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Out-of-this-World Design is a blog dedicated to space electronics.
Each month we discuss spacecraft payload and platform electronics and on-board signal processing techniques for telecommunication, navigation, Earth Observation and space-science satellites.
Welcome – we have lift-off!
- 02.08.2013
Welcome to Out-of-this-World Design, a blog discussing advances in Space Electronics and on-board signal processing techniques. We begin with a look at advances in on-board digital processing and computation for spacecraft.Read More…
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Brown, lead-underpant moments
- 03.19.2013
The trials and tribulations of radiation testing electronics for use in space.Read More…
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Don’t get lost!
- 06.10.2013
Satellite navigation is a real, tangible example of what our industry has developed that has improved the quality of all our lives, and it will soon impact air travel in a more radical way than navigation and EGNOS/WAAS/LAAS-assisted landing.Read More…
You guys are dinosaurs!
- 07.17.2013
The space industry wants to exploit the benefits offered by the latest technologies and offer new customers and markets cheaper access to space. COTS components have been used in space for many decades and are increasingly being baselined.Read More…
Alphasat’s Champagne moment!
- 08.16.2013
The party to celebrate the launch of our Alphasat telecommunication satellite was great fun. Watching the live feed of the Ariane 5 rocket lifting-off majestically from French Guiana was a truly inspiring moment for everyone involved in this key project.Read More…
Behaving passively!
- 11.08.2013
It's very easy to become mesmerised by the latest advances in space microelectronics, however, passive components account for almost 80% of all electronic parts used on a spacecraft.Read More…
Twinkle twinkle little stars!
- 12.17.2013
Despite the advent of RADAR and GPS, navigation using the stars remains a valuable aid for people, spacecraft and of course, the three wise men.Read More…
I’m giving her all she’s got, captain!
- 01.29.2014
Satellites are not launched with a long, dangling mains cable, but come with 'Batteries Included' and access to a large and hot wireless charging station 93 million miles away.Read More…
Is your spacecraft flying reliable chips?
- 02.25.2014
The space industry wants to exploit the higher integration, faster processing and lower power consumption advantages of ultra-deep-submicron microelectronics.Read More…
Linear voltage regulators for space applications
- 03.26.2014
The linear voltage regulator is one of the most commonly used electronic circuits found in almost every type of application. Nearly all spacecraft sub-systems use it and if a single-event transient appears on the dc output exceeding the maximum supply voltage that can be tolerated by a $100k FPGA for example, the consequences for a mission could be catastrophic! Read More…
Switch-mode regulators for space applications
- 05.02.2014
Switched-mode power supplies offer spacecraft systems the advantages of high efficiency, low-power dissipation, small physical size and low mass. Read More…
A comparison of space-grade FPGAs, Part 1
- 06.09.2014
FPGAs are increasingly being used in almost every spacecraft sub-system and designers now have a choice of process technologies and diverse fabrics. Which one is right for your mission?Read More…
A comparison of space-grade FPGAs, Part 2
- 07.08.2014
For the latest, deep-submicron, space-grade FPGAs operating at higher frequencies with lower voltages and increased logic densities, SETs can dominate the soft-error rate.Read More…
A comparison of space-grade FPGAs, Part 3
- 08.01.2014
Imagine the worst-case scenario for a spacecraft containing SRAM-based FPGAs performing critical control, having their configuration – i.e., the intended functionality – suddenly corrupted by cosmic radiation.Read More…
Pesky parasitics
- 09.03.2014
As transistor sizes continue to shrink and more and more logic is placed next to analog circuits, digital-switching noise propagates through the substrate and power distribution network, degrading the functionality of the sensitive analog circuitry.Read More…
Galactic opportunities!
- 10.08.2014
The future commercialisation of the space industry offers many new opportunities for companies to change and grow. The global-space market is forecast to be worth £400Bn by 2030 and the UK has set a target to capture a 10% share of £40Bn per year as well as the creation of 100,000 new jobs.Read More…
Testing times for design engineers
- 10.31.2014
Characterising subsystems containing high-power devices switching at megahertz/gigahertz frequencies with very fast edges is stretching the capabilities of measurement equipment, and we all have to become test engineers to understand what's inside the box, the sources of errors, and how to use DSOs, VNAs, TDRs and spectrum analysers properly.Read More…
Turkish delights and harsh environments
- 12.02.2014
A Turkish bath experience prompts thoughts on the harsh environment of space and how it can can wreak havoc on unprotected microelectronics, ultimately leading to component failure. Cosmic rays speeding through space can strike ICs at sensitive locations, causing immediate upsets known as SEEs.Read More…
Satellite anatomy 101
- 01.15.2015
This discussion will help you understand the 'anatomy' of a satellite and the basic principles of satellite communications. Read More…
It’s time to SPICE up your life!
