High Radiation Tolerant Ceramic Voltage Isolator (Non-Optical Gate Driver)

The goal of the Phase I effort is to design, develop and demonstrate a novel solid-state ceramic-based voltage isolator and demonstrate its potential to provide a highly radiation tolerant digital voltage isolation solution applicable to a wide range of NASA mission requirements. The related design success QorTek has will lead to development in Phase I of a completely new gate drive technology with many advantages and benefits to the entire spectrum of NASA and commercial applications. The Phase I design goals are focused primarily on early COMSOL Multiphysics based Finite Element Analysis (FEA) of the proposed ceramic device, as well as electrical circuit design and SPICE modeling of a high-side MOSFET gate driver system incorporating the new ceramic isolator. This preliminary development early in the program will enable the main objective of Phase I which is to fabricate initial isolator ceramic-based gate driver prototypes and undertake basic electrical test characterization of their performance. An all-inclusive electrical design targeted to isolated MOSFET gate driver applications will also be developed as a functional demonstration platform prototype. The purpose of the Phase I prototypes is to demonstrate, through hardware functional testing and device characterization, that the ceramic gate driver technology provides a feasible size and performance equivalent replacement for similar COTS non-rad hard isolation solutions.

There are many NASA missions requiring digital isolator/signal transmission and gate driver devices such as deep space applications involving orbiters and landers that require data isolation circuits to block noise as well as level shifting interfaces for digital to analog formats. These will also be critical to Heliophysics and Earth observations mission. Moreover, future NASA space missions will need to be smaller, lighter, and cheaper (and possibly unheated) spacecraft.

Commercial applications include systems involving error-free data transmission at high speed. Any system that currently uses optocouplers could also benefit from this replacement. These systems include industrial power supplies and regulation systems, electric motor control and drive systems, and instrumentation and medical systems. Other areas of application will be in integrated high temperature Wide Band Gap gate driver applications.

This is early/mid-stage (TRL 4) — the most realistic path in is NASA SBIR/STTR, which funds small businesses and research institutions to develop technology aligned with NASA's needs (equity-free, phased funding). Check whether a current SBIR/STTR solicitation topic overlaps with this project's technology area, or contact the project directly (above) to ask.

None of these are guaranteed paths for this specific project — TechPort itself doesn't have an "apply" button. Reaching out to the contact(s) above with a specific question is usually the fastest way to find out what's actually open.