MSC SM2S-IMX8M User Manual
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2 Thermal Specifications
The cooling solution for a SMARC
™ module is based on a heat spreader or heat-sink concept.
A heat spreader or heat sink is typically made of aluminum mounted on top of the module. The connection between this plate and the module
components is made using thermal interface materials such as phase change foils, gap pads and copper or aluminum blocks. A very good thermal
conductivity is required in order to transfer the heat from the SoC to the heat spreader plate. The heat sink concept maximizes the surface contact
area with the cooling medium.
Heat spreader and heat sinks used by the MSC module are thermally attached using phase change materials and small aluminum blocks filling the
gap between CPU and chipset dies and heat spreader plate. Stand-alone heat sinks generally offer best thermal transfer characteristics. Contact
MSC Technologies support for a suitable heat sink solution for the i.MX8M SMARC
™ Module.
The main goal for the thermal design of a system is that each device on the module is operated within its specified thermal limits. There may be
system implementations where the heat spreader temperature could be higher. In such a case the cooling solution design should be validated such
that the thermal specifications of all the components on the module are not violated across the system operating temperature range even under worst
case conditions.
2.1 Thermal Definitions
Tpcb
This is the temperature on the surface of the module PCB at point P (defined below).
Tpcb_max
The maximum temperature allowed for the surface of the module PCB at point P (defined below).
Tpcb_min
This is defined as the minimum temperature allowed for the surface of the module PCB.
P
The point on the module PCB where the PCB temperature must be measured.
The stabilized temperature measured on the heat spreader and the module PCB during runtime mostly depends on the computing power demand
from the application and the cooling solution implemented in the system. It is the responsibility of the system designer to provide a cooling solution in
addition to the heat spreader that fulfils the requirements of the application.