- 02.19.2015
Earlier this year, I decided to get hot and spicy and compare the performance of three graphical SPICE circuit simulators to develop stable voltage regulators for space electronics. Read More…
Kintex-7, SEU mitigation using an isolated-design flow, part 1
- 04.17.2015
Replicating and isolating redundant logic blocks within an FPGA fabric offers the potential of fault-tolerant implementation, confining SEUs to a single module preventing their propagation. Read More…
Designing a low-cost, reusable power-distribution architecture
- 07.08.2015
It is now possible to develop a low-cost, reusable, scalable, reliable, and efficient power-distribution architecture to supply future satellite sub-systems. Read More…
Are you bored with your board?
- 07.30.2015
Manufacturers of spacecraft avionics are considering new PCB materials with lower relative dielectric constants and dissipation factors to achieve the performances that will enable future missions for satellite operators. Read More…
Introducing the world’s first 28nm semiconductor for space
- 09.08.2015
The specification of Altera's COTS FPGA for space applications, with its range of logic resources and innovative fabric design, exceeds by several generations the speed, bandwidth, and power advantages of current space-grade ASIC technology. Read More…
Introducing the world’s first 28nm semiconductor for space, part 2
- 11.12.2015
The specification of Altera's COTS FPGA for space applications and its range of logic resources and innovative fabric design exceeds by several generations the speed, bandwidth, and power advantages of current space-grade ASIC technology. Read More…
Introducing the world’s first, 28 nm semiconductor for space, part 3
- 12.11.2015
For the first time, space users will be able to avail of ultra-deep-submicron performance without having to pay large, up-front, NRE costs. Read More…
Decoupling for rocket scientists, part 1
- 03.08.2016
Did you know that in some instances you can remove many of the decoupling capacitors on your PCB without impacting the performance or the reliability of your sub-system? Read More…
RF impedance matching for rocket scientists
- 05.18.2016
RF impedance matching has become a major challenge for many satellite OEMs wanting to offer the benefits of high-throughput digital payloads to spacecraft operators. Read More…
IBIS-AMI for rocket scientists
- 06.09.2016
Verification of high-speed serial links has become a major challenge for many satellite OEMs wanting to offer the benefits of high-throughput digital payloads to spacecraft operators. Read More…
Wideband testing of satellites
- 06.29.2016
Characterising transponder performance over several GHz of bandwidth can be very difficult for OEMs and equally challenging for suppliers of test and measurement equipment. Read More…
SERDES testing for rocket scientists
- 08.24.2016
As SERDES bit rates increase, spacecraft OEMs are grappling with how to measure and characterise the performance and reliability of hardware high-speed serial links to ensure satellite sub-systems are developed right-first time. Read More…
Spacecraft data handling using ARM-based processors
- 09.27.2016
Given that our lives depend on the reliability of ARM-based fail-safe systems every day, could the space industry also benefit from the performance, power, size, ease of use, and accessibility benefits of the ARM architecture? Read More…
8 tips for effective power-integrity probing
- 11.01.2016
Poor PCB layout, inadequate floor-planning, ineffective de-coupling, and weak filtering cause AC noise, interference, and transients on the power rails supplying FPGAs, ADCs, and DACs, affecting their performance. Read More…
How to select a space-grade switching regulator
- 12.08.2016
Selecting the most appropriate switching regulator requires the consideration of many factors. Which part is right for your project? Read More…
Selecting a space-grade isolated DC-DC
- 01.25.2017
Selecting the most appropriate DC-DC for your project requires the consideration of many factors: first and foremost, what are the specific power, voltage, and current requirements? Read More…
Introducing RFSoC
- 03.14.2017
Integrating GSPS ADCs and DACs with Xilinx's programmable MPSoC fabric reduces physical footprint and chip-to-chip latency and completely eliminates the external digital interfaces between the mixed-signal convertors and FPGA. Read More…
Using and selecting COTS components for space applications
- 04.13.2017
COTS components require careful risk assessment and their operation and/or specification may have to be modified or de-rated to meet a mission's reliability needs. Read More…
Introducing the first 16 nm semiconductor for space applications
- 05.23.2017
