Created by San Jose-based firm Frore Systems, the new ‘cooling chip’ can provide near-silent cooling for all varieties of laptops, and even VR headsets.
According to Frore, the chip – known as the ‘AirJet’ – works by vibrating super-thin membranes inside the chip at ultrasonic frequencies to generate jets of air.
The jets of air help result in colder air being sucked in through small vents on the upper surface of the chip. This colder air is then blown through a narrow chamber on the underside and onto the heat spreader plate.
By cooling the spreader plate, it allows it to absorbs heat from whichever component is being cooled, with warm waste air vented from one end of the chip. According to Frore, the 2.8mm-thick chip outperforms most laptop fans and can operate at sound levels of around 21 dBA.
By comparison, the average laptop fan generates more than 40 dBA. Frore has already trialed the chip and are working with Intel and other OEMs to install it in a commercial laptop by the end of 2023.