lytron inc, designer and manufacturer of total thermal solutions™, recently announced that it was awarded u.s. patent 7,178,586 for its cp25 ascent™ cold plate. the cold plate has an all-copper construction and internal flat tube microchannels that contain criss-crossed fin. it is primarily used for liquid cooling high watt-density components in military, laser, and test equipment applications. the cold plate is also used in combination with thermoelectric devices to cool electronics.

"thermal engineers are selecting flat tube cold plates now more than ever," notes one of the cold plate's inventors, lytron's vice president of engineering richard goldman. "flat tube cold plates are one of the few cost-effective technologies that can handle the increasingly high heat fluxes of today's electronics. the unique patented design has one of the lowest thermal resistances of any cold plate technology on the market."

the flat tube cold plate's internal micro-channels create turbulence, which minimizes the fluid boundary layer and reduces thermal resistance. with coolant flowing below the entire cold plate surface, the technology also offers a thermal uniformity not found in traditional tubed cold plates. the technology is available as a standard product, or can be customized for oem volumes. several sections of flat tube can be assembled in series or in parallel with a common header to provide cooling for board applications. they can also be embedded into an aluminum base plate for ruggedness or easy mounting.

the patent specifies the cold plate's design. the cold plate's top surface and bottom surface are substantially parallel and contiguously connected by rounded corners that define an interior space. the flat tube includes a plurality of fins extending into the interior space. these form inner walls and a plurality of channels between the fins, defining a cooling liquid passage. the fins may extend parallel to the direction that the tube extends, or may extend at a predetermined angle to the direction that the tube extends. also, the fins associated with the top surface may extend at an angle to the fins associated with the bottom surface, forming a plurality of intersecting points that result in a torturous fluid flow path.

lytron's standard and custom cold plates, cooling systems, and heat exchangers are found in the military, aerospace, medical, power electronics, analytical, and semiconductor markets. the privately held company has achieved 13 consecutive years of growth and operates with over 180 employees. for more information, please contact lytron at +1-781-933-7300 or visit www.lytron.com.