PCB thermal performance for power LEDs

Investigations deal with development of cost effective thermal management for power LEDs. The technique involves usage of FR4 based PCBs which cost less, but have greater thermal resistance than metal core printed circuit boards (MCPCB). The use of copper pins underneath LED thermal pad is a method to dissipate heat through an FR4 PCB into an appropriate heat sink. Temperature regimes of operation of power XLamps LEDs mounted on MCPCBs and on the PCBs with copper pin are experimentally tested at various ambient conditions (air temperatures from 20°C to 45°C) and different current values through LEDs - up to 600 mA. Infrared thermography for evaluation of temperature distribution on LEDs and heat sink is used. Thermal management investigations show that the developed design of FR4 PCB is successful and possess a lot of advantages.