Alphacore will develop a Distributed Power Management solution for realizing a high efficiency radiation-hardened solar array interface (SAI) from a spacecraft solar array to the spacecraft’s power system. The proposed implementation uses gallium nitride (GaN) power devices that offer high-power, efficient DC-DC power converters within a small form factor. These converters are the enabler for realizing a distributed maximum power point tracking solar array that maximizes the array’s power extraction from the spacecraft’s beginning to end of life. The SAI will be capable of operation in LEO for 5 years and in GEO or MEO for 15 years, with high tolerance to total radiation dose and latch-up immunity.
This solution includes all controller circuitry and power device drivers integrated in silicon, as well as the GaN-based DC-DC converter’s power stage. For distributed maximum power extraction, the single-module DC-DC converter, will have radiation-hard built-in-self-test (BIST) to monitor critical performance parameters and calibrate controller parameters for high radiation conditions and over converter (i.e. spacecraft) lifetime.
Artist rendering of a solar-powered cube-sat
