A Radio Voltaic Power Supply (RVPSTM) aims to provide electronics self-heating as well as continuous micropower for decades, supporting long duration missions and sensor applications.

Under this activity, a novel Diamond-based RVPS has been modelled, technology matured, and fabricated, incorporating the beta-emitting radioisotope carbon-14 within the device semiconductor lattice.

MRAM (Magnetic Random Access Memory) technology is very interesting for space use since:

Science TTC systems, Earth observation instruments and Telecommunication system payloads are more and more calling for multi-frequency reflector-based high gain antennas. As examples, one may refer to altimeters, radiometers and SAR (e.g. COREH2O) for Earth Observation and high-gain data transmission antennas as for the JUICE mission requiring both X- and Ka-band frequencies. Multi-frequency and multi-polarisation operation is often required hence the need for Frequency/polarization Selective Surfaces(FSS) integrated with (sub)reflectors or partially reflective surface.

The challenge in space data acquisition, e.g. for earth observation, lies in limited data-downlink capacity. Advances in onboard processing technology prompt exploration of deploying edge computing on satellites to alleviate data transport issues. This can be achieved through individual satellites or specialized networks akin to public cloud data centres. Use-case evaluation and stakeholder validation shaped system requirements for a generic Space Data Centre (SDC) architecture that was devised and simulated in Excel, integrating technology roadmaps and user needs.

Solar energy is a renewable energy whose harvesting depends on the incidence of solar rays on solar panels. Solar trackers are basically made of mechanically or pneumatic actuating systems enable to adapt the solar panel inclination with solar daily course. Although this action may lead to more effective solar panel, it costs actuating energy and requires maintenance which is detrimental in extreme environment like space.

Key challenges for solar fuel technologies to become viable and widely deployed are their durability and cost. These challenges directly relate to the semiconductor-electrolyte (SE) interface inherent to traditional photoelectrochemical (PEC) approaches and to the low energy density of solar radiation (~1000 W/m2) and its stochastic and cyclic nature, requiring large processing areas with idle waiting time (i.e. low capacity factors).

Advanced III-V technologies, especially wide-bandgap GaN, are the engines powering the rapid deployment of various SATCOM multi-beam active antenna arrays in space today. Although power levels per element in the recent Direct Radiating Arrays (DRAs) are typically in the order of few watts (e.g. for GEO with HPA MMICs 2-15W), already now it is apparent that larger deployable active antennas with hundred or even thousand elements will yield much lower power per radiating element with DRA.

The development of efficient catalysts which utilise solar energy to convert CO2 to produce value-added chemicals or fuels is extremely appealing since it can simultaneously reduce the greenhouse gas emissions and provide energy storage solutions, with direct applications in both terrestrial and non-terrestrial environments. In recent years, novel solid catalysts such as metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have demonstrated great potential in energy conversion systems.