We anticipate high volume product opportunities for the MEMS switch integration technology within the DOD and non-Government commercial markets. For military communications, the benefits are higher bandwidth, multipoint links, and low payload weight for planes, missiles, tanks, and soldiers. Microwave Switch Matrix (MSM) applications exist in automated test equipment and instrumentation. MSMs are widely used in microwave test setups and satellite communications systems.
The initial application is for the Beyond Einstein Inflation Probe as part of the Physics of the Cosmos Program, but has additional applications in other future NASA decadal survey missions including Aerosol-Cloud-Ecosystems (ACE), Snow and Cold Land Processes (SCLP), and Precipitation and All-Weather Temperature and Humidity (PATH). NASA satellite communications systems could also benefit from this technology in microwave switch matrix modules for efficiently multiplexing high data rate uplinks and downlinks such as in the Advanced Communications Technology Satellite (ACTS). The MEMS switch integration technology will provide NASA additional capabilities at higher signal frequencies, allowing more effective use of RF hardware on board mission satellites.
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