plate 46 thermally and electrically.
- An element 62 electrically isolates plate 42 from metallization 48 .
- Element 62 enables a thermal conduction between rear central portion 42 and metallization 48 .
- the dimensions of plates 42 and 46 and of element 62 are selected so that the front surface of metallization 48 in contact with plate 46 and element 62 is planar.
- the rear surface of metallization 48 may be connected to a heat sink.
- rear metallization 31 of component 30 , front metal plate 40 , rear plate 42 , front ring-shaped plate 44 , and rear ring-shaped 46 are made of copper or of a copper-based alloy.
- the individual surfaces of each of central region 51 , ring-shaped region 52 , and peripheral region 54 of the Peltier cooler are substantially equal.
- the values of these individual surfaces as well as the thickness of the above-mentioned regions will be selected, as will appear from what follows, according to the D.C. current that flows through component 30 .
- thermal and electric isolation walls 56 and 57 are thick isolators, for example, on the order of a few tens of ⁇ m.
- Thermally conductive electric isolators 60 , 62 , and 64 are thin isolators, for example, on the order of a few hundreds of ⁇ m.
- central region 51 , ring-shaped region 52 , and peripheral region 54 are formed in a bismuth telluride substrate, ring-shaped region 52 being a region doped with selenium and central region 52 and peripheral region 54 being doped with antimony.
- the operating temperature of vertical monolithic circuit 30 is then advantageously lowered and stabilized. This enables improving the circuit operation and increasing its lifetime.
- An advantage of the present invention is that the cooling system according to the present invention does not use a separate power supply.
- the different thicknesses of the elements forming the cooler are low and said cooler may advantageously be formed directly on the rear surface of the vertical monolithic one-way component with which it is associated.
- the cooler is formed separately from the vertical monolithic one-way component with which it is associated, after which they are joined by an appropriate technique, for example, by gluing or soldering.
- the present invention is likely to have various alterations, improvements, and modifications which will readily occur to those skilled in the art.
- it will be within the abilities of those skilled in the art to make any material and thickness modification necessary in a given technological process.
- it will be within the abilities of those skilled in the art to adapt the isolating materials to the desired electric or electric and thermal isolation function.
- thermoelectric substrate in which are formed central region 51 , ring-shaped region 52 , and peripheral region 54 , depends on the desired temperature decrease.
- a thickness on the order of from 5 to 20 micrometers would be enough.
- Substrates of such a thickness may be directly deposited on the rear surface of a vertical monolithic one-way component, for example, by a pulsed laser deposition.
- bismuth telluride has been described as a thermoelectric semiconductor element as a non-limiting example only.
- cooler according to the present invention could be turned over, its lower surface in the drawings being in electric contact by its periphery with the rear surface metallization of the vertical electronic circuit and the central portion of its upper surface in the drawings forming the second terminal of the self-cooled component.
- cooler with three concentric regions of alternate conductivity types of a thermoelectric semiconductor material, other numbers of regions and other arrangements may be selected by those skilled in the art to adapt to specific practical conditions.
- FIGS. 3 and 4 only those elements necessary to the understanding of the present invention have been described. In particular, it will be within the abilities of those skilled in the art to complete the structure of FIGS. 3 and 4 with any necessary element such as, for example, an airflow forced by a ventilation system.
- the present invention provides the forming of a self-cooled electronic component 70 , formed of a vertical monolithic circuit 30 and of a Peltier cooler 50 conducting a same current I, capable of being connected by conductors 71 and 72 to a circuit 74 .
- the one-way electronic component may be a one-way component by nature, for example, a diode or a thyristor. This may also be a bi-directional conduction element inserted in a circuit such that it can only conduct a current of a determined direction, for example, a resistor or another passive component connected to a circuit comprising a series diode.
- a possible connection between circuit 74 and a control terminal of component 30 has also been shown in FIG. 5 by a dotted line 75 .
- the present invention may also apply to the field of integrated circuits, for example, by providing for the rear surface to be metallized and to correspond to a terminal of the integrated circuit intended to be connected to an external supply or supply reference terminal.
- vertical monolithic circuit should be interpreted as covering any type of discrete or integrated component, active or passive, in which a current is extracted or introduced through the rear surface.
