OSW-Reliance 21 SBIR OSW26BZ06-NV024: Engineered Microstructures for Enhanced IR Aperture Performance
Quick Answer
OSW26BZ06-NV024 is a Phase I SBIR topic under the Office of the Secretary of War, Reliance 21, 2026 SBIR Broad Agency Announcement, Release 6. The Navy has already made an IR-transparent composite ceramic with sub-100 nanometer features in every phase and porosity below 0.1 percent, but only on parts about 0.4 inch across. This topic funds the scale-up: the same material properties on samples larger than 2 by 4 by 0.5 inches, with an industrial path to 3 by 9 inches or larger. The award is $300,000 over 12 months, and the technical volume is capped at 10 pages. The topic opens September 23, 2026 and closes October 21, 2026 through the Defense SBIR/STTR Innovation Portal.
The core difficulty is stated plainly in the topic. Conventional ceramic processing routes that rely on mechanical mixing or co-precipitation of constituent phases typically result in microstructural coarsening during densification that precludes achieving sub-100 nm feature sizes in all phases. In other words, the standard way to make a dense ceramic destroys the nanostructure that makes this material valuable. Innovative powder synthesis and consolidation approaches are what the Navy is buying.
Note the 10-page technical volume. That is the tightest page limit across the four topics in this release and among the tightest in the entire 2026 cycle, and figures, tables, charts, and references all count inside it. No separate appendices will be evaluated. This is a materials science pitch that has to fit in ten pages including your micrographs.
Topic At a Glance
Topic number: OSW26BZ06-NV024
Title: Engineered Microstructures for Enhanced IR Aperture Performance
Agency: Office of the Secretary of War, Reliance 21, administered by the OUSW(R&E) SBIR Program
Solicitation: OSW-Reliance 21, 2026 SBIR Broad Agency Announcement, Release 6, Proposal Submission Instructions
Program type: Phase I
Base award: $300,000
Base period of performance: 12 months
Technical volume limit: 10 pages, with all figures, tables, charts, and references counted inside that limit
OUSW (R&E) Critical Technology Area: Scaled Hypersonics
Component Technology Priority Area: Hypersonics
Projected CMMC level requirement: Level 1
Export control status: ITAR restricted. The technology within this topic is restricted under the International Traffic in Arms Regulation, 22 CFR Parts 120-130, or the Export Administration Regulation, 15 CFR Parts 730-774
Target sample size: exceeding 2 by 4 by 0.5 inches, with a path toward 3 by 9 inches or larger
Microstructure requirement: sub-100 nanometer features in all phases
Porosity requirement: below 0.1 percent
Optical requirement: SWIR and MWIR transparency of at least 80 percent
Thermal stability requirement: retained microstructure and IR transparency after exposure to 1200 degrees C for 10 minutes
Thermal figure of merit: alpha over k at or below 1.0 micrometers per watt at 1000 degrees C, threshold, with a target of 0.5
Technical and Business Assistance: Phase I awardees may request up to $6,500, in addition to the cost ceiling and not subject to profit or fee, using the mandatory SBIR/STTR TABA Request Form in Volume 5
Cost volume: the DSIP online Cost Volume webform is required. No separate Excel template
Topic open date: September 23, 2026
Proposal deadline: October 21, 2026
Submission portal: DSIP at dodsbirsttr.mil
Keywords: composite ceramic, infrared transparent, nanoscale microstructure, ceramic scale-up, IR window, nanocomposite, thermal stability, thermal shock resistance
The Technical Problem, Stated Precisely
What the Navy has already done
The Navy has demonstrated within its laboratories that a composite ceramic exhibiting IR transparency can be produced with distinct phases, microstructural feature sizes below 100 nanometers in all phases, and porosity content below 0.1 percent on component parts as large as 0.4 inch in lateral dimension.
Phase identity, crystal structure, phase chemistry, microstructure feature size, and porosity content were established via X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy cross-sections with energy dispersive spectroscopy analysis.
Two things follow from that paragraph. First, this is not a speculative material. It exists at small scale in a Navy laboratory, which means a reviewer has a physical reference point for what "good" looks like. Second, the characterization suite is named: XRD, plus SEM cross-sections with EDS. Use the same methods and report the same quantities, because that is how your result will be compared to theirs.
Why the properties matter
Retention of sub-100 nanometer feature sizes across all phases is critical to achieving the desired mechanical and thermal properties of the composite. Porosity above 0.1 percent similarly degrades mechanical performance.
All three specifications, meaning sub-100 nanometer microstructural features in all phases, porosity below 0.1 percent, and short-wave to mid-wave infrared transparency of at least 80 percent, must be achieved at scale for the material to be suitable for transition.
