Radio frequency (RF) and microwave technology used in the military is ever-evolving and necessarily acclimating to the congested digital battlefield. These solutions need to be fluent in the language of electronic warfare (EW). Demands for multifunctionality, digitization, and increased sensitivity are pushing designers to add these capabilities that warfighters require when translating electronic noise into actionable information.

ARLINGTON, Va. MIssion-critical electronics company CAES has signed a contract with the European Space Agency (ESA) to develop a fault- and radiation-tolerant system-on-chip (SoC) intended for use in satellite and spacecraft applications.

SpaceVPX undertakes a lot to deliver a lot: With so many profiles and configurations available, the devil is in the details when it comes to producing efficient, standards-compliant, power solutions. Supplying and muxing manifold power rails to payload slots through SpaceUM [utility module] is especially challenging due to the myriad of profile choices available and is further complicated in the smaller 3U form factor. The good news is that new, efficient space-grade power-conversion and control technology is making SpaceVPX/UM standards-compliant power supplies and power distribution more manageable, even in the small 3U form factor.

Supply chain bottlenecks, small satellites, complex adversarial threats in space and electromagnetic spectrum domains are all driving innovation at the microelectronics level. In this podcast, Dave Young, CTO of CAES, formerly Cobham, discusses how these challenges impact microelectronics solutions for military programs, how the defense industry is coping with the semiconductor supply chain headaches through investment and a plan for on-sho​re production, how commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) products factor into modern military space systems, and what CAES' acquisition of Colorado Engineering means for the company.  

ARLINGTON, Va. CAES, provider of mission-critical electronic solutions, has been selected by L3Harris Technologies to develop radio frequency (RF) assemblies for its new Viper Shield all-digital electronic warfare (EW) suite.

Military suppliers, being essential businesses, weathered the pandemic and economic shutdowns admirably thanks to strong defense funding. Yet even this stalwart industry is feeling the ill effects of the global chip shortage and the consequences of its reliance on offshore semiconductor manufacturing. The U.S. government is committed to returning chip production to the States, but whether that move will be enough and in time to save the industry is yet to be determined.