Piezoelectric active air-cooling devices

Abstract

As the power consumption and miniaturization of electronic devices increase, traditional liquid-cooling and fan systems struggle to meet the high heat flux requirements, especially in space-constrained devices. Piezoelectric effect can convert electrical energy into mechanical energy, which is commonly used for sensing and actuating, especially in microscale due to its high integration capacity. Recently, the piezoelectric micro fan has attracted more attention due to its efficient heat dissipation with advantages in low energy consumption, high performance, and compact design. The review introduces the working principles of piezoelectric fans or jet-based coolers, summarizes their structural designs and their performances, and discusses the pros and cons in practical applications, particularly focusing on the impact of piezoelectric moving component designs, cavity designs, and airflow apertures on cooling performance. Additionally, the review explores the layout optimization and installation configurations of piezoelectric coolers, discussing the best usage scenarios. Overall, piezoelectric cooling technologies show great potential for future electronic device heat management, especially for high-performance, low-power, miniaturized devices.