I wrote a paper as an space research intern about how to do high temperature electronics for a Venus probe and the paper was published before this 2017 clockwork rover idea (& I wouldn’t argue that our paper was massively groundbreaking, just sort of a new synthesis of existing ideas... our mentor already knew this was feasible):
I like the unique constraints of trying to make the computation mechanical, but... It was IMO clear well before 2017 that the electronics option was more feasible than the mechanical approach. Glenn Research Center has had high temperature electronics for quite a while.
EDIT:And now we have full up high temperature SiC integrated circuits and memories. Totally obsoletes the hand wavy SiC circuits in my intern paper, but it is truly an amazing capability compared to anything mechanical: https://hackaday.com/2021/05/03/silicon-carbide-chips-can-go...
Progress continues. Silicon carbide electronics is coming along nicely outside of NASA. There's now a small system on a chip, from a company in Arkansas, rated for 500°C.[1] There's interest in high-temperature ICs for sensors inside jet engines and down-hole sensors for oil drilling. Silicon carbide power transistors that can run very hot without damage are commercial products.
I wonder how you assemble circuits of components that run above solder-melting temperatures. Laser welding, probably.
Comments
I wrote a paper as an space research intern about how to do high temperature electronics for a Venus probe and the paper was published before this 2017 clockwork rover idea (& I wouldn’t argue that our paper was massively groundbreaking, just sort of a new synthesis of existing ideas... our mentor already knew this was feasible):
https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/20150002090/downloads/20...
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/272522839_Venus_hig...
I like the unique constraints of trying to make the computation mechanical, but... It was IMO clear well before 2017 that the electronics option was more feasible than the mechanical approach. Glenn Research Center has had high temperature electronics for quite a while.
EDIT:And now we have full up high temperature SiC integrated circuits and memories. Totally obsoletes the hand wavy SiC circuits in my intern paper, but it is truly an amazing capability compared to anything mechanical: https://hackaday.com/2021/05/03/silicon-carbide-chips-can-go...
Progress continues. Silicon carbide electronics is coming along nicely outside of NASA. There's now a small system on a chip, from a company in Arkansas, rated for 500°C.[1] There's interest in high-temperature ICs for sensors inside jet engines and down-hole sensors for oil drilling. Silicon carbide power transistors that can run very hot without damage are commercial products.
I wonder how you assemble circuits of components that run above solder-melting temperatures. Laser welding, probably.
[1] https://www.ozarkic.com/products/
Indeed, and they got the technology transferred to them from NASA Glenn: https://technology.grc.nasa.gov/featurestory/ozark-award
This is a great success story so far.
I've worked with plenty of engineers from UA and have heard the name Mantooth in passing. What a small world.