Ceramic heat plates are flat boards that are laser machined and placed behind or in front of printed circuit boards. The main purpose is to help spread the heat generated by the circuit over a larger surface, to act as a heatsink, to improve conduction to the final heatsink. It also can function as an electrical isolator and/or a barrier against moisture.

The main advantage of doing this in ceramic versus a metal plate is the lower expansion of the material, thermal shock resistance, and the high dielectric strength. This will increase the reliability of the module due to reduced thermal grease pump out, lower-to-no deformation, hermetic sealing, and wear resistance as well to allow for heat spreading.

This set up is mostly used with complex multilayer rigid PCB in (Rogers or high RF) FR4 or flex boards where there are multiple hotspots on the board and little room to spread the heat on the PCB itself. Using thermal vias or cavities in the board, the heat is been transferred from the component to the heat plate cooling down the component itself. Furthermore, a ceramic heat plate offers hermeticity and protection from chemical hazards and the material is strong and rigid. It does not suffer from corrosion and it remains stable under very high temperatures

We offer aluminum oxide (Al2O3), aluminum nitride (AlN), silicon nitride (Si3N4), and our transparent ceramic as a heat plate. There is also a possibility to print the circuit directly onto the heat plate making it a ceramic PCB. Please visit our other product pages to learn more.

For low volume orders & prototypes, simply order heat plates directly from our online portal under laser-cut substrates.

Note: we can also help with 3D shaped ceramics when needed, please contact us to learn more.