The 3D Vapor Chamber (3D VC) scheme of vapor chamber combined with heat pipe has more cost advantages than the water-cooling scheme, and the volume space is more flexible. At present, major heat dissipation companies are scrambling for layout, including Auras, AVC,and Chaun Choung.
The concept of 3D Vapor Chamber has been around for 4 to 5 years. Compared with the general vapor chamber, it is a variant appearance. Conceptually, it is a cylinder of heat pipe extending from the hot plate and connecting into a vacuum body. Industry insiders revealed that the wattage of 3D VC can be reduced to more than 500 watts, and some advanced servers can also be used. It is more suitable for Netcom products, from base stations to strong wave stations, computer rooms, and so on.
The advantage of 3D Vapor Chamber is that in addition to the larger power consumption that can be used to heat up the hot plate, the space and volume are also more flexible, and can be adjusted according to the customer's organization configuration, which is more customized. However, the difficulty of 3D Vapor Chamber is high. It is necessary to combine vacuum bodies with different shapes, whether through structural welding or die casting, and also to maintain the yield of the vacuum cavity. There are also many types of manufacturing processes and production equipment, which vary from company to company.
With the increasing efficiency of the chip, the energy consumption of related devices such as HPC and AI is also increasing, which makes the role of heat dissipation module more and more important. The industry is optimistic. After the launch of the new Intel Eagle Stream platform in the first half of next year, the power consumption increase also makes 3D VC and water cooling become the only solution options for manufacturers.
For servers, the mainstream heat dissipation scheme is the thick heat plate plus heat pipe scheme, which is relatively large, while 3D Vapor Chamber or water cooling can more simplify the design between mechanisms and make space use more efficient.
The concept of water cooling system is to take away heat through water. The water cooling technology is divided into two types. The first is to take away heat through water circulation, using pumps and pipelines to enter the machine table, and the other is to immerse the server in non-conductive coolant, and take away the heat generated during the operation of the server in the way of flow circulation.
However, the manufacturer considers not only the efficiency, but also the cost. It varies according to different design schemes. Generally speaking, the price of water cooling is also dozens of times higher than that of 33D Vapor Chamber, and the average price of 3D Vapor Chamber is also about twice higher than current mainstream heat pipe or vapor chamber modules.
In addition, the focus of consideration is also on reliability and reliability. The threshold of water cooling is that, after all, there will be psychological pressure to let electronic products contact with water, so durability and reliability are the key.
From the perspective of the current manufacturer's R&D strategy, AVC is committed to developing 3D VC solutions, with the maximum power consumption of more than 800W. The market is promising. With the introduction of the new chip platform, after the efficiency is improved, it is also expected to update the cooling solution and drive the improvement of the product ASP.
Auras aims to promote the water cooling and 3D Vapor Chamber solutions to customers at the same time. At present, many customers have a positive attitude towards the adoption of water cooling solutions for the new platform of the next generation of servers, and are expected to make substantial contributions in the next year. Chaun Choung also keeps pace with the two technologies and is continuing to promote them.
On the whole, the improvement of chip efficiency promotes the continuous evolution and upgrading of heat dissipation technology, not only drives the increase of the average unit price of products, but also stands firm technical advantages in the Red Sea market, breaks through the price war of consumer electronic products in the past, and at the same time has a closer relationship with customers.
3DVC Solution for High Power Consumption and High Heat Flux Chips
