GAEP Awarded Air Force Capacitor R&D Contract

General Atomics Energy Products, a Division of General Atomics Electronic Systems

PRESS RELEASE
Contact: Fred MacDougall 858-522-8408
May 24, 2002, San Diego, CA

GAEP AWARDED AIR FORCE CAPACITOR R&D CONTRACT

General Atomics Energy Products (GAEP) announced today that it has been awarded a contract for capacitor development by the United States Air Force Research Laboratories at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio. The contract was awarded in response to GAEP’s proposal for “High Voltage, High Energy Density, Pulse Capacitor Development”.

During this three-year program GAEP will develop lightweight capacitors suitable for mobile, airborne, and/or space-based equipment requiring high power pulses of electrical energy. GAEP will investigate and report on new dielectric and electrode materials and designs, new manufacturing processes, and improved packaging. A large number of sample capacitors of novel design will be manufactured by GAEP and tested in its Capacitor R&D Laboratory in support of the effort.

Prior United States government-funded capacitor R&D programs carried out by the same group (under ownership of Maxwell Laboratories, Inc. at the time) include: “Rep Rate, Long-Life Capacitor Development”, “Ultra-High Energy Density, 250-kJ Supercapacitor Development”, and “Project Mile Run”. These programs have demonstrated significant increases in energy density for a variety of military applications, including space-based lasers and electromagnetic launchers.

GAEP is a leading supplier of high energy density capacitors for large pulse power systems, medical defibrillators, lithotriptors, lasers, and accelerators, and a variety of other applications. GAEP is part of General Atomics Electronic Systems Inc., an affiliate company of General Atomics. The capacitor product line, formerly part of Maxwell Technologies, Inc., was purchased by General Atomics in March 2000. General Atomics Electronic Systems Inc. also designs and manufactures high voltage power supplies, radiation monitoring systems, and terminal automation products.