Thermal management of printed circuit board (PCB) components depends on a number of factors including the amount of heat the components dissipate, the environment, the layout of the components on the board, and the design of the enclosure. If the circuit generates too much heat, the components risk failing due to overheating and a cooling strategy should be employed.
The electronics cooling study in Fusion simulates the temperature that components on an electronics board are likely to reach, to help you determine whether PCB components are at risk of failure due to overheating. Using this analysis, you can see the temperature of individual components, and see if they are at risk of exceeding their critical temperature.
An electronics cooling analysis also shows you the temperature and velocity of the air surrounding the components in the enclosure. Using the Simplify tools, you can add heat dissipating devices such as a heat sink or fan, and rerun the analysis to identify the best design.
The following list contains a few examples for which an electronics cooling analysis might be appropriate: