The VA4 Family of Rad-Hard and Rad-Tolerant Chips for Fast-Growing Space & Satellite Systems in Any Orbit
The VA4 family is VORAGO’s comprehensive line of Arm Cortex-M4 microcontroller solutions, providing precision and reliability for space, commercial satellite, on-terrain, and industrial applications.
In November 2025, VORAGO introduced an entire new lineup of more affordable and scalable MCUs. This provides a reliable alternative to high-risk upscreened Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) components, creating a new category of Radiation-Tolerant by Design (RTbD) microcontrollers. These new MCUs deliver higher reliability and sustainability with less waste, priced at almost 75% below the cost of our HARDSIL® radiation-hardened products.
New! Radiant-Tolerant Microcontrollers Ideal for LEO Missions
VA42630
As the industry's most integrated and compact Radiation-Tolerant by Design (RTbD) solution, this chip delivers superior, extended-mission reliability with >30 krad(Si) Total Ionizing Dose (TID) tolerance and features fully integrated 256 KB non-volatile memory (NVM). This single-chip design achieves maximum efficiency in board utilization, drastically reducing complexity and eliminating the need for expensive, multi-component external memory systems.
VA42628
VA42620
The industry's most cost-optimized and digital-centric RTbD solution for LEO missions provides essential >30 krad(Si) TID tolerance and excludes integrated NVM. It’s the perfect fit for purely digital-centric designs that prioritize unit cost. Eliminating external analog sensor interfaces maximizes customer savings for payload interface controls and non-essential diagnostics.
As the industry's most flexible Radiation-Tolerant by Design (RTbD) solution, this chip handles commercial missions. It delivers superior, extended-mission reliability with >30 krad(Si) Total Ionizing Dose (TID) tolerance and excludes integrated NVM. This provides maximum flexibility to select their preferred external boot memory, ultimately saving board space, reducing complexity, and eliminating the need for expensive, pre-integrated memory.
VA42629
The smaller, highly cost-optimized companion to the VA42620 is designed as a minimalist RTbD microcontroller for LEO missions. It achieves maximum unit cost reduction by excluding integrated NVM and SpaceWire. Despite its simplicity, it offers robust performance with >30 krad(Si) TID and essential analog and digital features suitable for simple applications like power management or thermal regulation.
Radiation-Hardened Microcontrollers Ideal for Any Orbit & Most-Demanding Space Missions
The VA41630, VORAGO's flagship Arm Cortex-M4 microcontroller, is the established choice for mission-critical systems deployed by commercial and government space agencies. Built with our patented HARDSIL® technology, it provides robust immunity against harsh space radiation: Total Ionizing Dose (TID), Single Event Upsets (SEU), and Single Event Latch-up (SEL).
Highest Qualification: Its reliability is confirmed by Qualified Manufacturers List (QML) Q+ certifications from the U.S. Defense & Logistics Agency (DLA). The QML-Q+ status is officially listed on the Qualified Parts and Die Source Information System (QPDSIS) under DLA Standard Microcircuit Drawing (SMD) 5962R2420301QXC, assuring acceptance for the highest-level mission procurement.
System Integration: It features 256KB Ferroelectric Random-Access Memory (FRAM) (eliminating external memory, reducing cost and size); includes SpaceWire, Fast Ethernet, and Controller Area Network (CAN) 2.0 interfaces; with integrated 12-bit Analog-to-Digital Converter (ADC) / Digital-to-Analog Converter (DAC) and a temperature sensor.
Flexibility: Available in Ceramic and Plastic Quad Flat Package (QFP), and Plastic Ball Grid Array (BGA) packages.
Core Use Cases: The integrated Floating-Point Unit (FPU) supports complex data processing for Scientific Instruments; it manages core functions (e.g., attitude determination) for Satellite & Payload Control; and executes complex algorithms such as Field Oriented Control (FOC) for Motor Control.
While sharing the same HARDSIL® radiation-hardened technology as the VA41630, the VA41620 is distinguished by the exclusion of integrated FRAM. This architectural choice gives you the critical flexibility to select the most suitable boot memory for your specific application—eliminating constraints imposed by an internal solution.
To fully enable this design freedom, the VA41620 features a dedicated, master-only Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI) port for external boot memory, ensuring its three general-purpose SPI ports remain completely available for diverse application tasks.
This specialized design is ideal for high-reliability space missions requiring maximized resource availability:
Deep Space Probe Autonomy: Providing primary computational power for autonomous navigation, scientific instrument control, and crucial fault management.
