Noctua will sell Carbice pads made of carbon nanotubes to PC builders

Noctua will exclusively sell Carbice's carbon nanotube thermal pads to consumers. The first products from the two companies will be the NT-CP1 AM5 and AM4, intended for the respective Ryzen processors. The thermal pads will be available from September.

According to Noctua, regular thermal media such as thermal paste or silicone pads become less good at transferring heat from a CPU to the cooler over time. Carbice's pads are said to improve after prolonged use, because the pads conform to the microscopic texture of the processor housing. This ensures better heat transfer.

Carbice thermal pads are made of carbon nanotubes. The pads are reinforced with an aluminum plate and a plastic coating. So far, the brand's pads have only been sold to companies. Noctua will now sell them to consumers.

Advantages and disadvantages

The advantage of thermal pads over traditional thermal paste is that they are easy to apply and remove. Users can place the plate on the CPU, after which it will stick slightly due to the material. The pad can then be removed completely and reused. This saves a lot of time, especially for PC builders who often change CPU coolers. The material also does not degrade, while thermal paste must be replaced regularly.

In theory, however, the liquid paste always fits better with the CPU, which usually makes this thermal medium better for transmitting heat. This does depend on how the paste is applied and whether the quality is good.