Products & Services:
MicroLink Devices UK Ltd offers lightweight flexible solar cells, bespoke battery packs and complete solar-electric power systems.
Our GaAS solar cells are world leading in performance and low mass, being five times lighter than conventional cells. These cells are now used on HALE aircraft and smaller UAVs for long endurance missions.
We also offer high specific energy battery packs which offer up to twice the endurance for UAV applications.
Market experience:
MicroLink Devices Inc supplies solar cells for Aalto Zephyr and BAE Systems PHASA-35 High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) Aircraft.
Key equipment and processes:
MicroLink Devices pioneered the scale-up and commercialisation of the epitaxial lift-off (ELO) process from GaAs wafers.
This produces extremely lightweight and flexible multi-junction solar cells that are world-leading in performance and low mass. These solar cells are five times lighter than conventional Ge-based multi-junction solar cells now used on space satellites while still having equal performance and lower manufacturing costs. MicroLink’s ELO solar arrays are now being used on multiple high-altitude and smaller solar-powered unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) platforms to provide power for multi-week long endurance missions.
ELO multi-junction solar cells are a disruptive innovation that enables significant solar power generation, and the flexibility and robust nature of the solar cells opens up entirely new design philosophies for satellite platform concepts.
MicroLink also offers high specific energy battery packs – offering up to twice the endurance for applications such as UAVs. The synergy of MicroLinks solar and battery technologies allows for simple integration of complete, ultra-light solar-electric power systems.
Solar Product
- GaAs triple junction Inverted Metamorphic (IMM) Solar Cell.
- Flexible cell conforms to curved surfaces (2 cm radius of curvature).
- Thickness <30 μm.
- Low areal mass density <250 g/m2
- High specific power >2200 W/kg (AM0).
- Available as encapsulated solar sheet array modules.
Battery Product
- Up to 80% longer system endurance
- Battery packs up to 450 Wh/kg.
- 1-6C Continuous discharge rate.
- Up to 850 Wh/l Volumetric Energy Density
- COTS Battery configurations available.
- Custom design & manufacture of bespoke battery solution.
- (Optional) integrated battery management system (BMS).
- Lightweight soft case, or protective hard case, or pressure constraint for maximising life cycles & high altitude operation.
- Applications include: Fixed wing & multirotor UAVs, HAPS, UGVs,and USV’s.