54 receive a fully optimised, applicationready formulation with no physical iteration. Machine learning, molecular dynamics and related methods are becoming very effective at narrowing the design space, identifying promising chemistries and helping researchers understand trade-offs much earlier in the development cycle. Where the vision becomes more difficult is in the gap between predicted material performance and real-world application behaviour. The future is less likely to involve design with no physical iteration and more likely to be a highly accelerated development workflow in which computation does most of the screening and optimisation, while targeted testing confirms performance in the real system. Scaling challenges A factory producing battery packs or power electronics at scale is very different from a lab that tests TIMs on small coupons. Real EV production introduces additional challenges such as large areas, production tolerances, high cycle times, fast dispense rates, variable gap conditions, facility temperature variations across seasons and tightly timed assembly steps. This has changed the way in which some test their products, for example building their own battery systems purely to enable them to implement new TIMs and other materials at scale during development, and to run the system under real driving conditions and subject them to rapid charge and discharge events. This provides very early feedback. A key insight is that interfaces and processes dominate performance at scale. A TIM – in tape form for example – rarely fails because of its intrinsic conductivity but because real production introduces surface waviness, tolerance stack-ups, non-uniform pressure and high-speed assembly constraints. It is crucial, therefore, to design TIMs from the outset for manufacturing robustness, which includes ensuring fast wet-out under low pressure, tolerance to variation and stable performance across the full production window, including robotic application in final assembly. One approach to scaling up involves early coupon testing – for compressive properties, thermal conductivity versus compression ratio, and deformation behaviour versus compression – and, in parallel, providing samples for assembly evaluation with customers’ components, enabling validation under real assembly conditions. Throughout the process, it is important to assess performance across all parameters to identify issues, both foreseen and unforeseen, in alignment with standards such as IATF 16949, while also providing customers with detailed background explanations to support their own evaluations. Regional application centres for batteries represent an innovation in processing materials for production. Such centres also support testing, principally providing early information on production parameters for customers before they order manufacturing equipment. Focusing on the complete system from day one, therefore, is increasingly important. Early alignment between the TIM and the process equipment, for example involving the dispensing system supplier at an early stage, is increasingly regarded as critical. If material and equipment combinations are already proven from previous projects, many potential issues can be avoided. If the material is new, ‘boundary samples’ for critical parameters can be provided to help define a stable process window. The goal is not simply to create a TIM that performs well under ideal conditions, but one that remains predictable, scalable and reliable in the non-ideal, high-speed environment where it will be used. Repair, reuse, recycle Manufacturability and in-service performance have been joined by repairability and recyclability in the list of key requirements that materials developers must meet – for batteries and many other applications. Several approaches to these circularity requirements are emerging. One of these is debonding on demand, exploiting a variety of trigger mechanisms. For example, there are electrically triggered thermally conductive or structural adhesives to enable repairs and also thermally triggered functional coatings in development to support recyclability. Rather than needing a trigger, some TIMs inherently support disassembly. Some gap filler liquids, for example, have very good adhesion but can still be separated when needed. Another approach now under development is a thermally conductive injection moulding compound. Being a thermoplastic, this material promises Product focus | Thermal interface materials July/August 2026 | E-Mobility Engineering Balancing thermal and mechanical performance with reliability requires new materials with either semi-bonding properties (Image: Henkel)
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