IUCRC Phase I Georgia Institute of Technology: Electronic-Photonic Integrated Circuits for Aerospace (EPICA)

随着人类继续将范围广泛的活动扩展到空间，以支持基本的通信、气候监测、研究和探索，当务之急是确定关键的使能性综合电子和光子技术在恶劣环境中运行的可行性和安全性。集成光子学使系统具有无与伦比的功率效率，寿命和能力，从而改善了从全球互联网可用性和可靠性到改善环境感知和增强安全性的一切，从而实现强大的国防部系统。航空航天电子-光子集成电路（EPICA）的目标是使日益复杂的电子和光子学能够用于星载和航空航天平台的通信和传感应用。由组件、系统和航空航天研究人员组成的多元化团队将合作推进相关环境考虑的知识，并制作特定的组件和架构，以满足独特的可靠性和性能要求。EPICA的目标是为航空航天和星载平台提供下一波通信和传感技术。重点是研究这些设备和系统在太空等极端环境中运行的可靠性。该项目有三个主要目标：i）评估，理解和开发强大的集成光子硬件，以确保在辐射和极端温度下的可靠运行; ii）使用系统级方法和工具开发组件和架构，以最大限度地发挥集成光子系统在航空航天平台上的优势; iii）定义飞行硬件和使命架构，以进行后续飞行演示。一个由格鲁吉亚理工大学、中央佛罗里达大学和范德比尔特大学组成的三所大学组成的团队将利用互补的专业知识和设施，将分析和实验能力应用于该项目。 格鲁吉亚理工学院的研究人员将定义航空航天系统的关键性能参数，并开发满足这些要求的架构和组件。 这些电路将在各种集成平台上制造。 格鲁吉亚技术团队还将定义和评估飞行要求的影响，包括包装和使命特定环境。 该团队将直接与范德比尔特团队合作设计和评估组件，并将与CREOL团队合作进行架构和组件设计。EPICA将提高美国在设计和制造强大的集成电子和光子学方面的能力，使全球各地能够可靠地接入互联网，并创造新的环境传感能力。EPICA团队还积极创建一支多元化的员工队伍，其中包括一个辅导计划，旨在提高来自先进光子学，电子学和光学科学领域代表性不足群体的学生的成功。每个站点都将与专业协会合作，并有积极的桥梁计划，以支持和过渡代表性不足的学生从学士学位水平到研究生院。数据，代码，结果，IAB会议摘要和出版物的项目存储库将以数字方式存档。每个站点将维护自己的本地存储，格鲁吉亚技术公司将管理一个可供项目合作伙伴访问的综合云存储站点。 该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

As mankind continues to expand a wide range of activities into space to support essential communications, climate monitoring, research and exploration, it is imperative to establish the viability and safety of key enabling integrated electronics and photonic technologies for operation in harsh environments. Integrated photonics enable systems with unmatched power efficiency, longevity and capability thus improving everything from internet availability and reliability around the planet to improving environmental sensing and enhanced security by enabling robust DoD systems. The objective of Electronic-Photonic Integrated Circuits for Aerospace (EPICA) is to enable the use of increasingly sophisticated electronics and photonics in communications and sensing applications for space-borne and aerospace platforms. The diverse team of component, systems and aerospace researchers will collaborate to advance knowledge of associated environmental considerations, and craft specific components and architectures to meet the unique reliability and performance requirements.EPICA’s objective is to enable the next wave of communications and sensing technologies for aerospace and space-borne platforms. The focus is on investigating the reliability of these devices and systems operating in extreme environments such as space. The project has three major thrusts: i) Assessment, understanding, and development of robust integrated photonic hardware for reliable operation under radiation and temperature extremes; ii) Development of components and architectures using system-level methods and tools to extract maximum advantage of integrated photonic systems for aerospace platforms; iii) Definition of flight hardware and mission architectures for subsequent flight demonstration. A three-university team, comprised of Georgia Tech, The University of Central Florida and Vanderbilt University, with complementary expertise and facilities, will apply both analytical and experimental capabilities to this project. Georgia Tech researchers will define key performance parameters for aerospace systems and develop architectures and components to meet these requirements. These circuits will be fabricated on a variety of integration platforms. The Georgia Tech team will also define and assess the impact of flight requirements including packaging and mission specific environments. The team will work directly with the Vanderbilt team in the design and assessment of components and will collaborate with the CREOL team on architecture and component design.EPICA will advance US-based capabilities in the design and manufacture of robust integrated electronics and photonics, enabling reliable internet access around the planet and creating new environmental sensing capabilities. The EPICA team is also actively creating a diverse workforce that includes a mentoring program designed to increase the success of students from underrepresented groups in areas of advanced photonics, electronics and optical sciences. Each site will engage professional societies and have active Bridge Programs to support and transition underrepresented students from the baccalaureate level to graduate school.A project repository for data, code, results, IAB meeting summaries and publications will be digitally archived. Each site will maintain their own local storage and Georgia Tech will manage a comprehensive cloud storage site accessible to the project partners. The repository will be maintained continuously from the first year and for three years after conclusion of the award.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.