Triad RF Systems, Inc.
Page 5
2.2 Unit Powers Down After Some Time of Use
2.2.1 Insufficient Heatsinking
For most applications, appropriate heatsinking is required on all PA and BDA products
that have not been ordered with the heatsink option, or that are not units with integrated
cooling.
All amplifiers should be conduction cooled through their baseplate mounting surface,
and during operation, the baseplate temperature must not exceed the operating temp
range listed in the spec sheet.
Some products have an over-temperature protection feature built in, which will
automatically shut off the amplifier if it exceeds a certain baseplate temperature. Once
this thermal shutdown occurs, the unit will remain in an off state until the temperature
decreases about 10 degrees Celsius from the thermal shutdown point, at which point it
will turn back on.
2.2.2 Tips for proper heatsinking:
If the amplifier is going to be installed into a system that has the heatsinking built in (e.g.
internal system heatsinks or cold plates), ensure that the following guidelines are
followed:
- The heatsink surface that the amplifier’s baseplate is going to be mounted to
should be milled, skim cut, and / or polished to a smooth finish.
- The heatsink surface must be clean and free of any objects that will interfere with
proper interfacing with the amplifier baseplate.
- Use all of the mounting screw holes provided on the amplifier housing to affix it to
the heatsink. Some of these screw holes have been specifically located near
heat generating parts and are critical for correct heat transfer.
- A thermal interface material (TIM) must be used between the amplifier baseplate
and the heatsink surface. Examples of appropriate materials include Laird T-
