NEC attempts antenna redesign to address 5G thermal management concerns

October 09, 2019 | Case Study

5G devices and network infrastructure face significant thermal management challenges due to higher power consumption for high frequencies, especially those using millimeter wave (mmWave), as well as larger numbers of antennas per device for MIMO architectures (see the report "Thermal Management Materials Innovation Landscape"). To date, research to address this problem has focused largely on improving the thermal conductivity of pads, gap fillers, and greases to convey heat from integrated circuits (ICs) to heat sinks. Now, NEC has announced a new antenna design that uses the antenna elements as heat dissipation fins by increasing the area of metal on the surface, allowing heat to be conducted away from the front of the antenna as well.