Read "all three" as a conjunction with no partial credit. A proposal that achieves the nanostructure but at 0.5 percent porosity, or achieves density but with coarsened grains in the second phase, has not met the requirement. The phrase "in all phases" appears repeatedly and is the specific thing that makes this hard: it is comparatively easy to keep one phase fine and much harder to keep every phase fine through densification.
The central obstacle
Producing IR-transparent composite ceramics meeting these specifications at sample sizes relevant to aperture applications is a significant technical challenge.
Conventional ceramic processing routes that rely on mechanical mixing or co-precipitation of constituent phases typically result in microstructural coarsening during densification that precludes achieving sub-100 nanometer feature sizes in all phases.
Innovative powder synthesis and consolidation approaches capable of satisfying all microstructural, porosity, and optical transparency requirements at sample sizes exceeding 2 by 4 by 0.5 inches are sought.
Two named villains, mechanical mixing and co-precipitation, and one named failure mechanism, coarsening during densification. Your proposal should say explicitly which of those you avoid and how. The reference list points at two routes worth knowing: Chaim and colleagues on sintering and densification of nanocrystalline ceramic oxide powders, which is the coarsening physics, and Katsui and Goto on coating ceramic powders by rotary chemical vapor deposition and sintering the coated powders, which is a specific synthesis strategy for keeping phases separated and fine.
Scalability, stated as a requirement rather than a hope
Furthermore, the proposed processes should be industrially scalable in both capacity and final component size, with a path towards producing components in the 3 by 9 inch range or larger.
Note both dimensions of scalability: capacity, meaning throughput, and final component size. A process that makes one good 2 by 4 inch plate per month is not industrially scalable in capacity, even if the part passes every specification. Address both.
Thermal requirements
In addition to these requirements, the composite ceramic must retain its microstructure and IR transparency after exposure to temperatures up to 1200 degrees C for 10 minutes. Phase transformation or grain growth during high-temperature service would degrade both mechanical and optical performance.
The composite must also exhibit a low ratio of thermal expansion coefficient, alpha, to thermal conductivity, k. The threshold requirement for alpha over k is 1.0 micrometers per watt and the target is 0.5 micrometers per watt at 1000 degrees C.
The alpha over k figure of merit is the thermal shock parameter in disguise. A low ratio means the material expands little for the heat it carries away, which is what keeps an aperture from fracturing when it heats rapidly. Since the Critical Technology Area is Scaled Hypersonics, the operative scenario is a window or dome on a vehicle experiencing severe aerothermal heating. Framing your material's alpha over k in those terms, rather than as an abstract ratio, connects your chemistry to the mission.
Note also that the 1200 degrees C exposure is specified as 10 minutes. That is a short-duration thermal excursion, not a soak, which again is consistent with a hypersonic flight profile rather than a furnace application.
What Phase I Requires
Phase I efforts should focus on research to establish the feasibility of a proposed material system and processing approach.
Proposals should outline a plan to investigate and demonstrate the potential to produce the target IR-transparent composite ceramic with sub-100 nanometer microstructural features in all phases and porosity below 0.1 percent.
The research should address initial process tuning, explore pathways to scalability, demonstrating the approach can plausibly be extended to industrially relevant sample sizes, and provide a scientific basis for meeting the optical and thermal property goals.
The applicant should also investigate the anticipated thermal stability of the proposed composition to 1200 degrees C and provide an estimate or measurement of the alpha over k ratio.
Reading the Phase I scope realistically
Note the verbs. Phase I asks you to investigate, explore, and provide a scientific basis. It asks for an estimate or measurement of alpha over k, which explicitly permits a calculated or literature-based estimate rather than a measured value. It asks you to demonstrate that scalability is plausible, not to demonstrate scale.
That is a well-scoped 12-month, $300,000 effort, and it tells you what not to over-promise. A Phase I proposal claiming it will deliver a 2 by 4 inch part meeting all specifications is not more competitive, it is less credible. The deliverable Phase I is buying is a defensible material system and process route with evidence that the nanostructure survives densification and a scientific argument that it scales.
One inconsistency in the source document
The Phase I section closes with this sentence: "For Direct to Phase II (D2P2) proposals, the applicant is required to provide details and documentation demonstrating accomplishments of a Phase I-type effort."
However, OSW26BZ06-NV024 appears only in the Phase I table of the topic index, at $300,000 over 12 months with a 10-page technical volume. It does not appear in the Direct to Phase II table, which lists only DV025 and DV027. The topic number itself carries the NV prefix that this release uses for Phase I topics.
