Cpu Heatsink And Fan Definition

If this heat is not kept in check the processor could overheat and eventually destroy itself.

Cpu heatsink and fan definition. A heat sink is a device that incorporates a fan or another mechanism to reduce the temperature of a hardware component e g processor there are two heat sink types. Optionally there may be other fans inside the case to blow the heated air. As the processor continues to work at a rapid pace it begins to generate heat. The simplest cooler is an aluminum heat sink which absorbs and disperses the heat.

A heat sink also commonly spelled heatsink is a passive heat exchanger that transfers the heat generated by an electronic or a mechanical device to a fluid medium often air or a liquid coolant where it is dissipated away from the device thereby allowing regulation of the device s temperature. Stands for heat sink and fan nearly all computers have heat sinks which help keep the cpu cool and prevent it from overheating. Usually heat sinks are outfitted with built in fans to help keep both the cpu and the heat sink at an appropriate temperature. A computer s cpu may perform millions of calculations every second.

A heat sink is a thermal conductive metal device designed to absorb and disperse heat away from a high temperature object such as a computer processor. The heatsink a large block of copper or aluminum draws the heat away from the cpu and the fan then cools the heatsink. Fans and heat sinks together this chip coolers fan sits on top of a heat sink to cool a hot running cpu chip. This can happen if the cpu is running at full capacity for an extended period of time or if the air surrounding the computer is simply too hot.

As the name suggests it is composed of a passive cooling unit the heat sink and a fan. But sometimes the heat sink itself can become too hot.