Microchip Launched the COTS-based Aerospace-grade Radiation-resistant Power Converters

2024-04-14 09:15:23 Technology

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As people rely more and more on communication and weather satellites, the scope and mission of space research are also expanding, and new technologies are needed to help speed up the design and production of space systems.

Microchip Technology Inc. today announced the expansion of the SA50-120 power converter series product lineup and the launch of nine new products based on commercial-grade off-the-shelf technology (COTS) to provide developers with aerospace-grade power converters and help minimize risks and development costs.

Microchip's SA50-120 radiation-resistant DC-DC power converter is currently the only standard non-hybrid aerospace-grade DC-DC power converter on the market. It adopts a surface mount component structure and can be flexibly customized according to specific applications and requirements. The SA50-120 series meets the standards of Mil-Std-461, Mil-Std-883 and Mil-Std-202, enabling designers to start from the mature COTS technology to rapidly expand the scale of development, reduce risks, and shorten development time.

SA50-120 power converter uses 120V input and provides up to 56W output in low-end small solutions. This electromagnetic interference (EMI) compatible and anti-radiation designs with single and triple outputs are ideal choices for space stations and ORION planning platforms. The newly-launched power converter adopts a switching regulator and a single-ended forward converter topology controlled by peak current mode, which has inherent single-event immunity.

SA50-120 has a mean time between failures (MTBF) of 8 million hours and an efficiency of up to 87%, which is the highest among all standard 120V input aerospace-grade DC-DC power converters, which can maximize system performance and reliability. The new product meets the requirements of 100 krad (Si) total ionization dose (TID) and single event effect (SEE) greater than 80 MeV cm2/mg, and provides synchronization, transistor-transistor logic (TTL) on/off command signals and various protective function. The single-output version also provides remote sensing, output voltage adjustment and parallel functions.

Leon Gross, Vice President of Microchip's Discrete Products Division, said: "Microchip has been an aerospace technology partner for 30 years and has successfully participated in more than 50 projects and platforms. We will continue to invest in the development of key technologies required for aerospace systems."

Microchip's DC-DC power converter technology and ISO 9000 and AS9100 certified production facilities provide high-quality devices and flexible manufacturing options.

While launching new products based on COTS technology, Microchip is also cooperating with system manufacturers and integrators for aging management to support customers in their efforts to reduce redesign work and extend the life cycle, thereby reducing overall system costs.

This DC-DC power converter complements Microchip?s rich space product portfolio, including radiation-resistant and radiation-resistant field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA), single-chip microcomputers (MCU), microprocessors (MPU), sequential products, semiconductors and point-of-load regulators, as well as high-reliability electromechanical, mission-critical and aerospace-grade relays, provide designers with overall system solutions for various applications.