Cryogenic sensors on ESA's Cosmic Vision mission studies

In the framework of the Cosmic Vision 2015-2025 plan, ESA is currently performing assessment studies on a number of candidate space missions. Cryogenic sensors play an important role in several of the astronomy missions. Specifically, the SAFARI instrument on SPICA and the X-ray Microcalorimeter Spectrometer (XMS) on IXO baselines depend on state-of-the-art Transition Edge Sensor Arrays and associated cryogenic readouts. We will present ESA's Cosmic Vision plan, detail the current status of the SPICA/SAFARI and IXO studies and review the performance drivers for the sensor arrays.