– Successful demonstration of “thermoinductive effect” and expectations for application of advanced thermal control –
Researchers) OKAWA Kenjiro, Researcher, AMAGAI Yasutaka, Senior Researcher, FUJIKI Hiroyuki, Deputy Director of the Research Institute, KANEKO Nobu-Hisa, Prime Senior Researcher, Applied Electrical Standards Group, Research Institute for Physical Measurement
- Theoretical elucidation of the “thermoinductive effect” in which heat flow occurs locally and temporarily in the direction opposite to the temperature difference at both ends of a material
- Demonstration through precision electrical measurement of the validity of an analytical formula derived from the heat conduction equation
- Expected to contribute to technology for local cooling and heat dissipation of electrical components by controlling the current waveform
Conceptual diagram of “thermoinductive effect” of this research (left) and results of proof-of-principle experiment (right)
Increasing heat generation density is recently becoming an issue due to miniaturization and densification of electronic devices. Advanced thermal control technology is demanded for local cooling and heat dissipation in places where heat concentrates inside electronic devices. Thermal circuit design that likens the flow of heat inside a device to an electrical circuit is an important fundamental technology for suppressing performance degradation due to thermal fatigue and securing component life and safety.
AIST researchers clarified for the first time that the “thermoinductive effect”, in which heat flow occurs locally and temporarily in the direction opposite to the temperature difference at both ends of a material.
This research theoretically analyzed the flow of heat in solid materials due to electric current based on the heat conduction equation, and clarified from the exact solution the conditions for manifestation of the “thermoinductive effect” in which heat flow in the direction opposite to the temperature difference at both ends of a material occurs in the center part of the material at a given moment. Furthermore, theory-based optimization of the current frequency enabled demonstration of the “thermoinductive effect” in thermoelectric materials.
This achievement opens a path to unprecedented local thermal control technology for solid materials. Application is expected to efficient local cooling and heat dissipation technology for places where heat concentrates such as inside small and integrated electronic components, which was previously a challenge.