Flexible thermal interfacial materials with covalent bond connections for improving high thermal conductivity

Owing to the rapid development of modern electronic devices, high through-plane thermal conductive thermal interface materials (TIMs) with satisfied electrical insulation property have become increasingly important in affecting the lifetime and reliability of electronics. Meanwhile, how to maximize the performance comprehensively over all aspects undoubtedly inspired the research interests. Here, BN/CNTs/NR composites were synthesized by the vacuum-assisted method and the highest thermal conductivity could reach 1.34 W m−1 K−1. The covalently bonded connections of BN/CNTs hybrids had a significant contribution for the thermal conductivity by reducing the filler/filler interfacial thermal resistance and phonon scatterings. In addition, the sensitive response ability of thermal and satisfactory electrical insulation further demonstrated its strong potential practicality in TIMs. More importantly, this approach opened up a novel way to design TIMs and showed promising applications in the modern electronic devices.