We’ve all heard of an Ionic Breeze, but what is an Ionic Wind? Researchers from Purdue University, and Intel, in a collaborative effort, have discovered a way to cool chips using charged ions, called an ionic wind.

As computers grow increasingly powerful, computer chips are becoming more and more crowded and require more cooling. Purdue’s Associate professor of mechanical engineering, Timothy Fisher is quoted in a BBC article as saying: “In computers and electronics, power equals heat, so we need to find ways to manage the heat generated in more powerful laptops and handheld computers.”

The BBC article further explains how the prototype the team created works:

…by shifting charged particles from one end of the device to the other. As a voltage is applied to the ionic engine, positively charged particles (ions) are produced, and are dragged towards a negatively charged wire (a cathode), forcing constant air movement.

The researchers said that when used in conjunction with a conventional fan, the device increased the cooling rate by up to 250%.

The whole Ionic Wind process still needs to be miniaturized to be applicable in a computer. If the team can do that successfully, then expect to start seeing this technology in products within the next three years.

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Entry was posted on Wednesday, August 15th, 2007 at 1:54 pm under Intel, Science and technology.

Read more entries by Ema Kwiatkowski.
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