HEATSINKS+AND+FANS

HEATSINKS AND FANS A Heatsink is a square or rectangular solid metal object typically with a perfectly flat surface on one side, and many long square ʹspinesʹ on the opposite surface. The role of a heatsink is to sit on top of a chip like the CPU or GPU, or even RAM, and draw out the heat these components are producing through conduction.

This heat then travels along the length of the heatsink to the top of the individual metal spines where cooler air and a large surface area help in accelerating the dissipation of the heat. Typically a fan is bolted on top of the heatsink to aid in blowing more cool air over the heatsinkʹs spines and hence dissipate the heat more quickly.

In some cases where just a heatsink is sufficient for the job, no fan is used – such as the heatsinks on the motherboard or heatsinks placed onto VRAM. Often Fans are placed inside and around a PC case by themselves to draw in cool air and blow out hot air from the enclosed space around the hardware components on the motherboard. Given the way heatsinks work, the air around components will heat up quickly as heatsink(s) radiate the heat drawn from hardware components. Fans of varying sizes and speeds aid in cooling the air in the entire case. Other forms of cooling such as refrigerator‐like VapoChill units, Peltiers, Heatpipes and Watercooling blocks can assist or replace heatsinks and fans in the role of cooling system components, but are less common due to their cost and complexity.

In human body terms these cooling devices are like the respiratory and perspiration functions.  