Small Business Technology News
NASA Provider Reaches Phase II Of SBIR
Written by Jenna Weiner
Published: 6/8/2011
NASA's Small Business Innovation Research Program has provided Phase II funding to a Cambridge, Massachusetts-based corporation.
Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Boston Micromachines Corporation was recently awarded a Phase II contract of $1.2 million for space-based imaging research by NASA's Small Business Innovation Research Program.
As part of its Phase II project, the company will develop compact, ultra-low power, high-voltage multiplexed drive electronics suitable for integration into the company's deformable mirror (DM) products in space-based wavefront control applications. It aims to reduce the size, power and interconnection complexity of innovative driver circuits for the DMs the company previously developed in support of NASA's Terrestrial Planet Finder Mission.
"High-resolution wavefront correction with deformable mirrors is essential for all telescope architectures to be used in NASA's ongoing search for extrasolar planets," said Paul Bierden, president and co-founder of Boston Micromachines. "However, a new generation of DM systems are required to be compatible with the size, weight and power constraints of space-based telescopes."
Bierden added that the new deformable mirrors, when paired with multiplexed drive electronics, will provide a solution that fills the critical technology gap in space-based imaging instruments used by NASA.
Phase II contracts for NASA's SBIR Program last for 24 months and offer a maximum funding of $600,000.
Share this article
About Our Small Business News
Our entrepreneurial news is packed with the latest news for small business startups and entrepreneurs. Find helpful entrepreneur resources about small business management, financing, marketing & technology.
Additional Resources for Entrepreneurs