LEO Satelites
Power efficient and reliable semiconductor solutions for LEO satellites
Orbiting the Earth at an altitude of 500-1500 km, LEO satellites enable decreased latency and increased internet speeds compared to their GEO satellite counterparts. This proximity, combined with their smaller size, radiation tolerant technology, and Infineon’s cutting-edge semiconductor solutions facilitates fast and reliable connectivity for remote and underserved communities worldwide.
Benefits:
- Radiation tolerance
- Global connectivity
- Power efficient technology
- Cost-effective
- High reliability
Overview of LEO satellites
Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites operate in a challenging environment characterized by elevated radiation levels compared to Earth’s surface, extreme temperatures, and limited power budgets. As such, LEO Satellites require innovative semiconductor solutions to confront reliability and power efficiency challenges.
- To address elevated levels of radiation and ensure stable operations, Infineon offers rad-tolerant devices for LEO satellite systems. Our solutions prioritize withstanding Total Ionizing Dose (TID) and Single Event Effects (SEE), to allow for optimal performance during missions.
- To support lightweight and space-saving designs, our technologies enable high-frequency power conversion with minimal losses, resulting in a significant reduction in thermal footprint and a substantial increase in overall power efficiency.
- For reliable power distribution, Infineon offers robust power management solutions to support subsystems such as communication, payloads, and propulsion systems.
By leveraging our advanced semiconductor solutions, LEO satellite designers can optimize performance, enhance system resilience, and reduce operational costs.
Power conditioning and distribution solutions
At the heart of LEO satellite operation is the power conditioning and distribution unit (PCDU), which manages the flow of power from solar arrays to the satellite's various loads, including the satellite digital payload.
- To ensure that systems receive stable power the PCDU carries a range of essential functions, including power conversion, filtering, and distribution. As it relates to radiation tolerance, Infineon’s HiRel NewSpace power MOSFETs offer manufacturers consistent electrical performance during radiation exposure, reducing the risk of failures.
- For continuous monitoring, the controller acts as the brain of the PCDU system. As such, the controller evaluates the satellite’s power status and makes subsequent decisions about how power distribution should be managed.
By optimizing power flow and utilizing Infineon’s rad-tolerant technology, the PCDU and controller work together to maximize the efficiency and reliability of the satellite's power system, enabling it to maintain continuous communication with Earth and provide high-speed internet connectivity.
Battery management system solutions
Powered by solar arrays, the battery management system (BMS) plays a crucial role in optimizing battery life, especially during periods of low solar exposure.
- To maximize safety and efficiency during the flow of power, the battery charge regulator (BCR) manages the charging of the batteries. Closely linked to the BCR are the batteries themselves and the battery discharge regulator. The BCR works in tandem with the batteries, which store the solar energy generated by the solar arrays, and the battery discharge regulator, which safely discharges the power to the loads.
By accurately controlling the flow of power, the BMS helps to optimize the lifespan of the batteries, ensuring that the satellite remains operational and can provide continuous connectivity services to users.
Power conversion and conditioning solutions
To ensure that each load receives power at the correct specifications, LEO satellites employ a series of converters and conditioners to modify the initial bulk DC power. With our power efficient components, it minimizes energy losses and thus maximizes performance capability.
- The intermediate bus converters (IBC) and DC-DC converter work closely to provide robust power management suitable for each of the satellite’s subsystems. Infineon’s robust solutions support reliable energy conversion and distribution in these components.
- The secondary bus conditioner and electronic bus conditioner utilize similar semiconductor technology to modify power through filtering and voltage regulation, suitable for the legacy load and solid-state amplifier.
- To further optimize the satellite’s performance, Infineon’s portfolio offers rad tolerant MOSFETs which minimize power losses, enhances thermal performance, and ensures stable operation.
Enabling manufacturers to develop energy efficient applications, Infineon offers optimal power solutions for LEO satellite applications.
Low noise amplifiers within the RF load
Low Noise Amplifiers (LNAs) play a crucial role by amplifying weak signals while introducing minimal additional noise, which is particularly important for LEO satellite networks that rely on rapid, high-frequency data exchanges.
- Working jointly with the antenna and RF load to transmit RF signals, Infineon’s LNAs are designed with enhanced resilience against environmental stressors. The antenna's design and configuration are critical in determining the satellite's communication performance, and the RF load's impedance must be matched to the LNA to ensure maximum power transfer and minimize signal loss. Our silicon-germanium (SiGe) LNAs, such as the LPH070R-01, are designed to provide exceptional performance, improved system sensitivity, and radiation tolerance, while also reducing the overall noise of the system.
Infineon's LNAs help preserve the integrity of satellite signals, enabling clearer, faster, and more reliable data transmission across global satellite networks.
Satellite digital payload solutions
To accompany the bus, Infineon’s payload solutions are designed to support a wide range of digital functions.
- For directing stable low-voltage power, Infineon’s point of load (PoL) solutions ensure efficient and reliable operations within the payload.
- To control the flow of power, Infineon offers a reliable portfolio of smart power switches, which support various loads such as the field programmable gate array (FPGA), application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), and system-on-chip (SoC).
- Responsible for storing mission-critical data, our rad-tolerant memory devices are specifically engineered and manufactured to provide robust performance and reliability. To cater to diverse requirements, our portfolio offers QDR® II+ Synchronous SRAMs and Asynchronous SRAMs for volatile memories as well as serial and parallel NOR Flash and serial and parallel F-RAMs for non-volatile memories.
The satellite digital payload solutions supported by Infineon’s portfolio enables efficient, reliable, and high-performance digital functions in LEO satellites applications.
