Micro Flat Heat Pipes for Microelectronics Cooling: Review

A review of recent patents and academic articles on micro flat heat pipes over the past decade is presented herein. Firstly, the development history of the mathematical models of the micro flat heat pipes is chronologically summarized. Then, some major investigations in the micro flat heat pipes, both experimental and theoretical, are summed up. Besides, some innovative ideas and novel micro flat heat pipe designs for particular applications are also documented along with comparisons and discussion on various cross-sectional shapes and designs of wick structure, such as grooves, sintered powders, nanotubes and their combinations. Finally, the challenges in the research of micro flat heat pipes are discussed briefly and the development tendency is prospected according to the existing achievements. Keywords: Electronics cooling, high heat flux, micro flat heat pipe, modeling, novel designs, wick structure.