IIT Madras and ISRO Unveil IRIS, India’s First Aerospace-Grade Semiconductor

The Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) have effectively advanced and booted an aerospace-grade semiconductor chip, marking a vital step in opposition to self-reliance in area era. The chip, named ‘IRIS’ (Indigenous RISCV Controller for Space Applications), has been designed in keeping with the SHAKTI processor and is meant to be used in IoT and compute methods. The undertaking aligns with India’s efforts to scale back dependence on international semiconductor era and is a part of a broader initiative to toughen indigenous features in area programs.

Development and Testing of the IRIS Chip

According to reports, the ISRO Inertial Systems Unit (IISU) in Thiruvananthapuram collaborated with IIT Madras to outline the specs and increase the chip. The design comprises fault-tolerant inside recollections to reinforce reliability and comprises customized purposeful and peripheral interface modules similar to CORDIC, WATCHDOG Timers, and complicated serial buses. Testing of the semiconductor was once carried out to verify its suitability for area missions, with rigorous instrument and {hardware} reviews performed earlier than finalising the chip.

Complete Indigenous Fabrication and Assembly

Professor V. Kamakoti, Director of IIT Madras, said to India Today that all the building procedure, together with chip design, fabrication, packaging, motherboard meeting, and instrument booting, was once performed inside India. The undertaking is a part of the ‘Digital India RISC-V’ initiative (DIRV), which helps home building of microprocessor-based merchandise with top safety requirements.

ISRO and Industry Support for Indigenous Innovation

ISRO Chairman Dr. V Narayanan expressed pleasure over the advance of the IRIS Controller, highlighting its contribution to India’s ‘Make in India’ initiative. Kamaljeet Singh, Director General of the Semiconductor Laboratory (SCL) Chandigarh, discussed that SCL stays dedicated to taking part with academia and startups to additional India’s self-reliance in area of interest semiconductor merchandise.