The invention relates to a piston of an internal combustion engine comprising an upper part (1) and a lower part (3) that consist of a respective light metal alloy (15) and to an associated method for increasing the thermal load-bearing capacity of a multi-part piston that is subjected to high thermal stress in an internal combustion engine. The piston is provided with at least one insulating element, in particular a gap (7) between the lower part (3) and the upper part (1), at least one piston ring carrier (6), which consists of a different material from that of the upper part (1) and the lower part (3), in particular of steel or grey cast iron, being located next to said gap as a component. A thermal current that is introduced into the piston base (2) is prevented from dissipating via the piston ring carrier (6) by means of the insulating element.