Thermal and Tensile Strength Testing of Thermally-Conductive Adhesives and Carbon Foam

TL;DR

This paper evaluates the thermal and tensile properties of carbon foam combined with thermally conductive adhesives for use in high-energy collider detectors, focusing on strength, thermal performance, and radiation tolerance.

Contribution

It provides new measurements of thermal and tensile performance of aluminum-carbon foam-adhesive stacks, including initial radiation damage results for detector applications.

Findings

Carbon foam with thermally conductive adhesives shows promising thermal performance.

Tensile strength of aluminum-carbon foam-adhesive stacks is characterized.

Initial radiation damage tests indicate radiation tolerance of materials.

Abstract

Future collider detectors, including silicon tracking detectors planned for the High Luminosity LHC, will require components and mechanical structures providing unprecedented strength-to-mass ratios, thermal conductivity, and radiation tolerance. This paper studies carbon foam used in conjunction with thermally conductive epoxy and thermally conductive tape for such applications. Thermal performance and tensile strength measurements of aluminum-carbon foam-adhesive stacks are reported, along with initial radiation damage test results.