CEDRAT TECHNOLOGIES SAS

The latest generation of linear amplifiers dedicated to piezoelectric actuators, namely the Pla05 and Pla25, marks an important step forward. Featuring a redesigned appearance aligned with CTEC’s current design standards, these products have successfully achieved CE certification, confirming compliance with European regulations covering safety, health, and environmental requirements. For users, this certification represents a strong guarantee—particularly in terms of electrical safety. Given the nature of these devices as high-power electronics for piezoelectric actuation, obtaining CE marking required extensive design optimization and rigorous validation testing. In parallel, their development builds upon over two decades of experience with the widely adopted LA75B and LA75C amplifiers, while introducing notable enhancements. Maintaining continuity with the LA75 family, the Pla05 and Pla25 ensure full compatibility with CTEC’s ecosystem. They are designed to operate seamlessly with APA® and PPA piezoelectric actuators, as well as with systems and mechanisms integrating these technologies, including DTT, P-FSM, XY stages, and MSPA solutions. Both amplifiers deliver voltage control over a 170 V range (from -20 V to +150 V), enabling users to fully exploit the stroke capabilities of CTEC actuators. In terms of current performance, the new amplifiers match the capabilities of their predecessors while adding CE compliance. The Pla05 provides up to 0.5 A in continuous operation and 1 A in peak mode, equivalent to the LA75B. The Pla25 reaches 2.5 A continuously and 5 A in peak conditions, similar to the LA75C. These current levels are essential to leverage the fast dynamics of piezoelectric actuators, enabling high bandwidth operation and very rapid response times. Beyond equivalent performance, the Pla series introduces several key improvements. These include a more compact form factor, the possibility to configure multiple units in master/slave arrangements for multi-channel or push-pull operation, and an improved signal-to-noise ratio that enhances positioning precision. Additional modularity is also available, allowing integration of sensor conditioning, control functions, and communication interfaces. A new optional embedded controller incorporates PID regulation along with advanced filtering capabilities, such as band-stop filters to address resonance issues. Furthermore, an optional communication module enables faster data exchange. All these improvements are achieved while reducing overall cost. In addition to compliance testing for CE marking, the Pla05 and Pla25 underwent extensive validation both internally at CTEC, in independent certification laboratories, and through real-world testing with pilot customers. A notable example comes from the ACONIT project led by the Werner Heisenberg Institute for Jet Propulsion at the University of Munich (Neubiberg, Germany). Within this framework, CTEC supplied 17 pulsed jet actuators (PJA), each driven by Pla25 amplifiers. Each PJA consists of a high-speed piezoelectric valve integrating two APA400MML actuators. According to project requirements, the amplifiers were required to drive full on/off cycles at 200 Hz with switching times of just 1 ms. Considering the capacitance of more than 6 µF per actuator, such performance demands a current of 2.5 A—fully utilizing the Pla25 capabilities. These actuators were implemented to enhance the performance envelope of a LARZAC aircraft turbojet engine, operating under extreme thermal conditions exceeding 300°C. The results were particularly significant: the integration of PJAs powered by Pla25 amplifiers enabled an expansion of the engine’s operating range by up to 99%.

Free-space optical (FSO) communication is experiencing strong growth, driven by the deployment of large-scale satellite constellations and the increasing use of optical inter-satellite links (OISL) across LEO, MEO, and GEO orbits. These systems depend on Optical Communication Terminals (OCTs) equipped with Fine/Fast Steering Mirrors (FSM) to mitigate platform disturbances such as jitter, pointing inaccuracies, and micro-vibrations, ensuring stable and precise optical links. At the same time, the New Space sector imposes strict requirements on size, weight, and power (SWaP), as well as on cost efficiency, manufacturability, and scalability, particularly as constellation programs demand production volumes reaching tens of thousands of units. To address these constraints, CEDRAT TECHNOLOGIES has developed the CONECS project, aimed at designing space-qualified piezoelectric FSMs and their associated drive electronics tailored for LEO constellation applications. Building on significant in-flight heritage, this work has led to a new generation of FSMs combining high pointing accuracy, robustness against launch and space environments, and compatibility with large-scale manufacturing. The P-FSM35XS, based on the DTT35XS architecture previously validated in missions such as PHARAO and PAM30, has been specifically enhanced for New Space use cases. The redesigned system delivers a 27% increase in angular range, achieving up to 6.1 mrad, while preserving bandwidth levels required for FSO stabilization. Key improvements include a simplified half-bridge strain-gauge measurement scheme, integrated offset correction within the mechanism, reduced cabling complexity, and design optimizations that facilitate manufacturing and improve reliability, as well as interchangeability at system level. For applications requiring larger deflection angles, the P-FSM150S offers mechanical strokes up to 18 mrad, enabled by newly developed amplified piezoelectric actuators (APA150S). Its flexible mirror interface supports both high-reliability silicon carbide (SiC) mirrors mounted with screws and more cost-effective fused silica (SiO₂) mirrors for COTS-oriented New Space solutions. Qualification and lifetime testing demonstrate positioning resolutions below 20 µrad, resonance frequencies exceeding 700 Hz, resistance to launch loads, and operational lifetimes beyond 10⁹ cycles. Optical bench validation further confirms improved beam stabilization and pointing performance. Control of these mechanisms is ensured by the CCBu20-NS dual-channel piezo controller, which integrates push-pull actuation, strain-gauge signal conditioning, digital closed-loop PID control with adjustable notch filtering, as well as telemetry and telecommand capabilities. The controller achieves closed-loop bandwidths above 250 Hz and withstands radiation levels up to 30 krad, making it well suited for LEO New Space missions. Altogether, these developments form a consistent, scalable, and cost-efficient FSM product line from CEDRAT TECHNOLOGIES, designed to meet the stringent pointing and stabilization requirements of SmallSat optical communication constellations.