News Briefs - Hardware:

Maxwell Expands Line Of High Performance SDRAM Components

Maxwell Technologies, Inc. announced that it has added 21 additional form factors and configurations to its line of high-performance, radiation- hardened, Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory (SDRAM) components for space applications, dramatically increasing the options for aerospace engineers requiring higher density memory to keep up with the escalating computing demands of space applications.

By providing bursts of synchronous data, SDRAM runs at much higher clock speeds than conventional memory components, making it an ideal technology for meeting the growing computing performance requirements for space applications. However, because the process of producing radiation-hardened components requires a special semiconductor fabrication facility and several years of development work, components available to the space industry typically lag current technology platforms by several generations.

Maxwell has closed this technology gap by providing high-speed, high-density, commercial components that are protected from radiation effects by proprietary radiation shielding technology, and currently is the only vendor to the space industry offering die-based radiation-hardened SDRAM components that allow aerospace engineers to use the latest computing technology in a highly reliable, radiation-hardened form factor. Maxwell provides these SDRAM components in a patented shielded package manufactured in its QML-certified facility. Its SDRAM products already have been designed into systems being developed by several customers, including General Dynamics C4 Systems, a leading integrator of secure communication and information systems and technology.

"Memory system designs have grown increasingly complex in aerospace applications," said Larry Longden, Maxwell's senior director of product technology. "As satellites and other space platforms demand increased processing power, the industry needs higher density components that perform reliably in the harsh environments encountered in space."

Maxwell's new SDRAM products are fully qualified and radiation-hardened for use in space. They feature configurations from 256 Mb to 1.5 Gb and enhanced memory widths for use in high-performance computer systems. In a typical GEO orbit, these components provide greater than 100 krads radiation dose tolerance. Pricing for flight level SDRAM memory components begins at $2,297 for a quantity of 100 units.

"Maxwell is committed to providing the aerospace engineering community with the highest possible level of reliability and performance," said Robert Tressler, vice-president of sales and marketing for Maxwell. "The significant expansions we announced today, along with ongoing advances in our manufacturing processes, will help our OEM customers reduce their costs, shorten design cycles, and dramatically deepen the pool of available technology options without having to sacrifice performance for the sake of reliability."