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StatusOngoing
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Status date2024-08-30
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Activity Code5C.409
The aim of the project is to develop a power supply for Ka/Q/V-Band Solid State Power Amplifiers (SSPA) and associated technologies. The power supply should be modular, flexible and capable to function at high temperature. The temperature requirement refers to an increased temperature compared to conventional baseplate regulation and in this case was set to 85°C. Modularity addresses the need to have a solution capable to supply a variable amount of SSPAs by stacking or assembling modules. Finally the flexibility refers to the possibility to have different input and output voltage, in order to bring flexibility regarding Bus Voltage as well as different SSPA technology.
Technology demonstrator will be manufactured as well as an electrical model with relevant technologies implemented. The electrical model shall be tested under vacuum, with a regulation at 85°C.
The challenges of the projects are related to system, technology and electrical topology. System architecture should be understood in order to propose a relevant solutions for SSPAs. Compatibility to temperature is a challenging part as it is 20°C higher than conventional baseplate regulation. Finally there is a challenge related to electrical topology and the requirement to have a flexible and modular solution.
The developed product and associated technologies are compatible with a regulation at higher temperature. One of the benefit is therefore to have relaxed constrains on the temperature regulation and to allow close integration with the solid state power amplifier which are typically regulated at 85°C. This increase of temperature allows for a better efficiency of the radiating panel compared to standard temperature.
The product is also designed to be compatible of different input bus voltage which is a key feature to address various platforms. Additionnaly the outplut voltage can be regulated in order to address different SSPA technologies.
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Input Bus Voltage : 50V to 100V
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Output Numbers : 8 per module
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Output Voltages : 8-25V
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Output Current : 5A per output
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Total output power of the module : 1kW
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Temperature regulation : 85°C
At system level, integration of the power supply and the SSPAs will depend on the antenna architecture. For Ka/Q/V bands, the narrow distance between radiating elements makes it a requirement to have a remote power supply and to use harnesses to connect the SSPAs. Typically, SSPA antennas have their own cooling loop (different from the satellite baseplate) in order to manage the important dissipation of the amplifiers. A power supply compatible with higher temperature regulation makes it possible to integrate the module close to the antenna which is a benefit at system level.
The project plan is the following :
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System architecture & Requirements
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Architecture Design
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Detailed Design
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Implementation and manufacturing
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Tests, compliance to specifications and roadmap
Project has been completed successfully.
From early concept including new technologies to electrical testing under vacuum conditions at 85°C. The model is capable to supply 8 SSPAs (max 5A, 25V), for a total output power of 1kW. 93.5% Efficiency was measured under vacuum conditions with a regulation at 85°C.
