Infineon Technologies AG has confirmed that its radiation-hardened HiRel power devices are aboard NASANational Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope. The observatory launched from Kennedy Space Center and is now heading to the second Sun-Earth Lagrange point, where it will operate for up to a decade without any possibility of maintenance or servicing.
The company positions the deployment as part of a long space heritage and says the mission depends on power electronics that can work reliably from day one and remain stable in a harsh radiation environment. Beyond Earth’s magnetic field, high-energy particles can permanently damage semiconductor components, so the devices used in Roman are qualified for MIL-PRF standards and characterized for Total Ionizing Dose and Single Event Effects.
Infineon says the integrated HiRel portfolio includes radiation-hardened silicon power MOSFET1. metal-oxide semiconductor field effect transistorVoltage-controlled field-effect transistor with an insulated gate, widely used in integrated circuits.2. metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistorA common transistor type used here as the layout and technology reference.s, GaNgallium nitrideGaN is another material platform mentioned for use in different power delivery roles. transistors, gate drivers, solid-state relays and diodes. The company also highlights in-house fabrication, radiation-testing capabilities and guaranteed long-term product availability as part of the offering.
A key element is Infineon’s JANS-qualified rad-hard 100 V GaNgallium nitrideGaN is another material platform mentioned for use in different power delivery roles. transistor, described as the first and only internally manufactured rad-hard GaNgallium nitrideGaN is another material platform mentioned for use in different power delivery roles. transistor on the market qualified per MIL-PRF-19500. According to Infineon, GaNgallium nitrideGaN is another material platform mentioned for use in different power delivery roles. supports lower switching losses, higher power density and higher switching frequencies, which in turn reduce magnetic component requirements and can save weight and volume at system level.
The Roman mission is expected to downlink about 1.4 terabytes of raw science data per day, making reliable continuous power delivery to instruments and data systems essential to the telescope’s operation. Infineon says its components are part of that power chain from the start of the mission.