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A new colloidal thermal interface material (TIM) promises to significantly outperform commercially available liquid metals such as Thermalright, Thermal Grizzly and Coollaboratory products. Researchers from the Cockrell School of Engineering, part of the University of Texas, summarize their new invention as a mechanochemical mixture of Galinstan alloy and ceramic aluminum nitride. Ultimately, the new TIM can outperform the best commercial alternatives to liquid metals by between 56% and 72%, emphasizes Golem.de.

According to the researchers, the new TIM could reduce the cost and complexity of energy-intensive cooling systems. “The power consumption of cooling infrastructure in energy-intensive data centers and other large electronic systems is skyrocketing,” noted Guihua Yu, professor in the Walker Department of Mechanical Engineering in the Cockrell School of Engineering and Texas Materials Institute. “This trend is not going to dissipate anytime soon, so it is essential to develop new methods, like the material we created, for efficient and sustainable cooling of devices operating at kilowatt levels and even higher power .” The scientists then point out that around 40% of a data center’s energy costs are spent on cooling.

A key cooling performance number shared by the researchers is that the new TIM can reduce the energy required for the cooling pump by 65%. Its performance is such that it “can enable sustainable cooling in energy-intensive applications, from data centers to aerospace, paving the way for more efficient and environmentally friendly technologies,” Kai said Wu, lead author from Yu’s lab. This should be an interesting solution in AI data centers.

The major difference with this new TIM lies in the way in which it is transformed into a colloidal substance by mechanochemistry. Basically, a liquid metal alloy called Galinstan (gallium, indium and tin) is mixed with microscopically dispersed insoluble particles of ceramic aluminum nitride. A mechanochemical technique ensures optimal dispersion of the ceramic in the liquid metal, which gives it attractive thermal properties.

Golem.de, which appears to have accessed the full scientific article, notes that the researchers “achieved heat transfer resistances that were between 56 and 72 percent lower than those of the best liquid metals.”

Not surprisingly, Texas-based experts see the new thermal material as a great solution for power-hungry data centers. However, their awareness of commercially available liquid metal TIM products that are popular among computer enthusiasts are encouraging – they should hasten the arrival of new colloidal TIM in the hands of Tom’s material readers. In other words, we hope that researchers’ mention of brands like Thermal Grizzly will mean that the manufacturing method and ingredients of this new TIM can be commercially licensed sooner rather than later.