From the moon to the sun, Indian chips find a place in space missions

India’s growing space programme is increasingly being powered by semiconductors designed within the country, with chips made at the Semiconductor Laboratory in Mohali finding use in satellites, rockets and missions ranging from Chandrayaan 3 to Aditya L1.

The domestic effort is significant to be highlighted because electronics used in space must continue operating amid radiation, extreme temperatures, pressure, acceleration and the acoustic stress of launch. India’s ability to build such components locally is expected to become more important as its missions become more complex and its launch schedule expands.

A PIB note issued on National Space Day said “Made in India chips are playing a vital role” in the country’s space programme, from satellites and launch vehicles to missions that have travelled to the Moon and towards the Sun.

“Under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi Ji, India’s journey towards technological self-reliance has gained new momentum,” it said.

Indigenous capabilities in critical and advanced technologies are strengthening the vision of Aatmanirbhar Bharat, including in India’s space sector, the note added.

The Semiconductor Laboratory, or SCL, develops flight grade chips and sensors for these systems. Its portfolio includes radiation hardened chips, pressure, acceleration, temperature and acoustic sensors, electro optical CCD and CMOS imagers, as well as custom application specific integrated circuits, known as ASICs.

The components are designed for applications where a failure can compromise a spacecraft, a scientific payload or a launch mission, making reliable access to specialised semiconductor technology a strategic concern.

Indigenous electronics in major missions

Chandrayaan 3, which demonstrated India’s lunar landing capability, used an Indian made camera chip on its lander. Developed by SCL Mohali, the chip supported the imaging systems that formed part of the lander’s operations.

The laboratory’s Vikram processor has also been used in satellite launch vehicles and rockets, placing an indigenous processor in systems responsible for carrying spacecraft beyond Earth’s atmosphere.

Aditya L1, India’s solar observation mission, uses radiation hardened analogue to digital converter chips developed by SCL. These chips convert signals into digital information that can be processed and transmitted by spacecraft systems, a critical function for a mission gathering data from instruments studying the Sun.

The government described the development of these technologies as part of the wider effort to build self-reliance in advanced and critical sectors. It linked the work to the Aatmanirbhar Bharat programme, which has placed emphasis on expanding domestic capabilities in areas where India has traditionally depended on imports.

“For India’s growing space programme,” the note said, indigenous semiconductor technologies are supporting missions “from the Moon to the Sun.”

The effort does not mean every component in India’s space systems is domestically produced. But the growing use of Indian flight grade chips points to a deeper push to localise technologies that are difficult to source, expensive to replace and central to future space missions.