Lab-made 'sand' to cool electronics

                US scientists have engineered a kind of ‘sand’ – made of silicon dioxide nanoparticles coated with a polymer – that can inexpensively cool power-hungry electronic devices. The unique surface properties of the ‘sand’ conduct heat at a potentially higher efficiency than existing heat sink materials, researchers said. The theoretical physics behind it is complicated, but the bottom line could potentially be a new class of high-thermal-conductivity materials useful for heat dissipation from power electronics with high fluxes.