Arctic Silver
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| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Computer cooling, electronics cooling |
| Founded | 1999 |
| Founder(s) | Nevin House |
| Headquarters | Visalia, California |
| Products | Thermal interface materials |
| Website | www.arcticsilver.com |
Arctic Silver Inc. is a privately owned engineering corporation which develops and manufactures thermally conductive compounds and thermal adhesives for the application of heat sinks to high-powered electronic components such as processors, LEDs, chipsets and other electronic devices. Founded in 1999, the company's facilities are located in Visalia, California, US.
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[edit] History
The Arctic Silver company was founded by Nevin House in 1999. Headquartered in Visalia, California, USA, House's original product was a custom modified version of HP's Turbocooler heatsink design from servers and workstations. That experience led to research in thermal compounds, and their material composition. House experimented with silver based solutions, and success with improved formulas led to a change in business focus, to thermal interface compounds.[1] A succession of silver formulations were its leading products in the mid-2000's, as is the current Arctic Silver 5. Other developments include ceramic (non-conductive) compounds as well as thermal interface epoxy adhesives for use where permanence is desirable, or where no other heatsink attachment method is available.
[edit] Retail products
[edit] Thermal interface materials
- Arctic Silver 5 (AS-5)
The current version of the company's eponymous thermal interface material, Arctic Silver 5, is a high-density compound of silver, aluminum oxide, zinc oxide, and boron nitride in a proprietary polysynthetic oil base. It is at least 88% thermally-conductive material by weight. AS-5 consists of three unique shapes and sizes of micrometer sized silver, in addition to sub-micrometer sized ceramic particles. It does not contain any silicone.
Its thermal resistance is rated as less than 0.0045°C-in²/Watt.[2][3]
In a 2009 BenchmarkReviews.com review which compared 80 thermal interface materials, AS-5 tied for first overall, with an A+ rating.[4]
- Matrix
Matrix is the company's most recent thermal compound in collaboration with TIM Consultants.[5] It consists of a silicone oil base that contains aluminum, aluminum oxide, and zinc oxide particles. It was designed for application on the large surface areas of contemporary CPUs and GPUs.
The 2009 BenchmarkReviews.com 80-product review gave Matrix (Labeled TIM Consultants T-C Grease 0098) an A rating.[4]
- Arctic Alumina
Arctic Alumina is a ceramics-based polysynthetic thermal compound using three shapes and sizes of sub-micrometer aluminum oxide as a thermal transfer medium, instead of silver. It is a lower-cost product than Arctic Silver 5.[1]
Its thermal resistance is specified at <0.0100°C-in²/Watt [2][6]
The 2009 BenchmarkReviews.com 80-product review rated Alumina in the Good class, with a B+ rating.[4]
- Céramique
Céramique is a high-density layered composite of five uniquely shaped, sub-micrometer sized particles of thermally conductive boron nitride, aluminum oxide, and zinc oxide. All of these are ceramic substances, that is they have crystalline molecular structures. Céramique's suspension fluid is a polysynthetic oil base. It is an electrical insulator, which makes it a better choice than pastes that contain metal, (such as AS-5) when there is a possibility that the thermal compound could come in contact with the pins of an integrated circuit such as exposed resistors on the tops of some chip packages or a tightly packed circuit board or expansion card.
Its thermal resistance is rated at less than 0.0070°C-in²/Watt.[2][7]
The 2009 BenchmarkReviews.com 80-product review rated Céramique in the Good class, with a B+ rating.[4]
[edit] Thermal interface adhesives
- Arctic Silver Thermal Adhesive
Arctic Silver Thermal Adhesive is a silver-based dual component epoxy adhesive. Like other metal based thermal compounds, the cured adhesive can be conductive and capacitive, so when any electronic contacts are touched, a ceramic based thermal adhesive is recommended instead.[8]
- Arctic Alumina Thermal Adhesive
Arctic Alumina Thermal Adhesive is a ceramics-based dual component epoxy adhesive which uses a layered composite of aluminum oxide and boron nitride. It is an electrical insulator.[9]
[edit] Cleaning
- ArctiClean
ArctiClean is designed to remove thermal heatsink paste using two components in a two-step process.[10] In the first step Thermal Material Remover (MSDS[11]) emulsifies the existing paste. Then Thermal Surface Purifier (MSDS[12]) is applied to remove any residue from the first step and further clean the surface.
All products are RoHS compliant.
[edit] OEM only products
Several products are available only to manufacturers and laboratories:
- Medium and slow-curing ceramic epoxy
- Medium, slow, and extra-slow-curing silver epoxy
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ a b Joel Hruska (December 1, 2001) Interview with Nevin House of Arctic Silver. Van's Hardware.com.
- ^ a b c For 0.001 inch (25 micrometer) layer, pressure not specified.
- ^ Arctic Silver 5 Product information. Arctic Silver Inc.
- ^ a b c d Olin Coles (June 14, 2009). "80-way Thermal Interface Material Performance Test". Benchmarkreviews.com. Performance Computers, Inc.. http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=150&Itemid=62. Retrieved 2010-03-17.
- ^ TC-0098 Product Information. TIM Consultants.
- ^ Alumina product information. Arctic Silver Inc.
- ^ Ceramique Product Information Arctic Silver Inc.
- ^ ASTA Product Information. Arctic Silver Inc.
- ^ AATA Product Information. Arctic Silver Inc.
- ^ Arctic Clean Product Information. Arctic Silver Inc.
- ^ ArctiClean Step 1 Material Safety Data Sheet. 2009-12-07.
- ^ ArctiClean Step 2 Material Safety Data Sheet. 2009-12-07.
