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Nicholas Boechler, Georgia Institute of Technology

Direct Conversion for Solar Space Power

Captain Kirk is always looking for "more power", and indeed space applications are often power-hungry, as any "Trekkie" will tell you Those with their eyes on a future in space continually grapple with developing power-efficient applications, or developing plentiful sources of power. Within our solar system, sunlight is a continuously present power source. Yet in all current solar power systems, sunlight must first be converted to direct current before being converted to the form needed. Nicholas will identify applicable technologies and analyze their possibilities for aerospace.

Can we convert sunlight directly to usable alternating current? If we could, there would be significant savings in costs, in weight, and efficiency, and potential applications in power production and propulsion.

Nicholas is a sophomore majoring in Aerospace Engineering. He is a member of the Aerospace Engineering Honors program and the laboratory of Dr. Narayanan Komerath. He has interned at the Lockheed Martin High Speed Wind Tunnel and received an award for his performance there. Additionally, he has worked at MITRE and built battlebots for Comedy Central Present's Battlebots Competition.