Just like the commercial world, FinFET technology offers a lot of potential for the space industry. The RT-ZU19EG will deliver 10× the performance of the V5QV FPGA consuming similar power in the same package. Read More…
Clocking high-throughput satellites
- 06.22.2017
Engineers are mesmerised by the latest FPGAs and ADC/DACs, however, these need to be powered and clocked properly to deliver their specified performance. Read More…
Make vs buy: voltage regulators for space
- 09.27.2017
With so much emphasis on low cost, many spacecraft manufacturers are making their own voltage regulators using space-grade or COTS-based discrete components. Read More…
Magnetising the next generation of high-throughput satellites
- 11.02.2017
Satellite manufacturers are designing and making proprietary isolated DC-DCs and switching point-of-loads. Power transformers and inductors are fundamental to the design of these regulators respectively. Read More…
BRAVE new ITAR/EAR-free space-grade FPGAs
- 01.11.2018
Many satellite and spacecraft OEMs are looking for ITAR/EAR-free, rad-hard, ultra deep-submicron FPGAs. BRAVE, a new family of rad-hard FPGAs, addresses this market need. Read More…
Using satellite technology to feed a growing world
- 02.15.2018
Earth observation satellites are using sensors to monitor plants and oceans for food supply security and long-term sustainability. Read More…
Improving the quality of spacecraft RTL using HDL linting
- 03.28.2018
HDL linting improves the quality of spacecraft RTL to reduce design risk, accelerate IP verification, increase productivity, and reduce debugging effort to meet time-to-market deadlines. Read More…
Does your spacecraft flash?
- 05.21.2018
A flash FPGA is the ideal digital on-board processing technology for space applications:its non-volatile yet can be re-programmed during prototyping and in-orbit. Read More…
Qormino: A compact, multicore processing system solution
- 07.10.2018
The Qormino multicore processing solution delivers high-throughput GHz performance in a compact, plug & play form-factor with availability guaranteed for up to 15 years. Read More…
Understanding space-grade semiconductor reliability and qualification
- 08.20.2018
To deliver the next generation of satellite services, spacecraft manufacturers are exploiting ultra deep-sub-micron semiconductors. There are many qualification and procurement options available to OEMs based on a mission's reliability needs. Read More…
New ITAR/EAR-free space-grade FPGAs, part 2
- 09.18.2018
Many satellite and spacecraft OEMs around the world are looking for ITAR/EAR-free, rad-hard, ultra deep-submicron FPGAs. See how this new range of devices addresses that market need. Read More…
Testing high-throughput satellites: prototyping to in-orbit verification
- 10.30.2018
When developing satellite electronics, testing occurs throughout all stages of spacecraft development, from characterising the performance of parts to validating proof-of-concepts at prototyping, and post-launch in-orbit verification. Read More…
Using live satellite Earth-observation data to promote STEM education
- 12.14.2018
The latest initiative to promote STEM education is to enable pupils to acquire satellite imagery in real-time to deliver 'live science' and encourage coding skills to extract more intelligence from the data. Read More…
A test guide for small-satellite constellations and NewSpace applications
- 01.28.2019
Small-satellite OEMs are looking for an affordable test solution to confirm functionality efficiently. Read More…
Kintex UltraScale FPGAs for space applications
- 03.15.2019
The Kintex UltraScale fabric extends the Xilinx micro-architecture to deliver a step-change increase in bandwidth, capacity, and integration, enabling the space industry to avail of GHz, ultra high-throughput on-board processing. Read More…
Changing trends in designing space electronics
- 04.11.2019
Space technology and satellite-based applications have become ubiquitous, impacting our daily lives and being used to provide a sustainable future for us all. Read More…
Testing phased-array antennas for satellite communication
- 05.30.2019
Phased-array antennas and digital beamforming techniques are increasingly being used by satellites to maximise the radiation pattern for reception and transmission. Read More…
Exchanging design data for PCB layout
- 09.19.2019
With an increasing emphasis on time-to-market, space-industry OEMs need better communication between EDA suppliers and component vendors to ensure schematic symbols, footprints, and 3D models are readily available. Read More…
Modularized DC-DCs to power low-voltage, high-current spacecraft avionics
- 10.30.2019
Modularized DC-DCs provide efficient power solutions for spacecraft avionics needing to exploit the processing benefits of the latest, ultra deep-submicron FPGAs/ASICs. Read More…
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