Patent ID: 7108056

Claim:
Means for cooling a heated surface comprising: an enclosure; an array of microelectrodes positioned on said heated surface, said array including means for accepting electrical charges of opposite polarities on adjacent microelectrodes, said array having a first end and a second end; a volatile liquid; a reservoir for receiving, holding and dispensing said volatile liquid; flow restricting means in the form of a slit formed between two substantially parallel surfaces for allowing limited flow between said reservoir and said array first end, one of said substantially parallel surfaces having positioned thereon a portion of the first end of said array whereby liquid is delivered to and distributed over the heated surface by the array and evaporated to a vapor thereby cooling said heated surface; condensing means for receiving and condensing to a liquid any vapor formed by the evaporation of said liquid on the heated surface; at least one baffle substantially coextensive with said array for directing said vapor toward said condensing means and means for conveying said condensed liquid back to said reservoir.