Toward TSV-Compatible Microfluidic Cooling for 3D ICs

Cooling presents a significant challenge for high-performance 3-D integrated circuits (3D ICs). To this end, this research explores through-silicon via (TSV)-compatible micropin-fin heat sink (MPFHS) for high-power 3-D chip stacks. Copper TSVs with a diameter of $5.2~\mu $ m and a high aspect ratio (HAR) of 29:1 are developed. An extensive experimental and computational investigation of the MPFHS under varying flow rates and power conditions was conducted, showing that the MPFHS maintains an average chip temperature below $72~^{\circ }$ C, even with a total power dissipation of 500 W and a power density of 312 W/cm2 at a flow rate of 117 mL/min. The minimum total thermal resistance achieved was $0.286~^{\circ }$ C $\cdot $ cm2/W.