A material that absorbs heat. Typically made of aluminum, heat sinks are widely used in amplifiers and other electronic devices that build up heat. Small heat sinks are the most economical method for cooling microprocessors and other chips. They are commonly found glued or clipped to the top or the side of the chip package. See
heat pipe,
CPU cooler and
thermal grease.
Heat Sink on a Chip
This type of heat sink is glued to the top of the chip, typically a CPU chip, which generates considerable heat.