Rad-Hard Chip Enables Commercial Microprocessors for Space Use

Onboard computers are the primary means of operating satellites that cost millions of dollars to build and launch. Once in orbit, however, these computers are not easily repaired if problems arise. Furthermore, spacedeployed hardware cannot tolerate data errors, since ordinary microchip performance degrades considerably outside the Earth’s atmosphere. The traditional method of building spacecraft computers involves the fabrication of very expensive, specialized chips, which result in slow, power-hungry processors.

The Air Force’s Military Satellite Communications program tasked the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) with finding innovative solutions to these challenges. Under an AFRL Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract, Space Micro of San Diego, CA developed a strategy for using commercial microprocessors in space.

How It Works

To address the issues surrounding a commercial microprocessor’s usage in space, Space Micro focused on the dual problems of single-event upsets (a type of radiationinduced data error) and single-event functional interrupt hangups, both of which contribute to the unreliable performance of commercial chips exposed to high-energy cosmic radiation.