SatixFy and Presto Engineering test rad-hard space-grade ASICs

SatixFy and Presto Engineering test rad-hard space-grade ASICs
by Staff Writers
Rehovot, Israel (SPX) Apr 14, 2023

SatixFy has announced a strategic partnership with Presto Engineering, a recognized expert in ASIC design and semiconductor engineering and production services. This partnership supports SatixFy's growth of the Satellites constellation-based communication market by developing high-quality, space-grade and radhard (radiation hardened) ASICs (Application-Specific Integrated Circuits).

ASICs designed for space applications must undergo rigorous testing and qualification processes to ensure their performance and reliability in the harsh radiation and thermal environments of space. They are designed with radiation-hardening features, such as error-correcting codes and specialized semiconductor processes, to reduce the risk of radiation-induced errors and other malfunctions.

Presto Engineering is providing SatixFy with services to test and qualify its radiation-hardened ASICs for deployment in space, as well as automated production worthy test solution and long-term production services for SatixFy's Sx4000 and PRIME2, high-speed, mixed-signal ASIC products. SatixFy's Sx4000 is a DVB-S2X/RCS2 Software Defined Radio ASIC for regenerative on-board processing and transparent satellite systems, while PRIME2 is a digital beamformer ASIC designed for massive MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output) antenna in space and multi-beam LEO/GEO (Low or Geostationary Earth Orbit) aeronautical antennas.

"Our partnership with Presto Engineering is a key step in our goal to deliver next-generation satellite communication systems," commented Charlie Bloomfield, CEO of SatixFy Space Systems. "Its unparalleled know-how in high-speed link and millimeter-wave RF (Radio Frequency) testing has been invaluable in helping us overcome the technical challenges of developing these unique ASICs to be used in the highly demanding environment of space."

"SatixFy is a leader in the next-generation satellite communications systems and SATCOM sector, and we are very proud to be their industrialization and production partner," said Cedric Mayor, CEO of Presto Engineering. "Our teams have already been working together for five years on different projects and have jointly met all the technical challenges of these unique ASICs, delivering to launch schedule. We are thrilled to renew our engagement and to demonstrate our commitment to this long-term partnership."