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- Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
- Condensed Matter Physics & Semiconductors (AREA)
- General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Computer Hardware Design (AREA)
- Microelectronics & Electronic Packaging (AREA)
- Power Engineering (AREA)
- Cooling Or The Like Of Semiconductors Or Solid State Devices (AREA)
Abstract
A self-cooled electronic component comprising a vertical monolithic circuit, in which the vertical monolithic circuit is electrically connected in series with a Peltier cooler so that the D.C. current flowing through the circuit supplies the cooler and in which the circuit and the cooler are placed against each other so that the cold surface of the cooler is in thermal contact with the circuit.
Description
- 1. Field of the Invention
- The present invention relates to the cooling of electronic components. More specifically, the present invention relates to the cooling of a vertical monolithic circuit capable of conducting a one-way current entering or coming out through its rear surface.
- 2. Discussion of the Related Art
- In monolithic electronic components or circuits, it is necessary to carry off the heat generated during operation. In particular, for semiconductor components with a junction, it is necessary to avoid changes in the temperature of the active junctions to guarantee stable operation characteristics.
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FIG. 1 is a simplified cross-section view of a vertical electronic component 1 made in monolithic form in a semiconductor substrate, or vertical monolithic circuit. Component 1 comprises ametallization 5 on a rear surface. A current flows through the component from one or several metallizations (not shown) formed on the front surface towardsrear surface metallization 5. To cool down the component,metallization 5 is thermally connected to an element for carrying off the heat or heat sink 7.Metallization 5 is generally electrically isolated from heat sink 7 by a thermally conductive element, generally a ceramic plate, a resin layer, or an isolating film 9. - The carrying off of the heat of heat sink 7 is performed by natural heat convection or by an airflow generated by a ventilator (not shown).
- To improve the heat carrying-off, a heat pipe area of small dimensions, formed of an area comprising cavities in which a cooling fluid can flow, is sometimes formed in component 1.
- In spite of this, for high-voltage one-way components such as diodes, transistors, or thyristors intended to operate at high powers on the order of several tens of watts or more, malfunctions can be observed. Such malfunctions are imputed to a drift in the characteristics (switching thresholds) as a result of a repeated heating of a component junction or area.
- Further, Peltier coolers, which enable cooling heat sources, are known. Such coolers are, for example, formed of elementary cells comprising thermoelectric elements of two opposite conductivity types N and P.
-
FIG. 2 is a partial simplified cross-section view of the structure of aPeltier effect cell 10 on which is arranged a load to be cooled down. -
Cell 10 comprises a first N-type dopedthermoelectric element 11 and a second P-type dopedthermoelectric element 12. First and secondthermoelectric elements Element 11 is selenium-doped (type N) whileelement 12 is doped with antimony (type P).Elements elements conductive wafer 14. The rear surface ofelement 11 is integral with ametal plate 17 and the rear surface ofelement 12 is integral with ametal plate 18.Plate 17 is connected to a current input terminal A. Wafer 18 is connected to a current output terminal B. At its front surface, a thermally conductive and electrically isolatingplate 20 forms a tray on which a load to be cooled down can be laid. At its rear surface, a thermally conductive and electrically isolatingplate 22 thermally connectsmetallizations heat sink 23. - In operation, a voltage such that
cell 10 conducts a current entering through terminal A and coming out through terminal B, that is, running from N-type element 11 to P-type element 12, is applied between terminals A and B ofcell 10. The current flow direction is indicated by arrows inFIG. 2 . Then,plate 14 becomes a cold source at a temperature on the order of −10° C. for a current on the order of one ampere, whileheat sink 23 becomes a hot source at a temperature from 30 to 50° C. - Peltier coolers seem extremely attractive and exhibit at first sight many advantages with respect to conventional heat dissipation systems but have not found many practical applications except, possibly, to cool down devices under confined or dangerous atmosphere. One of their disadvantages is that they require an autonomous current source capable of providing a high current.
- The present invention aims at using such coolers in a manner adapted to the cooling of a vertical monolithic circuit.
- The present invention also aims at providing a system capable of self-adapting to the thermal power to be dissipated.
