Anyone who has ever held a hardworking smartphone or laptop understands that electronics generate heat. Consumer demand for smaller, lighter, and more powerful devices necessitates higher performing materials to help dissipate the heat these instruments create.

Akron, Ohio-based ADAP Nanotech, LLC (www.adapnanotech.com) has developed a highly conductive carbon nanotube (CNT)-based adhesive that is far more effective than current thermal interface material (TIM) or "gap fillers" The structure of the proprietary material was inspired by adhesives found in nature--- and specifically by the microscopic hairs that make up the gecko's sticky footpad. ADAP's NanoTIM™ forms to surfaces without glue or other materials that might contaminate sensitive electronic components. ADAP "grows" millions of nanoscopic-aligned CNT on a silica substrate which are then combined with a thin layer of polymer to form a freestanding pad.

"Frankly, these materials are remarkable, possessing the thermal conductivity and stability of a metal, but the flow and 'spreadability' of a liquid," remarks JumpStart's Lee Poseidon, JumpStart's venture partner working with ADAP. Independent tests validate ADAP's design and pilot scale production, showing that the heat transfer properties of ADAP material are at least three times better than conventional polymer-based thermal gap filler materials.

ADAP Nanotech, housed in the Akron Global Business Accelerator, plans to use JumpStart's funding in part to produce samples that can be used for testing by potential customers. "We want to show that our thermal pads are not only effective, but also very cost effective to produce," says Sunny Sethi, Ph.D., part owner of ADAP Nanotech. The two-person startup is eager to start producing NanoTIM in quantities they can sell.

ADAP Nanotech is the 62nd company in JumpStart's portfolio.

ADAP Nanotech, LLC Akron, Ohio-based ADAP Nanotech, LLC specializes in the development and manufacture of carbon nanotube-based adhesives and coatings that have a variety of applications including serving as high performance thermal interface materials (NanoTIM) that can facilitate cooling of heat generating electronics . ADAP's NanoTIM micro-patterned aligned nanotube structures are based on gecko-inspired, CNT-based adhesives jointly developed by The University of Akron and Rice University. ADAP was formed in 2009 by Prof. Ali Dhinojwala and the University of Akron Research Foundation. For more information, visit www.adapnanotech.com.

JUMPSTART INC JumpStart Inc. accelerates the successes of entrepreneurs, their companies, and the ecosystems supporting them. JumpStart has given intensive business assistance to more than 400 entrepreneurial clients and invested in 62 early stage Northeast Ohio companies. For more information, visit www.jumpstartinc.org and follow @JumpStartInc on Twitter.