In aerospace applications, how should one choose among RFSOC, Versal RF, Agilex DirectRF, AFE80xx, and AD908X?
Release date:
2026-08
Spacechips It is a commercial aerospace electronics company based in Harpenden, UK, founded in 2014 and specializing in on-orbit processing, intelligent transponders, and onboard AI computing. Currently, it includes numerous entities such as Spacechips. Commercial spaceflight Industry leaders are leveraging single-chip solutions that support multi‑channel transceiver functionality. Spacechips believes such devices offer satellite operators significant benefits and flexibility, enabling them to adjust on‑orbit receive and transmit frequency plans to deliver improved services and deeper insights.
(This film’s data is sourced from Spacechits CEO, Rajan Bedi.)
Will DSP/AI/ ADC/DAC /Integrated into a single device, it offers significant advantages in terms of size, weight, and power consumption. At the same time, it enables operators to achieve improved link performance, coverage, and spectral efficiency, while allowing end users to simultaneously relay multiple RF signals during a single orbital pass. Radio frequency band , to detect different terrains and penetration depths.
Meanwhile, users in fields such as electronic reconnaissance and radar can employ a single channel to detect signals spanning from the UHF to the K‑band. The following example illustrates how the C‑band and Ku‑band can be undersampled at a 3 GSPS sampling rate (relative to the center frequency).
Figure 1: C-band and Ku-band signals sampled at 3 GSPS Bandpass carrier
Spacechips has designed a variety of chip transceivers to meet diverse customer needs, including RFSoC, Versal RF, Agilex Direct RF, AFE80xx, Elektra, and AD908x. Compared with conventional devices, these components offer distinct advantages, such as smaller form factors, lower power consumption, and the ability to interface external ADC/DACs with DSPs. They enable operators to dynamically reconfigure on-orbit reception and transmission frequency plans, data bandwidths, modulation schemes, and waveform types.
Figure 2: ADC and LVDS digital outputs (left) connected to the FPGA (right)
Currently, with the coordinated efforts of national teams and commercial enterprises, and with the G60 Qianfan and Xingwang GW constellations—two major low-orbit satellite constellations—China’s commercial space sector has shifted from simply “being able to reach orbit” to achieving “large-scale, low-cost, and operable” capabilities. Customers frequently ask: “How can we improve ADC/DAC performance when directly processing RF carriers?” “Can these components operate reliably in space?” “Which FPGA should we choose?” “How do we implement on-orbit AI?” and “How should we properly design and use these devices?”
In response to these challenges, the editor has decided to share some insights and lessons learned, beginning with a comparison of the specifications of the aforementioned devices and an examination of their practicality in satellite applications.
1.AMD-RFSoC
AMD’s GEN3 product family integrates the Zynq UltraScale+ MPSoC with a 14-bit, 5 GSPS/6 GHz ADC and a 14-bit, 10 GSPS/6 GHz DAC. (The DFE version can operate at frequencies up to 7.125 GHz.) The RFSoC is the first semiconductor to combine high-speed mixed-signal converters with an FPGA and an ARM Cortex processor on a single chip, eliminating the traditional physical interfaces between these technologies.
Figure 3: Zynq UltraScale+ RFSOC
2.AMD-Versale RF
AMD’s Versal RF series builds on the RFSoC platform, further enhancing the speed and bandwidth of its mixed-signal converters—featuring a 14-bit, 8/32 GSPS, 18 GHz ADC and a 14-bit, 16 GSPS, 18 GHz DAC. The Versal ACAP product family incorporates dedicated AI engines equipped with vector processors to accelerate machine learning workloads. AMD has already scheduled formal space‑qualified certification for two devices in the Versal RF series: the VR1602 and VR1652.
Figure 4: Versal RF Product Family
3. Intel/Agilex 9 Direct
Conceptually, Intel/Altera’s Agilex 9 Direct RF series is similar to the RFSoC, but with faster and wider RF bandwidth, enabling support for millimeter-wave sensing with a compact payload (featuring an integrated 10-bit, 64 GSPS, 36 GHz ADC and a 10-bit, 64 GSPS, 36 GHz DAC). Additionally, a lower‑bandwidth, higher‑dynamic‑range variant is available, incorporating a 6‑channel, 14‑bit, 4 GSPS, 7.1 GHz ADC and a 14‑bit, 12 GSPS, 7.1 GHz DAC. The Agilex 9 Direct RF FPGA integrates numerous DSP blocks with tensor‑processing capabilities that support SIMD execution, accelerating AI workloads.
Figure 5: Agilex 9 Direct RF
4.TI-AFE80xx
Texas Instruments’ AFE80xx is an integrated RF transceiver featuring a 14-bit, 4 GSPS, 7.1 GHz ADC and a 14-bit, 12 GSPS, 7.1 GHz DAC. The AFE80xx includes eight JESD204B/C serial interfaces for ASICs or FPGAs, with per‑channel data rates of up to 32.5 Gbps. The AFE8010 model is a ten‑channel receive‑only device.