- Generally, the present invention provides placing against a vertical monolithic circuit a Peltier cooler so that the cold surface of the cooler is in thermal contact with the circuit and that the D.C. current flowing through the circuit also forms the current generating the Peltier effect. The assembly thus formed is a self-cooled electronic component.
- According to an embodiment of the present invention, the cooler comprises an odd number of concentric regions of a thermoelectric semiconductor material, of alternate conductivity types, laterally isolated, and electrically connected in series, a surface of the central region corresponding to a first terminal, and an opposite surface of the external region corresponding to a second terminal.
- According to an embodiment of the present invention, the cooler comprises three concentric regions: a central region of a first conductivity type; a ring-shaped region of a second conductivity type extending around the central region and being laterally electrically and thermally isolated from the central region; and a peripheral region of the first conductivity type extending around the ring-shaped region and being electrically and thermally laterally isolated from the ring-shaped region; the central, ring-shaped, and peripheral regions being of the same depth; the central and ring-shaped regions being thermally and electrically interconnected by a central metal plate on a first hot or cold surface of the cooler; and the ring-shaped and peripheral regions being thermally and electrically interconnected by a ring-shaped metal plate on a second cold or hot surface of the cooler.
- According to an embodiment of the present invention, the central region is integral with a first current input/output metallization; and the peripheral region is integral with a second current input/output metallization, the first and second current input/output metallizations being formed on opposite surfaces of the cooler and being thermally and electrically isolated from the neighboring metal plate of interconnection of the central region to the ring-shaped region or of the ring-shaped region to the peripheral region.
- According to an embodiment of the present invention, the surface areas of the central, ring-shaped, and peripheral regions are equal.
- According to an embodiment of the present invention, the current coming from the circuit enters the cooler through the first metallization and comes out through the second metallization, the first conductivity type being type P and the second conductivity type being type N.
- According to an embodiment of the present invention, a full-plate metallization extends over the entire surface of the system comprising the metal plate of interconnection of the central region to the ring-shaped region, and is electrically isolated form said interconnection metal plate.
- The foregoing and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will be discussed in detail in the following non-limiting description of specific embodiments in connection with the accompanying drawings.
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FIG. 1 illustrates, in a partial simplified cross-section view, a vertical monolithic component associated with a heat carry-off heat sink; -
FIG. 2 illustrates, in a partial simplified cross-section view, a conventional Peltier cooler; -
FIG. 3 illustrates, in partial simplified cross-section view, a system for cooling a vertical monolithic circuit according to an embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 4 is a partial simplified top view of an internal portion of the structure ofFIG. 3 observed in plane A-A; and -
FIG. 5 is a simplified view of a self-cooled electronic component according to the present invention. - For clarity, the same elements have been designated with the same reference numerals in the different drawings and, further, as usual in the representation of integrated circuits, the various drawings are not drawn to scale.
-
FIG. 3 is a partial simplified cross-section view of a cooling system according to an embodiment of the present invention. - The rear surface of a monolithic, vertical, one-way
electronic component 30 comprises acurrent output metallization 31. -
Metallization 31 rests on a planar surface having a centralconductive portion 40 in electric and thermal contact with aregion 51 of a cell of a Peltiercooler 50. According to an aspect of the present invention,central portion 40 is a metal plate. - As also illustrated by the top view of
FIG. 4 , seen in plane A-A ofFIG. 3 , the Peltier cooler comprises a central P-type region 51, a ring-shaped N-type region 52 extending aroundcentral region 51, and a peripheral P-type region 54 extending around ring-shaped region 52.Central region 51, ring-shaped region 52, andperipheral region 54 are semiconductor regions of a thermoelectric semiconductor substrate. The upper and lower surfaces ofcentral region 51, ring-shaped region 52, andperipheral region 54 are coplanar.Central region 51 is laterally thermally and electrically isolated from ring-shaped region 52 by anisolation wall 56. Ring-shaped region 52 is laterally thermally and electrically isolated fromperipheral region 54 by anisolation wall 57. -
