Internship Design and Optimization of a support structure for Optical Communication Terminal for ISS Student Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering or similar

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The German Aerospace Center (DLR) is the national aeronautics and space research centre and the space agency of the Federal Republic of Germany. Here, 8000 employees work together on a unique variety of topics in the fields of aeronautics, space, energy, transport, digitalisation and security. Their missions range from basic research to the development of innovative applications and products for tomorrow. Cutting-edge research requires excellent minds – particularly more females – at all levels, who fully achieve their potential in an inspiring environment. Launch your mission with us.

For our Institute of Communication and >Navigation in Oberpfaffenhofen near Munich, Germany, we wish to recruit a qualified

Design and Optimization of a support structure for Optical Communication Terminal for ISS

Your mission:

Free Space Optical (FSO) communications not only overcomes the bandwidth limitations of RF systems, but also offers higher power efficiency, better security and higher data rates compared to their traditional counterparts. These characteristics are also of very high interest for satellite communications, and there is a growing interest for such systems in the scientific community. The Optical Communication Systems Group at the Institute of Communications and Navigation has been developing an optical communication payload, with a primary goal of demonstrating high speed optical downlinks between satellites and the Earth.

In the framework of the internship a mechanical support structure for a laser communication terminal shall be designed. The terminal will be installed at the International Space Station (ISS). The design shall also act as an interface between the terminal and the external payload platform "Bartolomeo " on the ISS. Therefore the structure shall house electrical harnesses and DC/DC converters which need shielding from the harsh space environment. The design shall be further optimized after a finite element analysis (FEA) to reach the required stability and thus to meet the precise pointing requirements of the optical communication terminal.

Your qualifications:

• Study of Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering or similar
• Knowledge of Computational Mechanics and/or FEM Analysis
• Knowledge of relevant ECSS standards would be advantageous
• Experience with AutoDesk Inventor and Ansys is an asset

Your benefits:

Look forward to a fulfilling job with an employer who appreciates your commitment and supports your personal and professional development. Our unique infrastructure offers you a working environment in which you have unparalled scope to develop your creative ideas and accomplish your professional objectives. Our human resources policy places great value on a healthy family and work-life-balance as well as equal opportunities for persons of all genders (m/f/non-binary). Individuals with disabilities will be given preferential consideration in the event their qualifications are equivalent to those of other candidates.

If you have any questions concerning specific aspects of the job, please contact Shehryar Ishtiaq by calling +49 8153 28-3134. Please find further information on this vacancy with the reference number 38285, and details regarding the application procedure, at www.DLR.de/dlr/jobs/#33729.