A Perspective Study of Mechanical Characterisation of Graphene for Potential Applications in Thermal Management of Microsystems

This paper investigates the potential of using nanostructure graphene for thermal management of microsystems. Relevant contents fall into two parts on graphene behavior and application potential, respectively. In the part of graphene behavior, the difference of graphene behaviors between in-plane and out-of-plane is mathematically described, before an analysis of the in-plane mechanical characterization of the lattice structure of graphene. In the part of application potential, the essentiality of graphene-based nanocomposites for graphene applications is examined at first, along with a summary of the key issues for enhancement approaches of composite performance. This is then followed by an introduction of a conceptual design to demonstrate how to use graphene in thermal management of packaging systems. For this popular research topic, the current study focuses on the viewpoint of mechanical characteristics to set up the fundamental basis for gaining an increased understanding. For a clear view of the progress, the development of graphene is divided into three stages for description, i.e. scientific stage for the isolation and exploration of standalone graphene, technological stage for the undergoing progress of graphene-based nanocomposites, and engineering stage for the ongoing or future trend of using scientific and technological achievements into engineering applications. The authors hope that this piece of work could promote some in-deep considerations for the potential and perspective of graphene.