150K - 200K miniature pulse tube cooler for micro satellites

Air Liquide is working with the CNES and Steel electronique in 2013 to design, manufacture and test a Miniature Pulse Tube Cooler (MPTC) to cool infrared detectors for micro-satellite missions. The cooler will be particularly adapted to the needs of the CNES MICROCARB mission to study atmospheric Carbon Dioxide which presents absorption lines in the thermal near infrared, at 1.6 μm and 2.0 μm. The required cooler temperature is from 150 to 200K with cooling power between 1 and 3 watts. The overall electrical power budget including electronics is less than 20W with a 288-300K rejection temperature. Particular attention is therefore paid to optimizing overall system efficiency. The active micro vibration reduction system and thermal control systems already developed for the Air Liquide Large Pulse Tube Cooler (LPTC) are currently being implemented into a new high efficiency electronic architecture. The presented work concerns the new cold finger and electronic design. The cooler uses the compressor already developed for the 80K Miniature Pulse Tube Cryocooler. This Pulse Tube Cooler addresses the requirements of space missions where extended continuous operating life time (>5 years), low mass and low micro vibration levels are critical.