ESA Open Invitation to Tender: 1-11166
Open Date: 18/10/2022 10:41 CEST
Closing Date: 16/01/2023 16:00 CEST

The objective of the activity is to design, manufacture and test a TTC diplexer at S-Band for small sat applications with a reduced volume and mass. Targeted Improvements: Diplexer with 60% less volume and a 50% mass reduction compared to the current state of the art. Description: S-band TTC systems are commonly used in telecommunication satellites for the link between the spacecraft and ground stations during flight and orbit raising until the satellite reaches its nominal orbit. TTC systems commonly comprise a diplexer which separates receive and transmit paths. S-band diplexers are typically the bulky component in TTC modules. Reducing its size could lead to a significant reduction in size of the whole unit. This is particularly important in small satellites where the size and mass are critical parameters. Commonly used coaxial resonator technology leads to bulky diplexer solutions. Dielectric material has been used extensively to achieve compactness for low power filters and, lately, even for medium/high power applications. New dielectric materials can provide a good Q-factor and hence low insertion losses. Advanced manufacturing techniques, such as LTCC, combined with novel dielectric materials can reduce the size, enabling better integration with the whole TTC unit. Further, the freedom offered by advanced manufacturing techniques can also improve the insertion loss of the component through an appropriate design at resonator level. In order to achieve the required near band rejection, the insertion of transmission zeros is commonly needed. By using more complex transfer functions it is possible to increase the number of transmission zeros while keeping a low number of resonators. This can lead to reduced insertion loss and a smaller diplexer footprint whilst still providing sufficient near-band rejection. The activity shall review the current state of the art, evaluate dielectric resonator material properties in detail, develop breadboards for two different design concepts based on dielectric technology and produce an engineering model to validate the most promising concept. Procurement Policy: C(1) = Activity restricted to non-prime contractors (incl. SMEs). For additional information please go to this link.

Directorate: Directorate Telecom Integrated Applica
Estabilishment: ECSAT
ECOS Required: No
Classified: No
Price Range: > 500 KEURO
Authorised Contact Person: Audrey Ferreol
Initiating Service: TIA-TTS
IP Measure: C1
Prog. Reference: E/0534-01G - CC-AT 4.0.1
Tender Type: Open Competition
Open To Tenderers From: AT+BE+CA+CH+CZ+DE+DK+GR+ES+FI+FR+GB+HU+IE+IT+LU+NL+NO+PL+PT+RO+SE
Technology Keywords: 6-E-III-RF Devices
Products Keywords: 2-L-2/3/4.1-a-Analog: RF front ends