What Is Cold Plate?_
A cold plate is a metal heat exchanger that mounts directly onto a GPU or CPU die, transferring heat to liquid coolant flowing through internal channels. Cold plates are the component-level interface in direct liquid cooling (DLC) systems. Proper installation requires correct mounting pressure, thermal interface material (TIM) application, and leak-free fitting connections.
Technical Details
Cold plates are typically machined from copper or aluminum with internal microchannel structures designed to maximize surface area for heat transfer. The coolant flows through these channels, absorbing heat from the chip die. Cold plates connect to manifolds via flexible hoses with quick-disconnect fittings. Installation precision is critical: mounting pressure must be uniform across the die to ensure even TIM distribution, and fittings must be torqued to specification to prevent leaks. Cold plate thermal resistance is measured in °C/W and varies by design; lower values indicate better heat transfer. In NVL72 systems, cold plates are pre-installed on GPU and CPU modules, but field replacement requires following strict procedures for TIM application and mounting.
How Leviathan Systems Works with Cold Plate
Leviathan Systems handles cold plate connections during GPU rack integration, ensuring proper TIM application, mounting pressure, and leak-free fitting installation as part of our deployment methodology.