International Business Machines Corporation

Eric J Kastberg

Eugene R Atwood

Joseph Angelo Benenati

Horatio Quinones

Karl Joseph Puttlitz

James J Dankelman

Jeffrey Allen Zitz

A heat sink in a heat transfer relationship with a substrate such as an integrated chip, chip carrier, or other electronic package. The heat sink is connected to a frame which is connected to a printed circuit board or other suitable support on which the substrate is positioned. The heat sink, which extends through an aperture in the frame is coupled to a surface of the substrate. The heat sink is mechanically decoupled from the substrate. Large heat sinks may be thermally connected to surface mount substrates mounted using technologies such as ceramic ball or column grid arrays, plastic ball or column grid arrays, or solder balls or columns. The heat sink is attached coaxially through the aperture to the substrate. After assembly and lead/tin or other metallic surface mount interconnects are relaxed such that the substrate and is completely supported by the frame and the heat sink imparts zero or nearly zero downward force. Because the heat sink moves freely within the aperture during assembly, the heat sink package is useful for a variety of different substrates. Preferably, the frame is a plate and a plurality of studs. The plate material are selected to match the thermal expansion of the underlying support, and the stud material matched the thermal expansion of the substrate. Thus, the frame construction allows matching expansion and contraction of the assembly to the underlying substrate and support.

Zero force heat sink

A ring shaped pressure plate is provided in a socket and land grid array module assembly for urging the module into electrical contact. The ring shaped pressure plate is not only readily removable but it also engages a land grid array module in a fashion which reduces stress to chip, chip underfill, chip lid, and chip thermal paste structures. In an alternate embodiment of the present invention, pressure is applied in a similar manner except that lockably engageable arms supporting pressure rails on opposite sides of the module are employed. Both embodiments reduce stress and provide a land grid array engagement mechanism which is readily removable and which also provide a central opening or central portion access to chip module components for purposes of cooling such as by providing direct attachment to heat sinks or indirect attachment to heat sinks through heat spreaders.

Universal land grid array socket engagement mechanism

A heat sink is placed in a heat transfer relationship with a substrate such as an integrated chip, chip carrier, or other electronic package, without imparting stressful forces to the substrate by connecting the heat sink to a frame which is connected to a support such as a printed circuit board or other suitable carrier on which the substrate is positioned. The heat sink extends through an aperture in the frame and is in heat transfer relationship with a surface of the substrate; however, it is mechanically decoupled from the substrate. The invention has particular application in thermally connecting large heat sinks to substrates that are surface mounted on the support using technologies such as ceramic ball or column grid arrays, plastic ball or column grid arrays, or solder balls or columns. In order to provide intimate contact between the substrate and the heat sink, the heat sink must be depressed coaxially through the aperture of the frame against a surface of the substrate and then secured by, for example, gluing while in contact with the surface. However, this downward force imparted by the heat sink is quickly reduced via relaxation of the lead/tin or other metallic elements of the surface mount. A heat sink in a heat transfer relationship with a substrate such as an integrated chip, chip carrier, or other electronic package. The heat sink is connected to a frame which is connected to a printed circuit board or other suitable support on which the substrate is positioned. The heat sink, which extends through an aperture in the frame is coupled to a surface of the substrate. The heat sink is mechanically decoupled from the substrate. Large heat sinks may be thermally connected to surface mount substrates mounted using technologies such as ceramic ball or column grid arrays, plastic ball or column grid arrays, or solder balls or columns. The heat sink is attached coaxially through the aperture to the substrate. After assembly and lead/tin or other metallic surface mount interconnects are relaxed such that the substrate and is completely supported by the frame and the heat sink imparts zero or nearly zero downward force. Because the heat sink moves freely within the aperture during assembly, the heat sink package is useful for a variety of different substrates. Preferably, the frame is a plate and a plurality of studs. The plate material are selected to match the thermal expansion of the underlying support, and the stud material matches the thermal expansion of the substrate. Thus the frame construction allows matching expansion and contraction of the assembly to the underlying substrate and support.

Growing community of inventors

Orange County, NY, United States of America

Eric J Kastberg