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Cooling Power Op Amps
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Cooling Power Op Amps
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The article outlines the advantages of active cooling as compared to passive heat sinks in reducing the volume and weight of power op amps in industrial applications. The relative reliability of passive vs. active cooling is summarized. The advantages of pre-assembled amplifier and heat sink combinations are illustrated. Unless your equipment is in outer space all cooling is ultimately accomplished by convection. In outer space there is no air so cooling is accomplished by radiation, but back here on earth the heat collected by whatever means is ultimately dumped into a cooler atmosphere. Liquids, for example, may carry heat away from power devices but in the end the heat passes through a radiator where cool outside air carries away the heat of the liquid. In a passive heat sink the heat generated in the power device is initially conducted through the metal body of the heat sink but convection eventually carries the heat from the heat sink fins to the atmosphere. True, back here on earth, there is a component of cooling resulting from radiation (and that's why passive heat sinks are black, to simulate black body radiation) but overwhelmingly heat is carried away by convection.

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Heat sinks are thermally conductive, usually metallic components or devices that absorb and dissipate heat generated by electronic components such as computers. Common heat sink materials include aluminum, copper, and steel.
CPU fans and coolers are integrated fans and heat sink assemblies packaged to provide optimum cooling performance, often for specific processors.
Thermoelectric coolers are solid-state heat pumps used in applications where temperature stabilization, temperature cycling, or cooling below ambient levels are required.
Heat pipes are self-contained heat pumps that can transport heat at high rates over fairly substantial distances with no external pumping power.
Coolant systems pump liquids to cool and lubricate workpieces and cutting tools.
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Product Announcements
Degree Controls, Inc. - New Center for Airflow & Thermal Technologies
Degree Controls, Inc. is pleased to introduce the Center for Airflow & Thermal Technologies, commonly known as "CATT". Located in Milford, New Hampshire, CATT offers a wide range of thermal management... (read more)
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Passive Optical Brightness Enhancement for Flat Panel LCD, OLED & Plasma Monitors... (read more)
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Value Engineered Products, Inc. - Heat Sinks - Design & Manufacturing Considerations
Heat sinks function by efficiently transferring thermal energy from an object at high temperature to a second object at a lower temperature with a much greater heat capacity There are many things to... (read more)
STACI - Thermal Management Solutions
Thermal Management Solutions from STACI - As systems become increasingly powerful and packaging becomes smaller, the need to dissipate heat becomes more important to the reliability and... (read more)
General Digital Corporation - Flat Panel Display Brightness Enhancements
As more and more displays find their way into outdoor applications, the need becomes far greater for them to not only be able to withstand severe temperature extremes (heat and cold) and solar... (read more)
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Topics of Interest
Thermal testing has proven that natural convection cooling is not adequate for today's smaller, high power density enclosures. Heat dissipation by forced convection (fan cooling) is the most... (Read More)
T. T. Lam, The Aerospace Corporation, El Segundo, California. G. C. Birur, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California. P. Bhandari, Jet Propulsion... (Read More)
The article covers the electrical considerations for connecting the cooling fan of Power Amp Design power op amps to the signal circuits. All of the power op amps currently produced by Power Amp... (Read More)
There are various types of thermal resistance, such as heat transfer resistance, thermal resistance due to convection, thermal resistance due to radiation, and contact thermal resistance, though heat... (Read More)
Chapter List Chapter 5: Radiant Coolers Chapter 6: Cryogenic Radiator Designs and Comparative Performance L. CrawfordITT Industries, Fort Wayne, Indiana. Overview A radiant cooler... (Read More)
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