Electronic Techniques For Radiation Hardening of EKV Electro-Optics Subsystems

The Missile Defense Agency has developed a set of nuclear requirements to be used as design criteria for all ballistic missile defense elements. These design criteria provide three levels of increasing survivability. The current GMD GBI boosters were not designed to meet the current MDA survivability criteria and no effort to determine the extent to which the current design meets MDA STD 001 has been made. Our effort is a cost effective engineering based method for assessing the impact the MDA STD nuclear environments will have on the GBI booster and ultimately can be used to assess the survivability probability of the booster subsystems after exposure to the new MDA criteria. The assessment will also include definition of needed technology development programs needed to address booster deficiencies. This effort is focused on the GMD GBI Orbital Sciences Corporation (OSC) booster and will be cooperatively performed in coordination with the GBI Program Office, Boeing and OSC.