Radiation-Tolerant Ka-Band Deployable Phased-Array Transceiver for Low-Earth Orbit Small Satellite Constellation

This paper introduces the technology for radiation tolerance of Ka-band deployable phased-array antenna to provide wider communications infrastructure. Radiation in outer space degrades the performance of electronic devices. Furthermore, because the BFIC on the deployable phased-array antenna cannot be shielded due to the antenna structure, higher radiation tolerance is required than general aerospace ICs. The amount of radiation tolerance required was calculated and the high radiation tolerance technology of the BFIC was introduced, which was evaluated from the measurement results be exposing the BFIC to 3 Mrad radiation which exceeds the conventional measurement dose.