A collaboration between researchers at Northwestern University and the University of Virginia addressed the hurdle of managing the increased heat generated as microchips become smaller. The study, “Thermally conductive ultra-low-k dielectric layers based on two-dimensional covalent organic frameworks” was published in the journal Nature Materials. This study combined multiple disciplines, including the Department of Chemistry in Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences.
“We’re taking sheets of polymer that are only one atom thick — we call this 2D — and controlling their properties by layering the sheets in a specific architecture,” said Professor William Dichtel.
“Our study finds that COFs show both low-k properties and thermal conductivity as a consequence of their 2D layer architectures and porous structures.”
Professor William Dichtel
Professor William Dichtel, the Robert L. Letsinger Professor of Chemistry, discusses this research in the Northwestern Now story: “Packing power into smaller spaces.”