Central region 51, ring-shaped region 52, andperipheral region 54 are electrically connected in series and thermally connected in parallel two-by-two, as described hereafter in relation withFIG. 3 . -
Central region 51 is electrically and thermally connected to ring-shapedregion 52 by aconductive plate 42.Plate 42 is opposite to plate 40 of connection to metallization 31 ofcomponent 30, for example, at the rear surface. - At the front surface, a ring-shaped
plate 44 electrically and thermally connects ring-shapedregion 52 andperipheral region 54. Ring-shapedplate 44 extends aroundcentral plate 40 and is electrically and thermally isolated therefrom byisolation wall 56. Ring-shapedplate 44 is electrically isolated but thermally coupled tometallization 31 ofcomponent 30 by anisolation element 60, for example, made of ceramics. The upper surface of isolatingelement 60 is coplanar with the upper surface ofcentral plate 40. - At the rear surface,
peripheral region 54 is connected via an electrically and thermally conductive ring-shapedplate 46 to arear surface metallization 48 of the cooling system.Plate 46 extends aroundplate 42.Isolation wall 57 laterally isolatesplate 42 from ring-shapedplate 46 thermally and electrically. Anelement 62 electrically isolatesplate 42 frommetallization 48.Element 62, however, enables a thermal conduction between rearcentral portion 42 andmetallization 48. The dimensions ofplates element 62 are selected so that the front surface ofmetallization 48 in contact withplate 46 andelement 62 is planar. The rear surface ofmetallization 48 may be connected to a heat sink. - According to an embodiment of the present invention,
rear metallization 31 ofcomponent 30,front metal plate 40,rear plate 42, front ring-shapedplate 44, and rear ring-shaped 46 are made of copper or of a copper-based alloy. - According to an embodiment of the present invention, the individual surfaces of each of
central region 51, ring-shapedregion 52, andperipheral region 54 of the Peltier cooler are substantially equal. The values of these individual surfaces as well as the thickness of the above-mentioned regions will be selected, as will appear from what follows, according to the D.C. current that flows throughcomponent 30. - According to an embodiment to the present invention, thermal and
electric isolation walls electric isolators - According to an embodiment of the present invention,
central region 51, ring-shapedregion 52, andperipheral region 54 are formed in a bismuth telluride substrate, ring-shapedregion 52 being a region doped with selenium andcentral region 52 andperipheral region 54 being doped with antimony. - When vertical
monolithic circuit 30 operates, a current comes out of itsrear surface metallization 31. The current penetrates into the Peltier effect cell through central P-type region 51 from frontcentral plate 40 torear plate 42. It then passes fromrear plate 42 into ring-shapedregion 52 towards front ring-shapedplate 44. Finally, the current flows throughperipheral region 54 and comes out through rear ring-shapedplate 46 andmetallization 48. Under such conditions, the front surface of the system, that is,plates rear metallization 31 ofcomponent 30, and thus the junction or area thereof under heating. - The operating temperature of vertical
monolithic circuit 30 is then advantageously lowered and stabilized. This enables improving the circuit operation and increasing its lifetime. - An advantage of the present invention is that the cooling system according to the present invention does not use a separate power supply.
- According to an embodiment of the present invention, in the case of average powers to be dissipated, that is, when the current is on the order of from a few amperes to a few tens of amperes, the different thicknesses of the elements forming the cooler are low and said cooler may advantageously be formed directly on the rear surface of the vertical monolithic one-way component with which it is associated.
- According to an embodiment of the present invention, the cooler is formed separately from the vertical monolithic one-way component with which it is associated, after which they are joined by an appropriate technique, for example, by gluing or soldering.
- Of course, the present invention is likely to have various alterations, improvements, and modifications which will readily occur to those skilled in the art. In particular, it will be within the abilities of those skilled in the art to make any material and thickness modification necessary in a given technological process. Thus, it will be within the abilities of those skilled in the art to adapt the isolating materials to the desired electric or electric and thermal isolation function.
