Radiation-proof wifi chip could transform nuclear decommissioning robots

Jack Loughran Tue 24 Mar 2026

Collected at: https://eandt.theiet.org/2026/03/24/radiation-proof-wifi-chip-could-transform-nuclear-decommissioning-robots

Decommissioning nuclear power plants is a long and complex process and presents radiation challenges that often necessitate the use of robots to minimise the risk to humans on site.

However, most robots are controlled through wired connections such as local area network cables, which limits how many robots can be used simultaneously and creates operational challenges such as cable management and the navigating of confined spaces.

Now, researchers from the Institute of Science Tokyo (IST) have developed a 2.4GHz wifi receiver chip that can withstand radiation doses of up to 500 kilograys (kGy) and enable wireless control of robots in ultra-high-radiation environments.

Robots have been routinely used as part of the clean-up of Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant which was damaged by a massive earthquake in 2011 resulting in a meltdown. This recently included a remotely operated robotic arm designed to snake through narrow passages to conduct internal investigations and retrieve a sample of melted fuel debris from inside the nuclear plant.

“The requirements of nuclear power plant decommissioning involves exposure to intense gamma radiation emitted from fuel debris. Introducing such a wireless system eliminates the need for complex cabling and enables efficient and seamless operation of a large number of robots,” said Atsushi Shirane, associate professor at IST.

When electronic chips are exposed to intense gamma radiation, charges become trapped in insulating layers within transistors, which can cause electrical leakage, weaken signals and increase noise.

To make the receiver more resistant to radiation, the researchers redesigned the chip to reduce the total number of transistors. Fewer transistors mean fewer areas where radiation can cause charge build-up and damage. In the variable-gain amplifier, a transistor normally used to control gain was replaced with an inductor, a passive component that is much less sensitive to radiation.

The team also made the remaining transistors physically larger by increasing their length and width and reducing the number of parallel segments, known as ‘fingers’. Radiation damage often creates leakage paths along the edges of transistors, and larger devices are less affected by these edge-related problems. 

In testing, after cumulative exposure to 500kGy, the chip’s signal gain decreased by only 1.4 decibels, its noise figure increased by at most 1.26 decibels, and its power consumption decreased slightly by about 2mW. Overall, its communication performance remained comparable to that of standard commercial wifi receivers.

“By realising wifi chips that operate stably even under ultra-high-dose radiation environments, wireless remote operation using robots and drones will be promoted, enabling reductions in worker radiation exposure risk and advances in work sophistication,” Shirane said.

Because this chip can handle much higher radiation than electronics usually face in space, it could also be useful for future space missions and other extreme radiation settings, the researchers say.

According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, almost half the 423 nuclear power reactors in operation today are expected to enter decommissioning by 2050.