Jul 7 2014
The “9th ESA Round Table on Micro and Nano Technologies” was hosted at the SwissTech Convention Center on June 10 to 13. The conference was organised by the Component Technology Section of the European Space Agency (ESA).
For the first time in almost 20 years of existence, the ESA Round Table was organised outside the technical centre of ESA located in Noordwijk (The Netherlands). In order to celebrate this event, more than 100 participants, from all over the world, attended the 54 presentations that were given from June 10 to 13 at the new Swiss Tech Convention Center. All the various fields of the micro and nano technologies were covered, from RF-MEMS to nanotechnology, including sensors and actuators, which are of high interest for the determination and control of the attitude and orbit of a spacecraft. Although they are omnipresent in our everyday life, micro and nano technologies are not yet standard in space applications despite very interesting features. The low volume of the market and long qualification process probably explain this situation, obliging players to find very specifics applications where micro technology becomes a necessity. This was the case for the silicon-based micro seismometer for planetary deployment, which was developed by the Imperial College of London, the Oxford University and the company Kinemetrics.
Hosting this round table in Switzerland was also the occasion to show the competences of Switzerland in the domain, and also to demonstrate Swiss hospitality through various social events. At the end of the first day, a welcome cocktail was sponsored by the CSEM, during which ESA astronaut, Claude Nicollier (also Professor at EPFL and Chairman of the CSEM), gave an outlook of the immensity of the Universe to a public usually focused on the extremely small. On Thursday, a supper-party was organised at the Olympic Museum, including a free visit of the newly renovated museum and an aperitif with the amazing view upon the lake and the Alps.
The conference was closed on Friday 13th with the participation of Mr Franco Ongaro, ESA Director – Technical and Quality Management, who insisted upon the importance of high-level technology research and development for space applications.
The workshop was unfortunately grieved by the decease earlier on of Prof. Julien Perruisseau Carrier, a very talented FNS Professor, who was to present a long awaited a paper on graphene for antennas and EM passive devices. His death is a great loss to the entire community.
Author: Grégoire Bourban
Source: Centre spatial