16 Sep 2011

STMicroelectronics extends rad-hard analog product range

STMicroelectronics has unveiled four radiation hardened amplifiers for aerospace applications, which have achieved official QML V qualification.

"According to the Satellite Industry Association, the global satellite industry is healthy and growing. Global revenues totaled $168.1 billion, in 2010, for an 11.2 percent average annual industry growth rate over the past 5 years," said Alberto De Marco, ST General Manager, High-reliability and Standard Products Division. "... [it] is critical for electronic components, like those we are introducing today, to withstand the high levels of radiation found in space."

The standard hardness of ST's components to ionising radiation is 300 krad (Si) (Total Ionization Dose hardness, known as TID), including low dose-rate irradiation. ST says this makes the company the first supplier to offer Radiation Hardness Assurance (RHA)-qualified products with Enhanced Low Dose Rate Sensitivity free (ELDRS-free) integrated circuits.

The company also claims to provide the highest hardness to the damage caused by heavy ions, with Single Event Latch-up (SEL)-free and Single Event False Interrupt (SEFI)-free components. The new products provide protection against the transient glitches caused by heavy ions, known as Single Event Transients (SETs), that are particularly challenging for analog components used in space.

The extension of the product family includes the following devices: RHF484, a quad version of the RHF43B and an alternative to industry-standard products. Packaged in a Flat-14W, its QML V qualification was achieved in August 2011.

RHF310 and RHF330, and very low power 5V op amps ideally suited to a wide range of signal-conditioning applications. The 120 MHz and 1.0GHz versions are already QML V qualified.

Another device, the 550 MHz RHF350 is expected to be qualified in Q4 2011.

ST's rad-hard analog integrated circuits feature very low power consumption and are designed using BICMOS technologies. These devices are added to the European Product Part List (EPPL) once space qualified, with the active support of the Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES).

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