NASA‘ s Small Business Innovation Research Program has awarded Boston Micromachines $1.2 million in contracts to support space-based imaging research to develop compact, ultra-low-power, high-voltage multiplexed drive electronics suitable for integration with deformable mirrors in space-based wavefront control applications.
“High-resolution wavefront correction with deformable mirrors is essential for all telescope architectures to be used in NASA’s ongoing search for extrasolar planets, ” said Paul Bierden, president and co-founder of Boston Micromachines. “However, a new generation of DM systems are required to be compatible with the size, weight, and power constraints of space-based telescopes. Our new deformable mirrors paired with multiplexed drive electronics will provide a compelling solution that fills this critical technology gap in space-based imaging instruments to be used in NASA’s search for exoplanets.”
The project aims for a tenfold reduction in size and power and a significant decrease in interconnection complexity while maintaining the high precision required for high contrast exoplanet detection.
