An analytical temperature prediction method for a chip power map

An analytical method is presented for predicting the chip temperature for a chip-on-spreader geometry with a nonuniform power distribution. The analytical method applies the principle of linear superposition to a known exact solution for heat spreading in the spreader together with the addition of one-dimensional heat transfer resistances through the chip and thermal interface material. The results of the analytical method are compared to numerical results with good accuracy for two geometric cases and three power maps. Implementation in a spreadsheet makes the analytical method easy-to-use and should allow for rapid prediction of chip temperature distributions in the early design stages for power map optimization.