Thermal Management Categories, Market Scale, and Chip-Level Cooling Technology Development

Thermal management classification and market size

There are three main modes of heat transfer: conduction, convection, and radiation.

According to heat transfer methods, cooling systems can consist of fans, heat sinks (such as graphite sheets, metal heat sinks, etc.), and thermal interface devices. Take a common CPU air-cooling radiator as an example: its working principle is that the CPU heat sink contacts the CPU surface through a thermal interface device. Heat from the CPU surface is transferred to the CPU heat sink, and the cooling fan generates airflow to carry away the heat from the heat sink’s surface.

For high-efficiency cooling equipment, phase-change heat transfer is an extremely efficient heat transfer method. Phase-change heat transfer involves the transformation of matter between solid, liquid, and gaseous states. When matter absorbs or releases latent heat, phase changes occur without a change in temperature.

Taking data centers as an example, due to their enormous energy consumption—43% of which must be dissipated as heat—multiple cooling methods are generally used in combination. According to the Asia-Pacific Core Valley Technology Research Institute, heat management can be divided into three categories based on the distance from the core heat source: chip-level thermal management, device-level thermal management, and facility-level/end-product thermal management.

Chip-Level Thermal Management Cooling Technologies

Chip-level thermal management primarily addresses heat conduction from the interior to the exterior of chips. Its main cooling technologies include:

Through-Silicon-Via (TSV) cooling
Heat pipe cooling
VC-Lid vapor chamber cooling and 3D vapor chamber cooling
Diamond thermal management
Graphene-based cooling

Device-Level Thermal Management Cooling Technologies

Device-level thermal management refers to heat dissipation for servers or mobile electronic devices, with main cooling technologies including:

Air cooling
Liquid cooling (subdivided into:
- Cold plate cooling
- Spray cooling
- Single-phase immersion liquid cooling
- Two-phase immersion liquid cooling)

Facility-Level/End-Product Thermal Management Cooling Technologies

Facility-level/end-product thermal management involves heat dissipation for data centers and end products (e.g., automobiles, robots). Key technologies include:

Free air cooling
Hot/cold aisle containment cooling
Evaporative cooling
Geothermal cooling

Market Landscape

Global Data Center Thermal Management Market (R&M data):
- 2024 market size: $16.56 billion
- 2029 forecast: $34.51 billion
- CAGR (2024–2029): 15.8%
Technology Penetration (Omdia forecast):
- 2023 air-cooling + liquid-cooling market size for data centers: $7.67 billion
- Liquid cooling penetration rate: ~17%

Additionally, in the consumer electronics heat dissipation market, the integration of AI technology has continuously increased computing power demands for consumer electronics, leading to a significant rise in corresponding heat dissipation requirements. In 2023, global smartphone shipments reached 1.17 billion units, tablet PCs 130 million units, and computer shipments 250 million units. According to Counterpoint Research, the market share of AI smartphones is expected to reach 43% by 2027. Currently, the value of PC radiators is approximately 100-200 RMB (including VC + fans), higher than the value of early PC radiators (approximately 30-60 RMB, heat pipes + fans). Therefore, it is anticipated that the global consumer electronics thermal management market size will reach $38 billion by 2030.

Therefore, the thermal management market size for data centers and consumer electronics is expected to reach approximately $77 billion by 2030.

Development of chip-level heat dissipation technology

Chip-level cooling technologies refer to heat dissipation measures implemented directly on the chip surface or within the chip itself, enabling more direct and rapid heat transfer from the heat source (chip). Due to the confined space and complex environment, these technologies impose extremely high requirements on heat dissipation materials and device structures.

According to the thermal conduction path from the heat source to the heat exchange structure, chip-level cooling technologies can generally be divided into three categories:

Remote Cooling Architecture
Heat is conducted between the chip and the heat sink cold plate through two layers of Thermal Interface Materials (TIM).
Near-Chip Cooling Architecture
As heat flux density and chip area increase, remote cooling becomes increasingly insufficient. In response, the chip is directly bonded to the heat sink cold plate via one layer of TIM, forming a near-chip cooling architecture. Compared to remote cooling, this design eliminates one layer of TIM and the thermal diffusion layer, further increasing the coolable heat flux density.
Embedded Chip Cooling Architecture
By eliminating the TIM between the chip and heat sink cold plate, micro-channels are directly etched into the chip substrate to introduce cooling fluid, achieving efficient heat dissipation.

Due to their excellent thermal conductivity properties, the mainstream chip-level cooling technologies currently on the market mainly include heat pipes, vapor chambers (VC), 3D vapor chambers, diamond, and graphene cooling technologies.

>>>Heat Sink Solutions: Scaling for Data Centers and Chip Evolution

>>>Heat Sink Solutions：Development of Data Centers

>>>Heat Sink Solutions：Thermal Management Categories, Market Scale, and Chip-Level Cooling Technology Development

>>>Heat Sink Solutions：Vapor Chamber (VC) Cooling Technology

>>>Heat Sink Solutions：3D VC (Three-dimensional two-phase Homogeneous Temperature technology)

>>>Heat Sink Solutions：Liquid cooling heat dissipation technology

>>>Heat Sink Solutions：Other Cooling Technologies (Diamond and Graphene Cooling)

>>>Heat Sink Solutions：Heat Dissipation Path and Development Route of Thermal Interface Materials

>>>Heat Sink Solutions：Market Size and Growth Trends