Thermal Conductivity Stability of Interfacial in Situ Al₄C₃ Engineered Diamond/Al Composites Subjected to Thermal...

The stability of the thermal properties of diamond/Al composites during thermal cycling is crucial to their thermal management applications. In this study, we realize a well-bonded interface in diamond/Al composites by interfacial in situ Al₄C₃ engineering. As a result, the excellent stability of thermal conductivity in the diamond/Al composites is presented after 200 thermal cycles from 218 to 423 K. The thermal conductivity is decreased by only 2-5%, mainly in the first 50-100 thermal cycles. The reduction of thermal conductivity is ascribed to the residual plastic strain in the Al matrix after thermal cycling. Significantly, the 272 μm-diamond/Al composite maintains a thermal conductivity over 700 W m^-1 K^-1 after 200 thermal cycles, much higher than the reported values. The discrete in situ Al₄C₃ phase strengthens the diamond/Al interface and reduces the thermal stress during thermal cycling, which is responsible for the high thermal conductivity stability in the composites. The diamond/Al composites show a promising prospect for electronic packaging applications.