Speaker
Dr
Ralf Boelter
(Tesat-Spacecom GmbH & Co. KG)
Description
Additive Layer Manufacturing (ALM) provides a new freedom to design to RF components with the goal to increase performance, to reduce mass and to decrease schedule and cost by a higher level of integration directly manufactured. The whole process chain of ALM including post processing for RF components was investigated and especially the electrical effect of the surface roughness including steps for its reduction was demonstrated. From these results short term and long term application fields of ALM for RF components are derived and first results of wide band components (waveguides) in electrical performance and schedule and cost compared to conventional manufacturing techniques are presented.
JUSTIFICATION FOR THE CONSIDERATION
The presentation links the process properties of ALM (tolerances, voids, surface roughness, post processing) with the needs of RF components. It is shown that the limitations of the ALM process have direct consequences to the electrical performance and therefore the possible application fields of ALM for RF components. The results clearly demonstrate that today wide band components as waveguides can already be manufactured by ALM and give significant improvements e.g. in test fields. On the other side further ALM process improvements are necessary to use ALM e.g. also for narrow band components. First examples are given in the presentation.
Primary author
Dr
Ralf Boelter
(Tesat-Spacecom GmbH & Co. KG)
