AMSTAP - the UK initiative for MST and nanotechnology
UK aerospace micro system technology applications partnership

What is MST?

The micro system technology (MST) is based upon techniques established by the semiconductor industry to manufacture the modern integrated circuit. MST combines electronics, mechanics and optics at significantly reduced dimensions to achieve high performance and high complexity in a small volume (of the order of a few cubic millimetres) with correspondingly low power consumption and mass.

MST Characteristics

The micro system technology products and technology have a number of distinguishing attributes that make them attractive for the advanced manufacturing industries of the coming century. These include :

• suitability for low cost, high volume production
• reduced size, mass and power consumption
• high functionality
• improved reliability and robustness.

These attributes are directly relevant to the space industry. The cost of launching satellites is a significant fraction of mission cost and the hardware itself tends to be expensive. Therefore any reduction in launch mass and savings that can be achieved through lower cost and more reliable hardware represents a significant benefit to the industry. More importantly, the ability to conceive of missions using small, cheap to launch, mass produced, highly performant spacecraft has the potential to significantly change the development of commercial, scientific and defence space systems.

International Exploitation

There is considerable activity around the world using MST and nanotechnology. Many applications are to be found in IT, medicine and biology, process control, communications, the automotive industry and aerospace. Examples often quoted include ink jet printer heads and the accelerometers used to trigger air bags.

The application of MST and nanotechnology in the space industry is growing rapidly, in particular in the USA. Several demonstration missions from US Universities (sponsored by US government organisations) and the USAF are scheduled to fly in the near future and will include MST gyros, accelerometers and magnetometers. The USAF mission will also demonstrate formation keeping, an essential pre-requisite for advanced mission concepts using distributed apertures and collaborating spacecraft.

Areas of Application

The scope for the application of MST and nanotechnology in space is very broad. Significant areas and some examples of particular applications include :

• Instruments - optical instruments and focal plane equipment, integrated front ends for synthetic aperture radars
• Sub-systems and general spacecraft technology - avionics, thermal control, propulsion
• Individual satellites - world class science missions
• Constellations - implementation of distributed apertures
• Mechanisms - RF switches, communications devices, laboratory on a chip
• Novel applications - it can be anticipated that new and important applications will be enabled by this technology.

The technology is not just restricted to the development of small satellites. Considerable advantage can also be gained by incorporating MST into conventional spacecraft through the replacement of traditionally engineered devices with MST equivalents.

Consequently, it can be concluded that MST will play a major role in changing the shape of the space industry.

The UK Position

The UK has for many years had great expertise in both MST production and space system design and manufacturing but has yet to bring these two areas together. The AMSTAP partnership of Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Matra Marconi Space, Cranfield University and the University of Southampton, aims to exploit these strengths and enable the UK to take a world lead in the development of space applications of nanotechnology.