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Published on: December 5, 2025
Metal-Level Thermally Conductive yet Soft Graphene Thermal Interface Materials
Wen Dai1,2, Tengfei Ma3, Qingwei Yan1
1Key Laboratory of Marine Materials and Related Technologies, Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Marine Materials and Protective Technologies , Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering (NIMTE), Chinese Academy of Sciences , Ningbo 315201 , China.
Researchers developed a novel graphene monolith thermal interface material (TIM). This advanced material offers metal-level thermal conductivity and silicone-like compressibility, significantly improving electronic system cooling efficiency.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Nanotechnology
- Thermal Engineering
Background:
- Electronics require advanced thermal interface materials (TIMs) for dense integration of high-power devices.
- Existing TIMs face a trade-off between high thermal conductivity (metals) and compressibility (silicones).
- Soft materials with metal-level thermal conductivity are crucial for efficient heat dissipation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a novel TIM with both high through-plane thermal conductivity and good compressibility.
- To address the challenge of interfacial heat transfer in advanced electronic systems.
- To create a graphene-based material surpassing conventional TIM performance.
Main Methods:
- Fabrication of a graphene-based microstructure using mechanical machining.
- Manipulation of graphene paper's stacked architecture to create vertical and horizontal graphene layers.
- Characterization of thermal conductivity and compressive modulus of the synthesized material.
Main Results:
- Achieved ultrahigh through-plane thermal conductivity of 143 W m-1 K-1.
- Obtained a low compressive modulus of 0.87 MPa, comparable to silicones.
- Demonstrated a 3x increase in system cooling efficiency compared to commercial TIMs.
Conclusions:
- The developed graphene monolith effectively solves interfacial heat transfer issues in electronic systems.
- This material offers a promising solution for advanced TIM applications requiring high thermal performance and flexibility.
- The novel microstructure design enables superior thermal management capabilities.
