JP-7856167-B2 - Cooling structure of power module

Inventors

• 武藤 高見

Assignees

• 株式会社村田製作所

Dates

Publication Date

20260511

Application Date

20230616

Priority Date

20220617

Claims (19)

1. A power module, The first substrate and A first electronic component on the main surface of the first substrate, The second electronic component is located above the first electronic component, A heatsink located above the first electronic component, A first thermally conductive material is provided between the first electronic component and the second electronic component , The first electronic component and the second electronic component are thermally connected. The first electronic component and the heat sink are thermally connected, In a top view of the power supply module, at least a portion of one of the first electronic components overlaps with at least a portion of one of the second electronic components. In the top view of the power module, at least a portion of the one first electronic component overlaps with a portion of the heat sink. In a side view of the power supply module, the second electronic component does not overlap with any part of the heat sink.
2. The power supply module according to claim 1, wherein the first electronic component includes a power element.
3. The power supply module according to claim 1, further comprising a third electronic component on the main surface of the first substrate.
4. The power supply module according to claim 3, wherein the third electronic component includes a capacitor.
5. The power module according to claim 1 , wherein the first thermally conductive material includes a first carbon sheet.
6. The power supply module according to claim 1 , further comprising a second thermally conductive material between the first electronic component and the heat sink.
7. The power module according to claim 6 , wherein the second thermally conductive material includes a second carbon sheet.
8. The power supply module according to claim 6 , wherein the first thermally conductive material and the second thermally conductive material define a single layer.
9. The power supply module according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the second electronic component includes an inductor.
10. The power supply module according to claim 9 , wherein the upper surface of the heat sink is located above the upper surface of the inductor.
11. The heat sink is electrically and thermally conductive, as described in any one of claims 1 to 4.
12. The power supply module according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein at least one of the upper surface of the second electronic component and the upper surface of the heat sink is at least partially molded within the housing.
13. A power module, A first substrate and a second substrate, wherein the first substrate is located above the second substrate, and the first and second substrates are... A first electronic component on the main surface of the first substrate, The second electronic component is located above the first electronic component, The fourth electronic component on the main surface of the second substrate, The heatsink above the first electronic component, A thermally conductive material between the first electronic component and the second electronic component , The first electronic component and the second electronic component are thermally connected. The first electronic component and the heat sink are thermally connected, In a top view of the power supply module, a portion of one of the first electronic components overlaps with a portion of one of the second electronic components. In the top view of the power module, at least a portion of the one first electronic component overlaps with a portion of the heat sink. In a side view of the power supply module, the second electronic component does not overlap with any part of the heat sink.
14. The power supply module according to claim 13 , wherein the fourth electronic component includes a capacitor.
15. The power supply module according to claim 13 , further comprising conductive connection pins for connecting the first substrate and the second substrate.
16. The power supply module according to any one of claims 13 to 15 , further comprising a third electronic component provided on the main surface of the first substrate.
17. The power supply module according to claim 16 , wherein the third electronic component includes a capacitor.
18. The power supply module according to any one of claims 13 to 15 , further comprising a sixth electronic component provided on another main surface of the first substrate opposite to the main surface of the first substrate on which the first electronic component is provided.
19. The power supply module according to claim 18 , wherein the sixth electronic component includes a capacitor.

Description

This invention relates to a power supply module. More specifically, it relates to cooling the heat-generating power elements within a power supply module, thereby improving the performance of the power supply module. Known power modules include heat-generating components such as power elements. These heat-generating components are typically located away from other more heat-sensitive components, usually in positions where cavities/gaps are provided to allow for temperature isolation and heat dissipation. For example, inductors can have low thermal conductivity, so inductors near heat-generating components can be problematic. Also, some of the heat generated by the heat-generating components is usually transferred through the circuit board to a heat sink, which can be connected to a carbon sheet. For example, Patent Document 1 teaches a power converter 101 comprising a pair of circuit boards 10A and 10B, including a heat-generating power component 14 and an inductive component 24, as shown in Figure 1. A conductive body 23 is provided between the pair of circuit boards 10A and 10B, and heat sinks 40A and 40B are provided adjacent to the pair of circuit boards 10A and 10B, respectively. Heat is transferred from the pair of circuit boards 10A and 10B to the conductive body 23 through a heat dissipation terminal block 50. A heat sink 3 is attached to the conductive body 23 to help remove heat from the conductive body 23. The heat-generating power component 14 is separated from the inductive component 24 and positioned in the open gap between the pair of circuit boards 10A and 10B, in order to dissipate some of the heat generated by the heat-generating power component 14 into the ambient air. Japanese Patent Publication No. 2020-205714 An example of a known power supply module is shown.A cross-sectional block diagram of a power supply module according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown.A perspective view of the power module with the housing removed, according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention, is shown.A cross-sectional block diagram of a power supply module according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown.A perspective view of the power module with the housing removed, according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention, is shown.A perspective view of a power module with the housing, heat sink, and one of the second substrates removed, according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention, is shown.A cross-sectional block diagram of a power supply module according to a modified version of a second preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown.An example of a circuit diagram of a power supply module according to a third preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown.A perspective view of a power supply module according to a fourth preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown.A top view of a power supply module according to a fourth preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown.Figure 9 shows an exploded view of the power supply module.Figure 9 shows a perspective view of the power supply module without a heatsink.Figure 9 shows a top view of the power supply module without a heatsink.A simulated heatmap of a power supply module according to a fifth preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown.Figure 14 shows the power supply module used to create the simulated heatmap. First Preferred Embodiment A power supply module according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figures 2 and 3. Figure 2 is a cross-sectional block view showing an example of the arrangement of components of the power supply module 1 according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention. Figure 3 is a perspective view of an example of the power supply module 1 according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention, with the housing removed to show possible arrangements of components of the power supply module 1. As shown in Figure 2, the power module 1 may include a first substrate 10, a thermal conductive layer 20 (which may include at least one material layer), a housing 30, a first electronic component 11, a second electronic component 12, a third electronic component 13, and a heat sink 18. On the main surface of the first substrate 11, at least one first electronic component 11 and one third electronic component 13 are provided. Multiple first electronic components 11 and multiple third electronic components 13 may be provided on the main surface of the first substrate 11. The first electronic component 11 can be a high-heat generating element. For example, the first electronic component 11 can be a power element such as a transistor, operational amplifier, inverter, or diode. The third electronic component 13 can be a small, low-heat generating element. For example, the third electronic component 13 can be