Tamper-respondent assemblies with porous heat transfer element(s)

A tamper-respondent assembly comprising:

• a circuit board comprising a first side and a second side, the first side and the second side being opposite sides of the circuit board;
• multiple electronic components, including at least one first electronic component coupled to the first side of the circuit board, and at least one second electronic component coupled to the second side of the circuit board;
• a first enclosure assembly mounted to the first side of the circuit board to enclose the at least one first electronic component coupled to the first side of the circuit board within a first chamber of a secure volume, the first enclosure assembly comprising:
• a thermally conductive enclosure with a sealed inner compartment within the thermally conductive enclosure, the thermally conductive enclosure being mounted to the first side of the circuit board;
• and
• a porous heat transfer element within the sealed inner compartment of the thermally conductive enclosure, the porous heat transfer element being sized and located to facilitate conducting heat from the at least one first electronic component across the sealed inner compartment of the thermally conductive enclosure;
• a second enclosure assembly mounted to the second side of the circuit board to enclose the at least one second electronic component coupled to the second side of the circuit board within a second chamber of the secure volume;
• and
• a pressure sensor to sense pressure within the sealed inner compartment of the thermally conductive enclosure to facilitate identifying a pressure change indicative of a tamper event.

A method of fabricating a tamper-respondent assembly, the method comprising:

• providing a circuit board, the circuit board including an electronic component;
• mounting an enclosure assembly to the circuit board to enclose the electronic component within a secure volume, the enclosure assembly comprising:
• a thermally conductive enclosure with a sealed inner compartment within the thermally conductive enclosure, the thermally conductive enclosure being mounted to the circuit board;
• and
• a porous heat transfer element within the sealed inner compartment of the thermally conductive enclosure, the porous heat transfer element being sized and located to facilitate conducting heat from the electronic component across the sealed inner compartment of the thermally conductive enclosure;
• and
• providing a pressure sensor to sense pressure within the sealed inner compartment of the thermally conductive enclosure to facilitate identifying a pressure change indicative of a tamper event.