In a groundbreaking milestone for space-enabled semiconductor research, the University of Florida, in collaboration with NASA, MIT, Vanguard Automation, AIM Photonics and Germany’s Fraunhofer Heinrich Hertz Institute, launched a suite of photonic AI chips to the International Space Station aboard JAXA’s HTV-XI spacecraft this weekend.
Florida engineers test photonic AI chips in space
The mission is part of NASA’s MISSE, or Materials International Space Station Experiment, which tests how materials and devices perform when exposed to the harsh environment of low Earth orbit.
UF’s contribution focuses on testing the resilience and performance of next-generation photonic semiconductor technologies in space, a step toward developing faster, more efficient computing systems capable of withstanding extreme conditions.
“This mission represents a first-of-its-kind validation of photonic computing in space,” said Volker J. Sorger, Ph.D., the Rhines endowed professor for semiconductor photonics in UF’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering and deputy director of UF’s Florida Semiconductor Institute. “By testing our photonic AI hardware on the ISS and during the launch, we’re laying the foundation for future high-performance, radiation-hardened computing systems — critical for deep space exploration and satellite autonomy.”