Measuring thermal properties becomes significantly more difficult as materials and devices shrink. Conventional techniques like laser flash or guarded hot plate work well for bulk samples, but they rely on assumptions that break down at smaller scales. Thin films, interfaces, and multilayer structures introduce thermal effects that are not captured by bulk measurements. In many...
TOPS revolutionizes thermal conductivity testing for solids, liquids, pastes, gels, and foams. Charlottesville, VA, March 10, 2025 Today, Laser Thermal, a leader in optical thermal measurements, is excited to announce the launch of its groundbreaking new product, TOPS. This innovative instrument transforms how engineers and scientists measure thermal conductivity. The TOPS (Thermo-Optical Plane Source) system...
| Literature Value | TPS Measurement | SSTR-F Measurement | |
| Pyroceram 9606 | 4.07 +/- .26 | 3.95 | 3.95 +/- 0.2 |
| HPFS 7980 | 1.38 | 1.39 | 1.39 +/- 0.09 |
20 SSTR-F measurements at same spot
20 SSTR-F measurements at random spots
SSTR-F data on 4 different 200 nm dielectric films on silicon with thermal conductivity ranging from ~0.35 W/m/K up to 1.8 W/m/K. SSTR-F allows for easy, rapid and automated identification of different temperature rises based on the thermal conductivity of the different films.
SSTR measurements on ALD grown ultrathin film amorphous gate dielectrics (compared to TDTR) (source).
SSTR measurements of AlN crystalline thin films.2 SSTR data (temperature rise vs. power) on right for AlN film and silicon wafer control.