Russian MEPhI Successfully Develops Prototype Instrument for Aurora Research, to Be Launched Aboard CubeSat

Recently, the Geospace Research Laboratory of the National Research Nuclear University MEPhI (Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, abbreviated as MEPhI) in Russia announced the successful development of a prototype instrument for detecting high-energy electrons in Earth's outer radiation belt. This device is a key scientific payload for investigating the causes of auroras and will in the future be launched into orbit as part of a CubeSat 3U space platform from Geoscan LLC.

In terms of technical architecture and core parameters, the detector is specifically designed for small spacecraft, overcoming strict size and power consumption constraints. Its core component uses a thallium-doped cesium iodide (CsI(Tl)) scintillation crystal, capable of efficiently converting ionizing radiation energy into visible light. Addressing the characteristics of photon side reflection and propagation in cesium iodide crystals, the project team tested various arrangements of silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs), achieving a balance among light collection efficiency, uniformity, and electronic device complexity. In addition, the team independently developed a dedicated analog data acquisition board to ensure stable supply voltage under extreme orbital temperature fluctuations, and combined a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) as the computing core to achieve efficient digitization and real-time screening of nanosecond-scale pulse signals, thereby optimizing the limited storage and downlink transmission bandwidth of the CubeSat.

It is understood that the assembled detector prototype has smoothly entered the calibration testing phase. Preliminary test results indicate that the device can not only accurately detect the presence of high-energy electrons but also accurately determine their energy. The project was completed through the collaborative efforts of faculty, university students, and primary and secondary school students from the MEPhI Geospace Research Laboratory, who designed and improved the core circuit board from scratch.

It is reported that this project is an important component of Russia's "Space-Pi" science education program, organized by the Foundation for Assistance to Small Innovative Enterprises (FASIE), and has received strong support from the federal "Space Talent" program. Industry experts point out that with the successful implementation of this instrument, it will not only provide key data for near-Earth space weather monitoring and radiation belt dynamics research, but also open up an innovative practical path for cultivating a new generation of aerospace science and technology talent.