Title :
Operation of commercial R3000 processors in the Low Earth Orbit (LEO) space environment
Author :
Kaschmitter, J.L. ; Shaeffer, D.L. ; Colella, N.J. ; McKnett, C.L. ; Coakley, P.G.
Author_Institution :
Lawrence Livermore Nat. Lab., CA, USA
fDate :
12/1/1991 12:00:00 AM
Abstract :
Spacecraft processors must operate with minimal degradation of performance in the Low Earth Orbit (LEO) radiation environment, which includes the effects of total accumulated ionizing dose and single event phenomena (SEP) caused by protons and cosmic rays. Commercially available microprocessors can offer a number of advantages relative to radiation-hardened devices but are not normally designed to tolerate effects induced by the LEO environment. Extensive testing of the MIPS R3000 Reduced Instruction Set Computer (RISC) microprocessor family for operation in LEO environments is reported. The authors have characterized total dose and SEP effects for altitudes and inclinations of interest to systems operating in LEO, and they postulate techniques for detection and alleviation of SEP effects based on experimental results
Keywords :
CMOS integrated circuits; aerospace instrumentation; cosmic ray effects and interactions; environmental testing; integrated circuit testing; microprocessor chips; proton effects; reduced instruction set computing; CMOS; LEO environment; MIPS R3000 RISC microprocessor; R3000 processors; cosmic rays; low Earth orbit space environment; protons; single event phenomena; spacecraft processors; testing; total accumulated ionizing dose; Computer aided instruction; Cosmic rays; Degradation; Ionizing radiation; Low earth orbit satellites; Microprocessors; Protons; Reduced instruction set computing; Space vehicles; Testing;
Journal_Title :
Nuclear Science, IEEE Transactions on
