Deep dive: Inside the semiconductor ecosystem
These articles offer in-depth perspectives on specific parts of the semiconductor ecosystem. They focus on technologies, tools and methods that enable development and production.
Space missions depend on electronics that keep working when failure is not an option. Heat, radiation and mechanical stress can quickly disable conventional systems, making reliability a decisive factor in mission success. Under these constraints, the link between scientific ambition and engineering capability becomes critical.
Sweden has a strong innovation ecosystem that develops technologies for demanding environments. In Kista, researchers and companies collaborate across semiconductors, sensing and communication to build electronics designed to keep operating when materials are pushed to their limits, and to meet the requirements that space systems impose.
Electronics at the limits of space
Space environments push electronics beyond terrestrial conditions, both in intensity and in how many factors interact at once. Each destination introduces constraints that shape mission lifetime, as well as what measurements spacecraft can deliver.
Jupiter illustrates the radiation challenge. Its intense radiation degrades semiconductor structures through charge accumulation and single-event effects. For the Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) mission, Swedish researchers developed the Radio & Plasma Wave Investigation (RPWI) instrument using radiation-tolerant layouts, guard structures and shielding that keep analogue and digital stages operating where standard circuits fail.
Venus brings a different challenge: heat. Surface temperatures above 460 °C render silicon unusable within minutes, and even commercial SiC devices reach their limits at 200–250 °C. Earlier missions, such as the Soviet Venera landers, survived little more than an hour, underlining how quickly systems degrade in these conditions.
At KTH Royal Institute of Technology, the Working on Venus project has demonstrated 4H-SiC circuits operating above 500 °C, including oscillators, amplifiers and sensor interfaces that remain stable under extreme heat and pressure.
Beyond radiation and temperature, spacecraft electronics must also handle mechanical loads during launch and sharp temperature swings in orbit, which influence materials, interconnects and packaging. Other environments add further stress, including dust and UV exposure on Mars and altered heat flow in vacuum, while long communication distances tighten requirements on signal stability and noise performance.
Together, these examples show how mission environments translate into concrete demands on materials, circuits and packaging. These demands make radiation tolerance, high-temperature operation and mechanical robustness central priorities in Swedish space-related semiconductor research, both for space systems and advanced terrestrial applications.
Engineering space-ready technology
Turning extreme mission needs into working systems requires more than research. Industry plays a central role in translating results into components that can be produced, integrated and trusted in space missions, as well as in advanced terrestrial systems.
IRnova develops infrared detectors built for environments where temperature, radiation and illumination vary sharply — conditions typical of orbital imaging and planetary sensing. Their focal-plane arrays use III–V materials such as QWIP (quantum well infrared photodetectors) and T2SL (type-II superlattice) structures optimised for low dark current and high responsivity, enabling thermal mapping, atmospheric profiling and long-range imaging.
“The next generation of space missions will rely on a constellation of satellites with numerous large-format sensors with on-chip signal processing on every satellite,” says Linda Höglund, R&D Mnager at IRnova.
“This sets additional requirements for volume production of high-performance, high-resolution and large-format sensors. This fits the T2SL technology boosted at IRnova perfectly, as these sensors are easily scalable to large formats and designed for manufacturability. On-chip signal processing means pushing beyond today’s limits in infrared technology by stacking multiple CMOS layers to form a read-out circuit.”
On Earth, the same detector platforms support applications ranging from day and night vision for 24/7 drone detection and missile warning systems to monitoring and safety systems that identify gas leaks and thermal anomalies with high precision for non-destructive industrial control.
Beyond sensing, missions depend on reliable communication links. Sivers Semiconductors develops millimetre-wave and RF chipsets essential for deep-space communication. Long-distance links require precise beam steering, low noise and stable gain as signals weaken, and Sivers’ beamforming ICs integrate phase shifters, LNAs and PAs engineered for stable, predictable performance across wide thermal ranges.
These capabilities also reinforce terrestrial networks. High-frequency front ends improve spectral efficiency and resilience in industrial environments that rely on accurate beam management.
Silex Microsystems is the world’s largest pure-play MEMS foundry, manufacturing devices that integrate mechanical and electrical functions at chip scale. MEMS devices produced at Silex enable inertial sensing, micro-optics and environmental monitoring used in navigation, attitude control and scientific instruments on compact spacecraft, reducing mass and power while expanding payload capability.
Why space electronics matter on Earth
Technologies built to handle radiation, heat and long-distance communication often have value well beyond space missions. The same approaches to materials, sensing and system reliability also strengthen applications on Earth — from more resilient communication networks to tools for monitoring climate and critical infrastructure.
Many everyday technologies trace back to space research, where extreme requirements have pushed advances in electronics, sensing and control. Early demand for reliable onboard systems helped accelerate the development of integrated circuits, while research into cushioning materials contributed to memory foam, now common in mattresses and pillows.
Kista at the centre of Sweden’s space-tech
In March 2026, Kista Science City hosted the Nordic Space & Defence Summit. The two-day event drew 277 participants from 23 countries, with around 100 companies on the floor and more than 100 bilateral meetings in the matchmaking arena. Organised by Kista Science City and THINGS, it brought together startups, corporates, investors, researchers and policymakers at a moment when both sectors are drawing serious capital and strategic attention across Europe.
The next Nordic Space & Defence Summit is planned for April 2027.
Do you want to get involved in the Semiconductor Arena? Reach out to hanna.eldh@kista.com
Semiconductor Arena is co-funded by the European Union and Region Stockholm, and is run by Kista Science City, KTH, RISE and Sting.
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