Development and Qualification of MLO

On 23.04.2021 we have successfully completed another project for ESA entitled “Development and Qualification of Dual Redundant Medium Power Master Signal Source”.

The project started in April 2018. The main goal of the project was to develop a very low phase-noise frequency generator in the frequency range of 3-13 GHz operating as a Master Signal Source supplying multiple on-board satellite devices with a very stable, high-frequency reference signal.

The outcome of the project is an Engineering Qualified Model (EQM) of a Dual Redundant Medium Power Master Signal Source operating at 12.1 GHz. Many stringent qualification tests have shown that the device can maintain full functionality in the target operational environment, allowing it to work properly for 15 years in geostationary orbit.

The target application for the DRMSS are high and very high throughput telecommunication satellites, which typically include a high number of frequency converters operating using the same local oscillator (LO) signal. This allows to implement a centralized ultra-low phase noise LO at a single required frequency feeding multiple frequency converters with the same LO signal. This solution reduces the total number of local oscillators included on-board of a satellite, allowing to significantly reduce weight and power consumption of the LO generators. In a typical application, The DRMSS can feed about 20 – 40 frequency converters. Thanks to its built-in dual-redundancy and design according to the ECSS requirements, the DRMSS offers very high reliability, which is critical in such application.