- Similarly, it will be within the abilities of those skilled in the art to adapt the used conductive materials to the used technological process. In particular, those skilled in the art will adapt the conductive material forming the different metallizations 31 and 48 and
conductive plates - It will also be within the abilities of those skilled in the art to adapt the dimensions, especially the surface area, and the doping levels of
central region 51, ring-shapedregion 52, andperipheral region 54, in particular according to the current constraints. It should be noted that the thickness of the thermoelectric substrate in which are formedcentral region 51, ring-shapedregion 52, andperipheral region 54, depends on the desired temperature decrease. In the considered example of a bismuth telluride substrate, a thickness on the order of from 5 to 20 micrometers would be enough. Substrates of such a thickness may be directly deposited on the rear surface of a vertical monolithic one-way component, for example, by a pulsed laser deposition. It should further be understood by those skilled in the art that bismuth telluride has been described as a thermoelectric semiconductor element as a non-limiting example only. - It should also be noted that the cooler according to the present invention could be turned over, its lower surface in the drawings being in electric contact by its periphery with the rear surface metallization of the vertical electronic circuit and the central portion of its upper surface in the drawings forming the second terminal of the self-cooled component. Further, although it is currently preferred to use a cooler with three concentric regions of alternate conductivity types of a thermoelectric semiconductor material, other numbers of regions and other arrangements may be selected by those skilled in the art to adapt to specific practical conditions.
- Further, only those elements necessary to the understanding of the present invention have been described. In particular, it will be within the abilities of those skilled in the art to complete the structure of
FIGS. 3 and 4 with any necessary element such as, for example, an airflow forced by a ventilation system. - Thus, the present invention, as illustrated in
FIG. 5 , provides the forming of a self-cooledelectronic component 70, formed of a verticalmonolithic circuit 30 and of aPeltier cooler 50 conducting a same current I, capable of being connected byconductors circuit 74. - The one-way electronic component may be a one-way component by nature, for example, a diode or a thyristor. This may also be a bi-directional conduction element inserted in a circuit such that it can only conduct a current of a determined direction, for example, a resistor or another passive component connected to a circuit comprising a series diode. A possible connection between
circuit 74 and a control terminal ofcomponent 30 has also been shown inFIG. 5 by a dottedline 75. The present invention may also apply to the field of integrated circuits, for example, by providing for the rear surface to be metallized and to correspond to a terminal of the integrated circuit intended to be connected to an external supply or supply reference terminal. A current substantially corresponding to the total current consumed by the integrated circuit when it is operating then enters or comes out through this rear surface metallization. Thus, in the following claims, term “vertical monolithic circuit” should be interpreted as covering any type of discrete or integrated component, active or passive, in which a current is extracted or introduced through the rear surface. - Such alterations, modifications, and improvements are intended to be part of this disclosure, and are intended to be within the spirit and the scope of the present invention. Accordingly, the foregoing description is by way of example only and is not intended to be limiting. The present invention is limited only as defined in the following claims and the equivalents thereto.
Claims (8)
1. A self-cooled electronic component comprising a vertical monolithic circuit electrically connected in series with a Peltier cooler so that a D.C. current flowing through the circuit supplies the cooler and wherein the circuit and the cooler are placed against each other so that the cold surface of the cooler is in thermal contact with the circuit, wherein the cooler comprises an odd number of concentric regions of a thermoelectric semiconductor material, of alternate conductivity types, laterally isolated, and electrically connected in series, a surface of a central region corresponding to a first terminal, and an opposite surface of an external region corresponding to a second terminal.
2. The self-cooled electronic component of claim 1 , wherein the cooler comprises three concentric regions:
a central region of a first conductivity type;
a ring-shaped region of a second conductivity type extending around the central region and electrically and thermally laterally isolated from the central region; and
a peripheral region of the first conductivity type extending around the ring-shaped region and electrically and thermally laterally isolated from the ring-shaped region;
the central, ring-shaped, and peripheral regions being of same depth;
the central and ring-shaped regions being thermally and electrically interconnected by a central metal plate on a first hot or cold surface of the cooler; and
the ring-shaped and peripheral regions being thermally and electrically interconnected by a ring-shaped metal plate on a second cold or hot surface of the cooler.
3. The self-cooled electronic component of claim 2 , wherein the central region is integral with a first current input/output metallization; and wherein the peripheral region is integral with a second current input/output metallization, the first and second current input/output metallizations being formed on opposite surfaces of the cooler and being thermally and electrically isolated from the neighboring metal plate of interconnection of the central region to the ring-shaped region or of the ring-shaped region to the peripheral region.
4. The self-cooled electronic component of claim 3 , wherein the surface areas of the central, ring-shaped, and peripheral regions are equal.
