The laptop has accessories that become very hot during operation. This is normal, and special cooling technologies in the form of thermal pads for laptops are used to remove heat from the case. However, over time, they may become unusable and require replacement. This will affect the strong heating of the case, and sometimes the laptop will simply turn off. If this happens, then it's time to go to a service center or try to independently replace the thermal pad in a laptop. This is not difficult to do, although you have to tinker. But first you need to understand how everything is arranged there.
What is a thermal pad for a laptop?
There is such a thing as a "thermal interface." It is a layer between the processor and the heatsink and is intended to increase thermal conductivity and reduce thermal resistance. Often used for this purpose thermal grease - a substance with high thermal conductivity. Contrary to popular belief, thermal grease does not cool anything, it just enhances the efficiency of heat transfer from the heating processor to the heat sink.
The second most popular thermal interface is thermal padding for a laptop. This is a small plate installed between the processor (or other heating element) and the heat sink (cooling element). The gasket is flexible, and it ideally fills the possible gaps that almost always exist between surfaces. It is also believed that this plate copes better with its work, because the paste can not cope with a large amount of work.
Depending on the size of the chips, you can choose the right gasket. They come in different sizes and thicknesses. Someone advises you to choose a gasket 1 mm thick, but ideally you need to measure the old thermal layer and choose a gasket of the same thickness. But you can’t use the old layer, otherwise the chipset will overheat, which will constantly turn off the computer. Over time, the chips will melt and eventually melt completely.
Ceramic pads
Thermal pads can be made of ceramics, copper, silicone. Of these three materials, ceramic is the best conductor of heat, so it is characterized by higher efficiency. The best ones made from aluminum nitride are ceramics. Despite the name, it is still ceramics with cool features. A gasket made of this material is resistant to temperature or chemical influences, it really reduces the working temperatures of semiconductors and does not lose its properties as a heat conductor during heating.
Silicone
Silicone is also resistant to high temperatures and is very often used in laptops to remove heat from the processor and bridges. It can also be used as a thermal pad for a laptop video card. Silicone is used in cases where there is no contact between the two surfaces. Silicone gasket is more effective than thermal grease. In addition, it is elastic and can be compressed or expanded, thereby more effectively filling the empty space.
Copper
Copper gaskets have higher thermal conductivity, but they are more difficult to use. To install such a gasket, a sealant is required that closes the gap between the radiator and the heating surface. The use of such a layer of insulation is laborious, but this is justified by higher efficiency.
How to replace a thermal pad in a laptop?
If you untwisted your laptop and found that the gasket needs to be replaced, and there is nowhere to buy it, then you can try to make it yourself. DIY thermal padding for a laptop is easy. There are several ways. The most popular of them involves the use of a bandage.
To do this, we need to put in a bandage in 4-5 layers. Previously, it can be soaked in thermal grease, because if you just spread it on a bandage, then it will creep. Now apply a bandage to the processor, and if it sticks out a little beyond the borders, then it's okay. The main thing is that your gasket fits snugly.
The test results for this layer are not particularly impressive. Such a thermal pad for a laptop does not allow the processor to heat up above 80 0 when watching a movie, but if you load the laptop with games, it will turn off accidentally. But for a while, this option will work.
An aluminum plate (or copper) will be the best option for homemade laying. Aluminum (like copper) has good thermal conductivity. For manufacturing, we need a small sheet with a thickness of only 1 mm. But getting this is difficult. As an option, it is possible to order on Aliexpress.
You can cut the gasket by eye and do not verify accuracy to the millimeter. In theory, the larger the area of the plate, the more heat it can remove. The main thing is that the plate is very tight to the surface. The masters, who tested the method in practice, say that after installing the plate and starting the laptop, the temperature testing program showed 50 0 C. But this is in rest mode, and when the film is turned on, the temperature rose to 68 0 C. This is a good result.
Chinese gaskets
At the same "Aliexpress" you can order Chinese thermal pads for laptops. They do not live up to expectations at all, and after turning on the laptop heats up instantly. You should not expect any effective heat removal from such gaskets. When watching a video, the temperature of the processor rises above 90 0 C, which is close to the critical point.
Thermal grease as an alternative
A 0.1 mm thick thermal paste layer turned out to be the worst option. After starting to watch the video, the processor warmed up to 98 0 C and turned off abnormally. Therefore, it is not always appropriate to simply change the thermal grease or use it as a replacement for thermal gasket. Its effectiveness is worse, so much so that even the system crashes.
In any case, these homemade gaskets for permanent use will not work, but for a short period of time you can take them. In addition, such pads will not allow you to load the laptop more or less seriously, so you should not consider them as a permanent option for cooling the processor.