Tekdata supplies JWST with superconducting wiring

Tekdata Interconnect Systems has delivered electrical interconnects to enable instruments on-board the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) to operate accurately at temperatures below one Kelvin.

This will allow the JWST to detect weak infrared signals from the origins of the universe.

Replacing the Hubble Space Telescope and carrying a mirror seven times larger for greater light-collecting sensitivity, JWST is the most important astronomical project of the decade, according to the National Research Council.

To gather new data describing the origins of light, galaxies, stars and life, the telescope will carry many imaging and spectrographic instruments, including the Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) and the Near-Infrared Spectrograph (NIRSpec).

The instruments are cryogenically cooled to temperatures as low as 100 milliKelvin and require superconducting wire interconnects to prevent thermal interference due to heat leak.

To achieve accuracy in the near-infrared and mid-infrared wavelengths, from 0.6um to 5um and 5um to 27um respectively, Tekdata is working with European and American institutes supporting JWST to build flight cables for NIRSpec and test harnesses for MIRI.

The MIRI and NIRSpec wiring solutions use Tekdata's Cryoconnect technologies, including Niobium Titanium (NbTi) superconducting materials, ultra-fine-gauge wire fabrication processes and planar weaving to achieve ultimate electrical performance and repeatability.

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