Recent low-earth orbit (LEO) commercialization is changing space exploration and satellite communication. Although it is not deep space, it’s still a harsh environment that demands electronic components to be rugged enough to meet extreme conditions. Microchip Technology Inc. announced its first commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) radiation-tolerant power device, the MIC69303RT 3-A low-dropout (LDO) voltage regulator, targeting LEO and other space applications. The high-current, low-voltage power management solution joins Microchip’s portfolio of space-qualified devices, including radiation-tolerant microcontrollers such as the SAM71Q21RT and PolarFire FPGAs including the RTPF500TLS.
(Source: Microchip Technology)
The COTS approach enables designers to perform early development and preliminary evaluation, said Microchip. With the COTS MIC69303RT, space system developers can rapidly develop prototypes and final designs for their power management systems.
The LDO voltage regulator operates from a single low-voltage supply of 1.65 to 5.5 V, and it can supply output voltages as low as 0.5 V at high currents, with high-precision and ultra-low dropout voltages of 500 mV under extreme conditions. The device is operational over a temperature range from -55°C to 125°C.
The MIC69303RT also is Microchip’s first rad-tolerant power management device with a hermetic ceramic package, latch-up immunity and radiation toleration up to 50 Krad.
The device is manufactured in compliance with MIL Class Q or Class V requirements including screening testing, qualification testing and TCI/QCI specifications. The plastic MIC69303RT is also compliant with high-reliability plastic quality flow as part of AEC-Q100 automotive requirements with specific additional tests necessary for space applications.
In addition to space and LEO applications, the low noise of the output enables its use in applications such as sensitive RF circuits, post-regulation of switching power supplies and industrial power applications.
Housed in 8-pin and 10-pin packages, the MIC69303RT is available in limited sampling on request. Development tools include a MIC69303RT Plastic Evaluation Board designed to evaluate the performance of the plastic engineering IC version for the MIC69303RT. The PCB allows the user to easily change and measure the electric parameters of the device at different input and output conditions.
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