With the global deployment of low Earth orbit satellites entering an explosive period, "lightweighting" has transformed from a technological pursuit to a competitive necessity in the battle of the aerospace industry - reducing the weight by 1 gram can lower launch costs by tens of thousands of dollars; Reducing the size by 1 millimeter can increase the density of equipment layout. However, the degassing effect in a vacuum environment is posing a serious challenge: polymer based 3D printing materials continuously release condensable volatiles in space vacuum, causing metal coating delamination, substrate distortion, and functional failure, which may ultimately lead to component self destruction. Therefore, lightweighting is not simply a matter of material substitution. When using metalized coated polymer components to replace traditional metal components, the key risk of coating interface delamination must be strictly controlled.

Horizon Microtechnologies (hereinafter referred to as "Horizon") from Germany is an additive manufacturing enterprise specializing in the development of micro components. Its antennas are 6 times lighter than traditional antennas and have received funding support from the European Space Agency (ESA).This time, Horizon has overcome the historic challenge of vacuum degassing of aerospace grade materials through innovative micro nano 3D printing technology, and passed the degassing test of the European Space Standardization Cooperation Organization (ECSS).Its technological core is precisely Mofang Precision's surface projection micro stereolithography (P μ SL) technology, which further verifies the potential application of micro nano 3D printing technology in space environments.

01: Precision breakthrough, passing the rigorous test of space environment

Horizon innovatively integrates Mofang P μ SL technology and immersion plating process through microArch ® The S240 industrial grade 3D printing system (precision: 10 μ m) is used to prepare polymer substrates, which are then treated with metal coatings such as silver and copper to achieve mass production of aerospace grade RF components and ultra light antennas. This provides a significant solution for reducing payload weight and improving energy efficiency for satellite communication systems.

Recently, Horizon's 3D printed coated components have successfully passed the rigorous certification of the European Space Standardization Cooperation Organization (ECSS) (ECSS-Q-ST-70-02C standard). After 24 hours of continuous testing in a vacuum environment (125 ℃, 10 ⁻⁶ -10 ⁻⁷ mbar), its key indicators showed excellent performance:

• Total Quality Loss (TML): 0.354%

• Recycling Quality Loss (RML): 0.166%

• Condensible volatile matter (CVCM): 0.000%

The component indicators are far superior to the standard limits (RML<1.00%, CVCM<0.10%), which verifies that polymer additive manufacturing and coating technology can achieve long-term stability and reliability in space environments for device preparation. This has cleared the core obstacles for the large-scale application of micro nano 3D printing technology in the aerospace industry.

02: Integrating technology resonance to promote industrialization process

The technology ecology of Mofang and the exploration of Horizon's coating technology have formed a deep resonance. As the underlying support for breakthrough innovation, its core advantages lie in:

• *Lightweight and structural freedom

The Mofang P μ SL technology, with its 2 μ m ultra-high optical precision and high tolerance control capability, breaks through the traditional manufacturing limits and achieves integrated molding of complex structures across scales - from lightweight design of millimeter wave antenna arrays to precise manufacturing of key components such as microchannels and micro gears in microelectromechanical systems, all can be accurately restored 1:1.

• *Multi material integration and functional expansion

Through post-treatment processes such as immersion plating, a single polymer matrix can be composite with conductive materials such as silver and copper, achieving multiple functions such as electromagnetic shielding and signal transmission, providing a cross disciplinary reference for the multifunctionality of aerospace materials.

• *Full chain service and customized manufacturing

Mofang has established a rapid response system covering the world, with equipment and services entering 40 countries, deeply empowering nearly 2500 scientific research and industrial customers, and achieving a full process loop from prototype verification to batch delivery. At the same time, Horizon has also launched an online store, highlighting the industrial breakthrough of micro nano additive manufacturing in the field of RF components through a fast service mechanism and customized production capabilities.

03: Join hands to break through the impasse and build a new ecosystem for the industry

The results of this test have milestone significance for us - it verifies the possibility of combining micro nano 3D printing substrates with coating processes, which can provide necessary stability guarantees for high reliability application scenarios such as aerospace. For a long time, the three major pain points of vacuum degassing, interlayer delamination, and surface brittleness have raised doubts about the coating technology of 3D printed components. And today, we are proving that these historic issues are being overcome one by one

——Andreas Frölich, HorizonCEO

With Horizon's continuous breakthroughs in fields such as radio frequency components, microelectromechanical systems, and microfluidic devices, the aerospace application boundaries of micro nano 3D printing are rapidly expanding - from lightweight on-board equipment to cutting-edge scenarios such as in orbit manufacturing and deep space exploration life support systems.

As one of the few technology suppliers in the world that has mastered industrial grade precision of 2 microns, Mofang's innovative practice with Horizon proves that only by deeply coupling precision manufacturing, materials science, and interdisciplinary verification can we jointly build a high-quality, low-cost, and precise new technological ecosystem.