The Technology Demonstration Module On-Board PROBA-II

Abstract

As a semiconductor component radiation effects and technology demonstration experiment, the Technology Demonstration Module (TDM) integrated into the PROBA-II satellite, was launched on November 2nd 2009, into a 800 km polar orbit. This SEU/SEL experiment, in strong support to the Reference SEU Monitor database , will be described and details given about ground testing and calibrations. Since ground testing was carried out on flight lot devices and under flight operational conditions, the in-orbit SEU/SEL database will eventually become a vital reference point for improved modeling, prediction and testing. Evidence to confirm this promise is starting to emerge and will be presented at the end of the paper. As the present in-orbit number of events is still small, only the first month of flight performance will be presented with strong emphasis on validating correct operation of monitored devices.