Figure 6: Functional Block Diagram of the AFE80xx
5.Elektra-MA/MK/MX
Jariet Technologies’ Elektra‑MA/MK/MX devices feature dual‑channel 10‑bit ADCs and DACs operating at 40 to 64 GSPS, capable of handling instantaneous bandwidths from 6.4 GHz to 36 GHz. The Elektra includes sixteen JESD204B/C interfaces for connecting to ASICs or FPGAs, with per‑channel data rates of up to 30 Gbps.
Figure 7: Functional Block Diagram of Elektra
6.AD-AD9082
Analog Devices' AD9082 integrates two A 12-bit, 6 GSPS, 8 GHz ADC and four 16-bit, 12 GSPS, 8 GHz DACs. The AD9082 features sixteen JESD204B/C interfaces for connecting to an ASIC or FPGA, with per-channel rates of up to 24.75 Gbps.
Figure 8: Functional Block Diagram of the AD9082
Customers often ask us, “Which device is the best?” In the commercial aerospace sector, most customers require substantial real-time DSP and AI inference capabilities; from this perspective, Versal RF or Agilex 9 Direct RF are better suited. Meanwhile, customers who don’t need these features may find them unsuitable, and large, complex devices typically demand numerous power rails and consume significant power. Some customers also require dynamic performance that exceeds what 10‑bit ADCs/DACs can deliver. Additionally, during discussions, many clients point out that actual performance often falls short of the specifications advertised in the datasheets.
The customer also has other considerations, such as: 1) financial constraints and project‑schedule pressures; due to factors beyond the vendor’s control or a tight project timeline, they opted for a more complex and costly solution; and 2) the size and power consumption of highly integrated components have become significant hurdles—“for example, a 1U chassis lacks sufficient space and cannot deliver enough power to support high‑power devices.”
The editor will organize and summarize the basic specifications of the six devices mentioned above in tabular form:
|
Parameter |
RFSoC |
Versal |
Agilex Direct |
AFE80xx |
Electra |
AD9082 |
|
Architecture |
FPGA + ARM + Transceiver ADC/DAC |
FPGA + ARM + Transceiver ADC/DAC |
FPGA + ARM + Transceiver ADC/DAC |
ADC/DAC transmit and receive only |
ADC/DAC transmit and receive only |
ADC/DAC transmit and receive only |
|
Integrated process |
16 nm FinFET |
7nm FinFET |
10nm SuperFin |
16nm FinFET |
12nm CMOS |
28nmCMOS |
|
ADC resolution |
14th place |
14th place |
10 people |
14th place |
10 people |
12 people |
|
Maximum ADC sampling rate |
5 GSPS |
32 GSPS |
64 GSPS |
4 GSPS |
40~60 GSPS |
6GSPS |
|
ADC RF bandwidth |
6 GHz |
18GHz |
36GHz |
7.1GHz |
6.4GHz |
8GHz |
|
DAC resolution |
14th place |
14th place |
10 people |
14th place |
10 people |
16 bits |
|
DAC maximum sampling rate |
10 GSPS |
16GSPS |
64GSPS |
12GSPS |
40~64 GSPS |
12GSPS |
|
DAC RF broadband |
6GHz |
18GHz |
36GHz |
7.1GHz |
6.4GHz |
8GHz |
|
Maximum Instantaneous Bandwidth |
2~4 GHz |
16GHz |
>20 GHz |
0.4~1.2 GHz |
6.4GHz |
4~8 GHz |
|
AI acceleration capability |
Logical structure |
AI engine |
Tensor structure |
None |
None |
None |
As can be seen, all the devices listed in the table integrate digital downconversion (DDC) and digital upconversion (DUC), which respectively facilitate carrier digitization and synthesis, and support reprogrammability. For fixed‑frequency schemes, a bandpass carrier can be directly undersampled and aliased into the baseband region (see Figure 1). For example, with a 64 GSPS ADC, a signal centered at 25 GHz and having a 400 MHz bandwidth can be digitized at 1 GSPS (with an oversampling ratio of 2.5 for the bandwidth). For wider carriers, rather than pre‑selecting which signal to capture, one can digitize the full Nyquist bandwidth and, via software‑based DDC, perform gain control, filtering, and decimation to extract the desired signal. Some devices incorporate multiple independent DDCs to generate separate baseband streams. Decimation reduces the sampling rate.
On the transmit side, some DACs can directly upconvert baseband signals to a higher Nyquist‑zone intermediate‑frequency or radio‑frequency image, as shown in Figure 9, with an update rate of 10 GSPS. Similarly, for wider‑band carriers, the DUC can significantly reduce the data bandwidth at the FPGA, perform interpolation and upconversion, suppress unwanted images, and flatten the sinc roll‑off within the desired passband. Changing the frequency plan requires only reprogramming the NCO, without modifying the analog RF chain.
The aforementioned RFSoC, Versal RF, Agilex Direct RF, AFE80xx, Elektra, and AD9082 devices were not specifically developed for space applications; however, several of them are currently operating in orbit. The next article will cover the use, testing, and design integration of RFSoC, Versal RF, Agilex Direct RF, AFE80xx, Elektra, and AD9082.
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