Honeywell International Inc. (Morris Township, NJ) has signed an agreement with Cypress Semiconductor Corp. (San Jose, CA) to jointly develop a new technology for integrated circuits (ICs) used in satellites, strategic missiles and other space vehicles. The two companies will jointly develop new ICs that will compute information at higher capacities while withstanding severe space radiation.
The new microchips will use Honeywell's patented radiation-hardened Silicon-On-Insulator technology, which employs an insulating layer to protect computer chips from radiation damage in space. Cypress will contribute technology that will reduce the size of individual transistors on the microchips to 0.15 microns - about six millionths of an inch. This will enable placing nearly four times the quantity of transistors on each chip compared to existing capability. The new microchips will process information in satellites for a wide variety of communications needs, including telephone, television, weather imaging and military applications.
