heat sink

American  

noun

1. Thermodynamics. any environment or medium that absorbs heat.

2. Electronics. Also heatsink a metallic heat exchanger designed to absorb and dissipate excess heat from one of the devices, as a transistor or resistor, in a circuit.

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heat sink British  

noun

1. a metal plate specially designed to conduct and radiate heat from an electrical component

2. a layer of material placed within the outer skin of high-speed aircraft to absorb heat

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heat sink Scientific  

1. A protective device that absorbs and dissipates the excess heat generated by a system.

2. An environment capable of absorbing heat from substances within it (and with which it is in thermal contact) without an appreciable change in its own temperature and without a change in its own phase.

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heat sink Cultural  

1. A reservoir for excess heat, especially in a mechanical or electrical device.

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Discover More

One obstacle to the loading of circuits onto microprocessors is the heat generated by electrical circuits. Effective heat sinks, such as metal fins on top of a microprocessor, can provide part of the solution to this problem.

Etymology

Origin of heat sink

First recorded in 1935–40