Reversibly adhesive thermal interface material

[0016]Embodiments of the present invention relate to an electronic assembly that includes a first element configured to generate heat during operation, a second element configured to transfer away the heat generated by the first element; and a layer of a thermal interface material situated between the first element and the second element. As shown in FIG. 1, an electronic chip module 10 includes an electronic chip 12, a heat sink 14, and a layer of thermal interface material 16 situated between and in intimate contact with both the electronic chip 12 and the heat sink 14. The configuration represented in FIG. 1 is known in the art as TIM 1. With reference to FIG. 2, another configuration for an electronic chip module 20 includes an electronic chip 22, a heat spreader 24, and a heat sink 26. A first layer of thermal interface material 28 is situated between and in intimate contact with both the electronic chip 22 and the heat spreader 24, and a second layer of thermal interface material