Low Power, Small Form Factor, High Performance EVA Radio Employing Micromachined Contour Mode Piezoelectric Resonators and Filters, Phase I

In Phase I Harmonic Devices proposes to investigate the feasibility of a low-power, low-volume, lightweight, frequency agile, and fault tolerant EVA radio based on the co-design of the transceiver with high Q contour mode piezoelectric resonators and filters, low-loss switches, and tunable capacitors. The radio will span from VHF to S-band frequencies (or higher) and support voice, data, and video capabilities. HDI's contour mode aluminum nitride (AlN) technology allows the CAD level definition of arrays of filters, resonator, switches, and tunable capacitors, with operating frequencies from 10 MHz to several to several GHz, all on a single silicon chip. The proposed work represents a radio architecture paradigm shift in which arrays of high-Q micromachined elements (resonators, switches, tunable capacitors) are embedded in the transceiver circuit blocks. Conceptually, the library of low-Q circuit elements (resistors, inductors, capacitors) traditionally available to the RFIC designer are supplemented with HDI's high-Q components. In the Phase I study HDI will design and evaluate novel high-Q component-based transceiver circuit blocks (LNA, oscillators/synthesizers, power amplifiers, etc.), optimize the design of its RF micromachined components for embedding in RFICs, and determine the optimum radio architecture to leverage its high-Q micromachined component technology.

This is a mature technology (TRL 7+) — the realistic path in is usually NASA's Technology Transfer Program: licensing an existing NASA patent, or a Space Act Agreement to use NASA facilities/expertise directly. NASA also runs a startup licensing program with no upfront fee for companies formed to commercialize a specific NASA technology.

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