Rad-Hard Data Management: Dedicated to managing the high-speed storage and retrieval of invaluable scientific data (data recorders and memory controllers).
Lunar Surface Control: Enables mission-critical systems for lunar rovers and mining equipment exposed to intense Galactic Cosmic Rays (GCRs) and Solar Energetic Particles (SEPs).
For applications that don't require all the features of the VA41620, this device offers a cost-effective alternative. It keeps the core's maximum frequency, communication and analog peripherals, GPIOs, and Timers/PWM intact, providing essential functionality without unnecessary system expense.
The VA41628 is an entry-level part that delivers the same exceptional space radiation performance found across VORAGO's M4 family. This device simplifies the transition for those migrating from Arm Cortex-M0 MCUs, making it a highly suitable choice for critical applications such as thrusters.
Extreme Temperature Durability for Industrial Applications
Our microcontrollers are engineered for unmatched thermal resilience, operating from -55C to 175C (with testing in progress for 200C. Our devices are latch-up immune; meaning, they are purpose-built to prevent the internal short circuit that can cause standard chips to fail or be permanently damaged by power spikes or external transients. This robust design maximizes uptime and enhances precision in the toughest high-temperature environments:
Oil & Gas Exploration (Down-hole): For monitoring and control of drill bits, sensors (temperature, pressure, flow), and well logging—performance miles beneath the surface.
Heavy Industry & Process Control: Essential for monitoring systems in high-ambient-temperature factories like steel mills, glass manufacturing, and chemical plants.
High-Temperature Sensing: The definitive solution for furnace control, oven monitoring, and boiler management, simplifying design by eliminating complex cooling.
Start Your High-Temp Design Today!
Why Choose VORAGO for Arm Cortex M4 MCU Solutions?
Satellite, On-Terrain and Energy Exploration: VORAGO Technologies provides Arm Cortex-M4 family microcontrollers across a range of radiation tolerant by design (RTbD), radiation hardened by design (RHbD), and thermal management solutions. All components are meticulously engineered to mitigate single event upsets and prevent latch-up, thereby satisfying the most demanding requirements for satellite constellations, terrestrial, or oil & gas exploration operations and critical qualifications. With a Total Ionizing Dose (TID) tolerance from either 30 to >300 krad (Si), these microcontrollers are suitable for deployment in Low Earth Orbit (LEO), Medium Earth Orbit (MEO), Geosynchronous Earth Orbit (GEO), and beyond.
Exceptional Reliability: Our fast-expanding VA4 family of microcontrollers are built for environments where performance and uptime are non-negotiable. Error Detection and correction (EDAC) with hardware scrub engine for Soft Error Rate (SER) reduction of < 1E-15 errors/bit-day for the memory increase reliability for the mission critical applications where data integrity is paramount. Hardware scrub also reduces the chances of system crashes due to memory malfunctions, thereby extending the function life of the memory by preventing error accumulation.
Affordability: Built for any orbit, any commercial or government customer, the new VA42620, VA42628, VA42629, and VA42630 deliver top price/performance and fast scalability at up to 75% cost savings over rad-hard MCUs with HARDSIL. They require zero redesign for fast deployment - the chips can be dropped into existing architectures, eliminating the time and cost associated with platform redesigns.
Power & Space Efficiency: With a focus on low-power operation, all VA4 MCUs are optimized for energy efficiency, crucial for satellite, on-terrain, and industrial applications where power consumption is often a limiting factor. With built-in memory options, VA4 chips deliver a high-density solution for missions where every cubic centimeter is precious
Scalability and Flexibility: VORAGO's VA4 family offers exceptional price/performance and scalability, letting you perfectly match performance features and price to your application's requirements. Start with the VA42628, an entry-level device featuring a 50 MHz core frequency and essential peripherals. For higher performance and more advanced capabilities, step up to the 100MHz VA41630, loaded with features like Fast Ethernet, CAN 2.0, and robust ADC/DAC.
Key Features of Arm Cortex M4 Solutions
Floating Point Unit (FPU): VORAGO Technologies' Arm Cortex-M4 based processor, with its single-precision FPU, is well-suited for applications requiring efficient real-time control and signal processing such as, complex motor control algorithms and robotic arms.
Scalability for Complex Applications: The Arm Cortex-M4 MCU offers flexibility and scalability, suitable for everything from small-scale embedded systems to large industrial networks, ensuring that your solutions grow with your needs.
Efficient Power Management: Built for long-term performance with minimal power consumption, VORAGO’s M4 microcontrollers are perfect for low-power systems that require sustainable operation over extended periods, reducing the need for frequent maintenance or replacements.