Image of TS-Space Systems - Vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) testing on the satsearch marketplace

Key highlights

Accelerated ageing under vacuum UV. The chamber is equipped with deuterium and xenon sources for accelerated ageing of coatings and materials under vacuum.
Temperature-controlled exposure. The specimen mounts on a temperature-controlled platen carried on an XYZ+J manipulator, so samples can be positioned and aged at their operating temperature.
Optical measurement without breaking vacuum. Provision is made to measure relative reflectivity of a sample in situ — at the operating temperature and without venting — so you capture how properties change as the material ages, not just before and after.
Oil-free. A magnetically levitated turbomolecular pump with a scroll backing pump keeps the system oil-free throughout.

Applications

Ultraviolet exposure under vacuum ages coatings, optics and thermal-control materials in ways that ground-level testing can't reproduce. TS-Space Systems offers vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) testing and accelerated coating ageing on a chamber we designed and built ourselves for the ESA Solar Orbiter mission — and have continued to upgrade at our customers' request in the years since.

Key features

Maximum operating temperature of sample: 600 degrees C. Specified by customer
Sample size: Four 25x25mm
Samples are held under high vacuum
Temperature monitored and logged via three calibrated K-Type thermocouples for the duration of test
Emissivity measured to better than +/-0.01
Percentage change in absorptance
Mass spectrometer data on request
The chamber can be remotely operated and monitored and automatic, over-temperature shutdown systems are in place to protect samples.
The control and pump systems are protected by a UPS which allows a controlled shutdown in the event of power failure and notifies TS-Space Systems staff via several mobile communications channels.
Emergency chamber sealing and Argon fill systems can also be engaged.

Customization

Total number and time of emissivity and absorptance measurements specified by the customer

Flight heritage

Solar Orbiter

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Last updated: 2026-09-10

TS-Space Systems