IBM Intel Xeon L5420 44E5137 User Manual

Product codes
44E5137
Page of 100
Quad-Core Intel® Xeon® Processor 5400 Series TMDG
47
Thermal/Mechanical Reference Design
Although the CEK heatsink fits into the legacy volumetric keep-in, it has a larger 
footprint due to the elimination of retention mechanism and clips used in the older 
enabled thermal/mechanical components. This allows the heatsink to grow its base and 
fin dimensions, further improving the thermal performance. A drawback of this 
enlarged size and use of copper for both the base and fins is the increased weight of 
the heatsink. The retention scheme employed by CEK is designed to support heavy 
heatsinks (approximately up to 1000 grams) in cases of shock, vibration and 
installation as explained in 
. Some of the thermal and mechanical 
characteristics of the CEK heatsinks are shown in 
2.5.7.2
Thermal Interface Material (TIM)
A TIM must be applied between the package and the heatsink to ensure thermal 
conduction. The CEK reference design uses Shin-Etsu G751 thermal grease. 
The recommended grease dispense weight to ensure full coverage of the processor IHS 
is given below. For an alternate TIM, full coverage of the entire processor IHS is 
recommended. 
It is recommended that you use thermally conductive grease. Thermally conductive 
grease requires special handling and dispense guidelines. The following guidelines 
apply to Shin-Etsu G751 thermal grease. For guidance with your specific application, 
please contact the vendor. Vendor information is provided in 
. The use of a 
semi-automatic dispensing system is recommended for high volume assembly to 
ensure an accurate amount of grease is dispensed on top of the IHS prior to assembly 
of the heatsink. A typical dispense system consists of an air pressure and timing 
controller, a hand held output dispenser, and an actuation foot switch. Thermal grease 
in cartridge form is required for dispense system compatibility. A precision scale with 
an accuracy of ±5 mg is recommended to measure the correct dispense weight and set 
the corresponding air pressure and duration. The IHS surface should be free of foreign 
materials prior to grease dispense.
Additional recommendations include recalibrating the dispense controller settings after 
any two hour pause in grease dispense. The grease should be dispensed just prior to 
heatsink assembly to prevent any degradation in material performance. Finally, the 
thermal grease should be verified to be within its recommended shelf life before use.
The CEK reference solution is designed to apply a compressive load of up to 133 N 
[30 lbf] on the TIM to improve the thermal performance.
Table 2-7.
CEK Heatsink Thermal Mechanical Characteristics
Size
Height Weight Target 
Airflow 
Through Fins 
Mean Ψ
ca
 
Standard 
Deviation Ψ
ca
 
Pressure Drop
(mm) [in.]
(kg) [lbs]
(m
3
/hr) 
[CFM]
(°C/W)
(°C/W)
(Pa) [in H
2
O]
2U+
50.80 [2.00]
1.0 [2.2]
45.9 [27]
0.177
0.0033
45.3 [0.182]
1U
27.00 [1.06]
0.53 [1.2]
25.5 [15]
0.240
0.0023
82.4 [0.331]
Table 2-8.
Recommended Thermal Grease Dispense Weight
Processor
Minimum
Maximum
Units
Notes
TIM Dispense weight
400
mg
Shin-Etsu* G751. Dispense 
weight is an approximate target.
TIM loading provided 
by CEK
18
80
30
133
lbf
N
Generated by the CEK.