Running hot and cold (toward huge potential)
(Odometer, 12,492 miles)
DURHAM, N.C.–To me the most amazing innovations are the simplest. And the promise of embedded systems and ever-shrinking linewidths opens up vast "innovation reserves" we can tap.
That's what's going on at Nextreme Thermal Solutions here, not far from Duke University.
You'll recall from undergraduate classes learning about the thermoelectric effects and the Peltier and Seebeck effects–generating electricity from heat differentials.
Well, as electronics shrink and thin-film materials improve, harnessing these effects becomes much more practical…and surprising. In the men's room at Nextreme's offices, one is taken aback when the sink faucet lights up a lovely blue when you turn the water on. Underneath the sink is a Nextreme device powering that tiny LED while the water is running (and for many seconds when it's off).
In its devices, Nextreme employs a "thermal copper pillar bump," also known as the "thermal bump," made from thermoelectric materials embedded in solder bumps.
"Unlike conventional solder bumps that provide an electrical path and a mechanical connection to the package, thermal bumps act as solid-state heat pumps and add thermal management functionality locally in an electronic package or subsystem," according to the company. The device is tiny: 238 microns in diameter and 60 microns tall.
The startup's two main product areas are power generation and cooling.
We spent time with CEO John Goehrke, COO Jim Mundell, VP of Engineering Dave Koester, and Marketing Director Karl von Gunten, who walked us through the company's products: