Lightweight Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) Shielding System for Aircraft Avionics

The Department of Defense is continually looking for opportunities to reduce the weight of fixed-wing aviation assets. Reduced weight translates to a number of significant economic and operational benefits. One area of significant opportunity for increased weight savings is wiring, which is based on metal conductorstypically copperwhich is a heavy material. Furthermore, wiring and connectors are particularly vulnerable to electromagnetic interference (EMI). This is in part due to the harnesses that place both power and signal wiring in close proximity. For many applications, the solution to such a problem might be increasing the amount of shielding on the wires. However, for aviation platforms, solutions that add weight are typically not viable. Wires created with lightweight EMI shielding materials would solve this issue. Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have the potential to offer significant EMI shielding. The overall objective of this SBIR project is to develop and demonstrate shielding options for cables, wires, housings, and connectors that have increased EMI shielding properties at lower weight. There are a number of options that will be investigated to incorporate protection from ionizing radiation and to increase the overall shielding effectiveness of the finished products.