Thermally Conductive Graphene-Polymer Composites: Size, Percolation, and Synergy Effects

The rapidly increasing device densities in electronics dictate the need for efficient thermal management. If successfully exploited, graphene, which possesses extraordinary thermal properties, can be commercially utilized in polymer composites with ultrahigh thermal conductivity (TC). The total potential of graphene to enhance TC, however, is restricted by the large interfacial thermal resistance between the polymer mediated graphene boundaries. We report a facile and scalable dispersion of commercially available graphene nanoplatelets (GnPs) in a polymer matrix, which formed composite with an ultrahigh TC of 12.4 W/m K (vs 0.2 W/m K for neat polymer). This ultrahigh TC was achieved by applying high…