Where exactly are temperature sensors located?
Where exactly are temperature sensors located?
I’ve checked various discussions and sources, but they all mention similar spots—like inside the die, in the CPU socket, or on the motherboard. The exact placement can vary slightly depending on whether you’re using a desktop or a laptop board.
modern CPUs typically include three sensors, but the reported temperature reflects an average across all sensors. High-end motherboards often have additional sensors on the socket, power delivery units, and even NAND chips. The motherboard itself monitors temperature, while the chipset contains sensors, and GPUs provide data on the hottest areas of the die.
Various sensors are built into devices. More sophisticated integrated circuits such as CPUs and GPUs often include temperature diodes made from the same silicon as their cores. Your motherboards and GPUs usually have extra sensors, typically TRD (temperature resistive detection) or thermistors. These are distinct parts that are positioned or soldered near areas of interest like memory, VRM, or near the CPU for package temperature—sometimes another integrated diode is present on the CPU itself. It’s not possible to clearly identify their locations in a general way because each CPU, GPU, motherboard, etc., has its own configuration. You could separate them if you examined a specific piece of hardware, but this won’t apply universally. Regarding the temperature diodes inside the silicon dies, you can’t easily pinpoint them, though there are many of them.