The Zhitong Finance App learned that Guojin Securities released a research report saying that at present, next-generation thermal interface materials often require both thermal conductivity and thermal homogenization capabilities. Carbon-based TIM mainly uses graphite, graphene, carbon fiber, and CNT to construct high thermal conductivity or directional thermal conductivity networks, and is a key direction for the next generation of high-performance TIM. The power consumption of high-power chips continues to increase. In the limited space of highly integrated computing power cabinets, the heat flow density and the instantaneous heat generated at a single point during device operation increase, forcing the thermal conductivity of thermal interface materials to improve as well.
Guojin Securities's main views are as follows:
High-power chip drive thermal management shifts from “gap filling and heat transfer” to “low thermal resistance system optimization”
The power consumption and package density of AIGPU/ASIC, HBM, and high-speed optical modules increase simultaneously. The heat needs to pass through TIM1, Lid (package cover), TIM2, and cold plate. The configuration of the thermal interface material (TIM) no longer only depends on the nominal thermal conductivity adaptation, but also the coordination of the material body, bonding layer thickness (BLT), contact thermal resistance on both sides, assembly pressure, and thermal cycle reliability. Under conditions of warpage of large chips, multi-chip coplanarity, and local hot spot strengthening, the material, structure, and process together determine the actual heat dissipation effect. Currently, look at the next generation of thermal interface materials, usually Both thermal conductivity and thermal uniformity are required.
Polymer-based TIM is still the most widely used and most mature basic route for industrialization
Thermal conductive pastes, gels, gaskets, and thermal adhesives respectively meet the requirements of thin interfaces, irregular gaps, automated placement, and structural bonding. In order to achieve higher thermal conductivity, multiple particle size accumulation, filler surface modification, and three-dimensional/directional thermal conductivity networks can form a continuous, short-range, and penetrating heat channel along the thickness direction with a lower filling amount, such as diamond powder as a filler, which can increase the thermal conductivity of TIM products from less than 0.3 W/ (m·k) to 40 W/ (m·k); another high-performance phase transition path for polymer TIM is The material, in addition to having a lower structural thermal resistance The latent heat absorbed during the phase transition can act as a thermal buffer in the instantaneous temperature rise of the chip, and is one of the important materials for current high-power chip applications.
Metal-based TIM targets lower thermal resistance requirements at the proximal end of the chip
Solder-type TIM already has a long-term application foundation in the TIM1 ultra-thin interface. Among them, indium sheets rely on high thermal conductivity and ductility to mitigate thermal stress mismatch of large chips; on the metal base line, liquid metal is thought to be one of the near-end thermal interface materials for next-generation chips, but in the short term due to conductivity leaks, metal compatibility issues, oxide layer control, and automatic dispensing, large-scale applications in the AI field still have technical bottlenecks and long-term verification accumulation.
Carbon-based materials are a key direction for the next generation of high-performance TIM
Carbon-based TIM mainly uses graphite, graphene, carbon fiber, CNT, etc. to construct high in-plane thermal conductivity. In engineering applications, cross-layer thermal resistance is reduced through surface functionalization, three-dimensional continuous frames, or graphene-CNT bridging. Graphene is used as the framework and resin as the base, and the internal direction of the material is placed along the vertical direction of the device through mechanical processing, slice rotation, etc., to fully apply the thermal conductivity within the graphene surface. The thermal conductivity of graphene gaskets can reach 130W/ (m·k), at high Priority introduction is expected in scenarios such as heat flow density GPUs. In addition, carbon-based carbon fiber gaskets are arranged in an orderly manner along the thickness direction to construct a Z-guide heat path, which has the potential to improve TIM2 thermal conductivity while taking into account smooth fit; copper-diamond heat deposition sheets rely on the composite and interface engineering of high thermal conductivity diamond and copper substrates to achieve efficient thermal conductivity and heat homogenization of high heat flow density chips, which is an important candidate for the next generation of advanced packaging heat diffusion layers.
High-performance product iteration pushes companies with a first-mover advantage to take the lead in enjoying high gross profit and demand volume
The bank compared the revenue and profitability of leading domestic thermal interface material suppliers in the 2024-2025 thermal interface material business. In terms of revenue, the average growth rate of the industry was 20%-30%, with the revenue growth rate of Hongfucheng, the world's leading supplier of carbon-based thermal conductive gaskets, up to 185% year-on-year in 2025; in terms of profitability, the gross margin of thermal conductive materials varies greatly and spans 10% to 70%. With the technological iteration of the overall industry, the profitability of old products is declining year by year. Companies with high performance, the ability to supply new products in batches or with a relatively high proportion of new products are profitable The ability is relatively excellent and shows a trend of improvement year by year.
Risk Alerts
Downstream demand and application penetration falls short of expectations; product verification and industrialization progress falls short of expectations; raw material prices, technology routes and market competition risks.