Saturday, September 29, 2012

Radio Telescope Power Supply - Progress

Today I received my power supply boards for the RF frond end of my radio telescope. Due to the number of amplifiers and the voltage requirements of my downconverter, I needed a supply that provided a stable and clean +5V, +10V, +12V, +15V, and adjustable 8V to 15V output.


Current requirements on all outputs is very small (less then 20mA at each respected output) with exception of the 12V supply which powers the mini-circuits ZRL-2400LN low noise amplifier. It has a 350mA @ 12V requirement so I have utilized the aluminum enclosure to sink some heat off of the 12V regulator. I slightly miscalculated the boards size for the aluminum enclosure I had chosen to use for it. Due to the mounting standoffs inside the case, I was not able to mount the board flush against the side of the enclosure... although it was nothing a band saw couldn't fix. All voltage outputs are passed through the enclosure using feed through capacitors.

There is nothing really exciting about this supply other than the fact that it is now completed. Power supplies are probably the least exciting components of any project to build, even though their importance and stability are critical. Now that it is completed I can install it on the back of my RF frontend and start prepping the actual mount for the dish.

Here is the final assembled board mounted in its shielded enclosure:





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