GA-Synopta develops and produces Beam Pointing and Stabilisation Systems that are used, for instance, for laser communications in space and in Optical Ground Stations.

The Coarse Pointing Assemblies (CPAs) cover a hemispherical angular pointing range with very high pointing accuracies; depending on the type of device, the pointing errors can be smaller than 30 µrad at beam diameters of up to 270 mm. The devices are designed for the visual spectral range but are also available optimized for 1’064 nm and/or 1’550 nm. The wavefront quality of the optical beam is hardly affected: the induced wavefront error stays typically below 25 nm rms.

The CPA70 is qualified for space applications. First units for low-earth orbit (LEO) satellites have been delivered in 2023. Unit qualification for beyond LEO orbits will be completed in 2026.

The CPA 135 (for optical beams of up to Ø 135 mm) is qualified for space applications and is used today as part of Laser Communication Terminals (LCTs) embarked on geostationary and low-orbiting Earth observation satellites. This CPA type is in series production for space applications.

The CPA 270 (for optical beams of up to Ø 270 mm) is designed for ground-based applications under harsh environmental conditions.