What is the Power Activation and Switching Module?
Deep Space 1 will test a power activation and switching module (PASM), the result
of a joint development among Lockheed Martin, Boeing, and JPL. This device contains
two sets of four power switches, each set controlled by its own mixed-signal Application
Specific Integrated Circuit, (ASIC). An ASIC is a kind of silicon chip integrated
circuit that is designed to fit the task its made for instead of being for general
use. The ASIC provides voltage and current sensing and current limiting for parts
of the spacecraft. High-density packaging technology quadruples the packing density
over the current state of the art, which helps to make smaller, lighter electronics.
. 
Figure from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory Deep Space One Web Site: http://nmp.jpl.nasa.gov/ds1/
What new technologies are being
tested on DS1?
What is the New Millennium Program?
What
components are where on DS1?
How
will we know if the new technologies work?
Why
are we testing new technologies on DS1?
Why
develop low power electronics?
