How Do You Use Silicone Thermal Pads Correctly?

What are silicone thermal pads?

Silicone thermal pads are a high-performance thermal interface material, mainly used for the transfer interface between electronic equipment and heat sinks or product housings to improve heat dissipation efficiency. This material usually uses silicone resin as the bonding base material and achieves the purpose of heat conduction by filling thermal conductive powders such as metal oxides, nitrides or inorganic non-metals. Silicone thermal pads have good thermal conductivity, electrical insulation, high and low temperature resistance, chemical stability and flexibility, making them widely used in electronics, industrial production, aerospace and other fields.

How to install and use?

1. Keep clean first. Before starting to install the silicone thermal pad, make sure your hands and tools are clean. Any dust, oil or other dirt may affect the self-adhesion and thermal conductivity of the thermal pad. In order to prevent the thermal pad from sticking to dirt during use, the surface of the pad needs to be kept clean.

2. Then, when picking up the thermal pad, pay attention to the way you grab it. For thermal pads with a large area, they should be grabbed from the center, because uneven force on large thermal pads will cause deformation, thus affecting subsequent operations. For sheets with a smaller area, there is no special requirement for the grabbing method.

3. When removing the protective film, pick up the thermal pad with one hand, and then tear off one side of the release protective film with the other hand. In this process, try to reduce the number and area of direct contact with the thermal pad, and do not tear off both sides of the protective film at the same time, so as to avoid contamination of the thermal pad during installation.

4. After tearing off one side of the protective film, when slowly lowering the thermal pad, you need to be particularly careful to ensure that the thermal pad is completely attached to the radiator to avoid bubbles. Once bubbles are generated, you can gently pull up one end of the thermal pad and repeat the above steps, or use a tool to gently wipe off the bubbles. The force used should not be too large to avoid damaging the thermal pad.

5. When you need to tear off the protective film on the other side, you can place the radiator on the thermal pad. During this process, it is important to note that the force used to tear off the last protective film should be small to avoid pulling or lifting the thermal pad.

6. At last, after the installation is completed, it is necessary to apply a certain amount of pressure to the radiator and store it for a period of time to ensure that the thermal pad is well fixed. Ensure that the thermal pad will not shift during use to ensure the heat dissipation effect.

How to choose a thermal pad?

When choosing a thermal pad, its structure, thermal conductivity, thickness and base material need to be considered. Among them, silicone thermal pads are widely used due to their excellent high and low temperature resistance, flame retardant insulation, chemical inertness and excellent processability.