The subject of the book is uid dynamics and heat transfer in
micro-channels. This problem is important for understanding the complex
phenomena associated with single- and two-phase ows in heated
micro-channels. The challenge posed by high heat uxes in electronic
chips makes thermal management a key factor in the development of these
systems. Cooling of mic- electronic components by new cooling
technologies, as well as improvement of the existing ones, is becoming a
necessity as the power dissipation levels of integrated circuits
increases and their sizes decrease. Miniature heat sinks with liquid ows
in silicon wafers could signi cantly improve the performance and
reliability of se- conductor devices. The improvements are made by
increasing the effective thermal conductivity, by reducing the
temperature gradient across the wafer, by reducing the maximum wafer
temperature, and also by reducing the number and intensity of localized
hot spots. A possible way to enhance heat transfer in systems with high
power density is to change the phase in the micro-channels embedded in
the device. This has motivated a number of theoretical and experimental
investigations covering various aspects of heat transfer in
micro-channel heat sinks with phase change. The ow and heat transfer in
heated micro-channels are accompanied by a n- ber of thermohydrodynamic
processes, such as liquid heating and vaporization, bo- ing, formation
of two-phase mixtures with a very complicated inner structure, etc.,
which affect signi cantly the hydrodynamic and thermal characteristics
of the co- ing systems.