5. The self-cooled electronic component of claim 3 , wherein the current coming from the circuit enters the cooler through the first metallization and comes out through the second metallization, the first conductivity type being type P and the second conductivity type being type N.
6. The self-cooled electronic component of claim 3 , wherein a full-plate metallization extends over the entire surface of the system comprising the metal plate of interconnection of the central region to the ring-shaped region, and is electrically isolated form said metal interconnection plate.
7. A Peltier cooler adapted to the cooling of a circuit, comprising an odd number of concentric regions of alternate conductive types of a thermoelectric semiconductor material, these regions being laterally isolated and electrically connected in series, a surface of the central region corresponding to a first terminal, and an opposite surface of the external region corresponding to a second terminal.
8. The Peltier cooler of claim 7 , comprising:
a central region of a first conductivity type adapted to being placed against at least a portion of a main surface of the one-way component;
a ring-shaped region of a second conductivity type extending around the central region and being laterally electrically and thermally isolated from the central region; and
a peripheral region of the first conductivity type extending around the ring-shaped region and being electrically and thermally laterally isolated from the ring-shaped region;
the central, ring-shaped, and peripheral regions being of same depth;
the central and ring-shaped regions being thermally and electrically interconnected by a central metal plate on a first hot or cold surface of the cooler; and
the ring-shaped and peripheral regions being thermally and electrically interconnected by a ring-shaped metal plate on a second cold or hot surface of the cooler.
Priority Applications (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US12/550,578 US8166769B2 (en) | 2004-11-18 | 2009-08-31 | Self-cooled vertical electronic component |
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
FR0452671A FR2878077B1 (en) | 2004-11-18 | 2004-11-18 | VERTICAL ELECTRONIC COMPONENT AUTOREFROIDI |
FR04/52671 | 2004-11-18 |
Related Child Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
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US12/550,578 Division US8166769B2 (en) | 2004-11-18 | 2009-08-31 | Self-cooled vertical electronic component |
Publications (1)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
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US20060101829A1 true US20060101829A1 (en) | 2006-05-18 |
Family
ID=34952384
Family Applications (2)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
US11/282,830 Abandoned US20060101829A1 (en) | 2004-11-18 | 2005-11-18 | Self-cooled vertical electronic component |
US12/550,578 Expired - Fee Related US8166769B2 (en) | 2004-11-18 | 2009-08-31 | Self-cooled vertical electronic component |
Family Applications After (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
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US12/550,578 Expired - Fee Related US8166769B2 (en) | 2004-11-18 | 2009-08-31 | Self-cooled vertical electronic component |
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US (2) | US20060101829A1 (en) |
FR (1) | FR2878077B1 (en) |
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CN103311427A (en) * | 2012-03-07 | 2013-09-18 | 松下电器产业株式会社 | Thermoelectric conversion module and thermoelectric conversion apparatus |
US20140075960A1 (en) * | 2012-09-19 | 2014-03-20 | Chung Shan Institute Of Science And Technology, Armaments Bureau, M. N. D | Cooling Device For Electronic Components |
US20150075578A1 (en) * | 2012-04-27 | 2015-03-19 | Lintec Corporation | Thermoelectric conversion material and method for manufacturing same |
JP2018054433A (en) * | 2016-09-28 | 2018-04-05 | トヨタ自動車株式会社 | Inspection device |
CN110240114A (en) * | 2018-03-07 | 2019-09-17 | 泰雷兹公司 | Electronic system including MEMS and the box for encapsulating the MEMS |
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KR20130009442A (en) * | 2011-07-15 | 2013-01-23 | 삼성전기주식회사 | Thermoelectric module |
FR3000300B1 (en) | 2012-12-26 | 2015-02-27 | Commissariat Energie Atomique | INTEGRATED CIRCUIT AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING A CIRCUIT EQUIPPED WITH A TEMPERATURE PROBE |
US10852788B2 (en) | 2018-12-12 | 2020-12-01 | George Anthony Edwards | Computer component cooling device and method |
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Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
US20090314008A1 (en) | 2009-12-24 |
FR2878077A1 (en) | 2006-05-19 |
US8166769B2 (en) | 2012-05-01 |
FR2878077B1 (en) | 2007-05-11 |
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