Uploaded November 2025 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
Rising investments in the space industry has created greater demand for microelectronics usable in space vehicles. However, designing microelectronic components is challenging, due to the harsh environment, along with stringent weight and size constraints. This work focuses on designing a test protocol for an off-the-shelf component, the FTLX8574D3BCV Multimode 10G SFP+ optical transceiver, to measure its susceptibility to ionizing radiation and charged particles. Preliminary results suggest that combining high atomic-number materials (e.g., tungsten) to shield gamma radiation with complementary layers containing boron for neutron moderation can reduce the total shielding mass, compared to previously published shield designs. These findings offer an alternative solution for designing space-capable transceivers to allow for high-speed data transmission at low bit error rates. By evaluating an off the shelf component for space applications, this research presents a cost-effective option that may help reduce testing costs and accelerate qualification time for new parts, which is greatly needed in the growing space industry today.
Sean Klein: Sean Klein is a Computer Engineering student at Purdue University with research interests spanning microelectronics reliability, counterfeit detection, and the application of machine learning to engineering challenges.
Rising investments in the space industry has created greater demand for microelectronics usable in space vehicles. However, designing microelectronic components is challenging, due to the harsh environment, along with stringent weight and size constraints. This work focuses on designing a test protocol for an off-the-shelf component, the FTLX8574D3BCV Multimode 10G SFP+ optical transceiver, to measure its susceptibility to ionizing radiation and charged particles. Preliminary results suggest that combining high atomic-number materials (e.g., tungsten) to shield gamma radiation with complementary layers containing boron for neutron moderation can reduce the total shielding mass, compared to previously published shield designs. These findings offer an alternative solution for designing space-capable transceivers to allow for high-speed data transmission at low bit error rates. By evaluating an off the shelf component for space applications, this research presents a cost-effective option that may help reduce testing costs and accelerate qualification time for new parts, which is greatly needed in the growing space industry today.
Sean Klein: Sean Klein is a Computer Engineering student at Purdue University with research interests spanning microelectronics reliability, counterfeit detection, and the application of machine learning to engineering challenges.
