Switching Electronics for Space-Based Telescopes with Advanced AO Systems

A 32x32-channel multiplexing Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) driver, which can hold a voltage signal with a 16-bit resolution or beyond, is proposed. Such a driver will greatly reduce the operation power, and are compact and reliable. When the ASIC driver is vertically integrated with a Deformable Mirror (DM), the potential wiring failure will be eliminated. Furthermore, radiation resistance will be emphasized during ASIC design. During Phase I period, we had (1) verified the concept of the proposed floating driver for controlling an HV switch configured by a pair of transistors, (2) developed a high-voltage unity-gain buffer for tracing an isolated voltage signal, which is an essential tool towards developing switch arrays with high quality, (3) established the test methods for measuring switch parameters that directly impact the performance of a DM, (4) identified the main switch parameters, feedthrough and leakage, which are the primary impediments causing the drift of a stroke. All of the above made it possible for us to focus on (1) screen HV IC processes to find a qualified IC process with which a switch featuring low leakage can be fabricated, (2) apply decoupling technique to eliminate feedthrough, (3) manufacture an advanced 32x32 switch array with a voltage-resolution of 16-bit or beyond in Phase II.