Heat dissipation devices are commonly used for cooling electronic components such as processors, e.g., central processing units (CPUs). As electronic components such as CPU chips become more integrated and miniaturized and the thermal density of the components increases, effective cooling methods are required to dissipate the heat that builds up. Conventional heat dissipation devices may comprise a heat pipe and a heat sink, wherein the heat pipe is typically tubular with a circular cross section. The heat sink is typically a heat conducting plate (base) and is attached to a heat source so that the heat will be quickly dissipated through the heat pipe connected to the heat sink.
Conventional methods of fitting a circular heat pipe to the heat sink can be problematic. Welding the heat pipe to the heat sink is problematic, for instance, because welding is complicated and not friendly to the environment. Further, in cases where the heat pipe is welded to the heat sink, gaps can result between the heat pipe and the heat sink so that fitting is hard to achieve. Accordingly, this method can also be wasteful and uneconomic. In some designs, conducting glue is used between the heat pipe and the heat sink to act as an adhesive. However, the glue can solidify over time and result in gaps so that heat dissipation will be affected.
Further, conventional methods of fitting a heat pipe to a heat sink are rigid and inflexible. Once the heat pipe is fitted into the heat sink, through welding or other fixed means, it is not possible to readily re-orient the heat pipe or detach it from the heat sink. This makes it challenging to service the CPU or other component that the heat dissipation device is being used to cool down.