The most likely explanation is that the D2P2 sentence is residual boilerplate. Anyone who believes they have Phase I-equivalent accomplishments and wants to pursue a Direct to Phase II award on this scope should confirm with the program office through DSIP Topic Q&A before investing in that path, because the topic index does not establish a DP2 award amount, duration, or page limit for this topic.
Phase II, For Planning Purposes
Phase II proposals under this release may only be submitted by Phase I awardees, by invitation. Understanding the Phase II scope now still matters, because your Phase I proposal is evaluated partly on whether it sets up a credible Phase II.
The Phase II effort should mature the proposed technology through focused research and development aimed at scaling the process and optimizing the material. Seven key research objectives are named, explicitly not limited to these.
Developing and refining a novel composition and process route with the goal of achieving sub-100 nanometer microstructural features in all phases, porosity below 0.1 percent, and SWIR and MWIR transparency of at least 80 percent on samples exceeding 2 by 4 by 0.5 inches.
Investigating and verifying the retention of nanoscale microstructural features, critical to the target mechanical and thermal properties, via SEM and EDS cross-section analysis.
Researching and demonstrating the industrial scalability of the process, including establishing a clear path towards producing components in the 3 by 9 inch range or larger.
Validating microstructural and optical stability, including maintained SWIR and MWIR transparency and retained sub-100 nanometer features without deleterious phase transformation, after exposure to 1200 degrees C.
Measuring key thermomechanical properties, specifically targeting an alpha over k ratio at or below the 1.0 micrometers per watt threshold, with a target of 0.5, at 1000 degrees C.
Performing and reporting initial mechanical property characterization, including hardness, flexural strength, and fracture toughness testing at ambient temperature.
Providing representative samples to the Navy for independent characterization, alongside a final cost estimate for continued scale-up and per-unit material cost.
Two Phase II items worth planning for now
Independent Navy characterization is the seventh objective and it changes how you should think about the whole program. Your samples will be measured by someone else with their own instruments. That argues for conservative claims, well-documented measurement conditions, and enough sample volume to send parts away without exhausting your inventory.
The cost estimate is also a named deliverable: a final cost estimate for continued scale-up and per-unit material cost. Aperture materials live or die on cost per part, and being asked for a per-unit number as a formal deliverable tells you the Navy is thinking about procurement, not just properties. Start tracking process cost in Phase I.
Note also that Phase II efforts under this release shall include a transition plan addressing at least two of the three Services, and that Phase II contracting actions are anticipated to be firm-fixed-price or cost-plus-fixed-fee at the discretion of the Contracting Officer.
Phase III Dual Use
The contractor will pursue commercialization of the materials and processes developed during Phase II with ITAR and CUI-eligible organizations.
IR-transparent composite ceramics with refined nanostructure have broad potential for dual-use applications including electro-optical and infrared sensor windows and domes for airborne and maritime platforms, hypersonic vehicle apertures, and commercial thermal imaging systems.
The technologies may be transitioned by expanding mission capabilities across a broad range of government users including directed energy, EO and IR sensing, and hypersonic systems programs.
Direct procurement of IR-transparent composite ceramic components in coordination with the government program manager may be part of a Phase III program.
Two observations. First, "with ITAR and CUI-eligible organizations" is a real constraint on your commercialization narrative. The natural customers for this material are export controlled, which narrows the addressable market but also raises barriers to entry, and a candid treatment of that tradeoff is more persuasive than a market size claim that ignores it.
Second, directed energy appears in the list of government users. Beam director windows for high-energy laser systems have the same combination of optical transmission, thermal shock, and large-aperture requirements, and Scaled Directed Energy is one of the six OSW-Reliance 21 Critical Technology Areas. If your material transmits usefully at directed energy wavelengths as well as SWIR and MWIR, that is a second transition path worth a sentence.
The Ten-Page Problem
This deserves its own section because it is the practical constraint that will shape your proposal more than anything else.
The technical volume for this topic is limited to 10 pages. Under the OSW-Reliance 21 instructions, all figures, tables, charts, and references must be included within the page count limits listed in the topic index. Any pages past the technical volume limit will not be considered, and no separate appendices will be evaluated.
Ten pages including micrographs, XRD patterns, property tables, and citations, for a materials proposal that must cover a composition, a synthesis route, a consolidation route, an optical property argument, a thermal property argument, a scalability argument, key personnel, and facilities.
Practical consequences. Every figure has to earn its space, which in practice means composite figures with multiple panels rather than one micrograph per page. Reference lists should be short and load-bearing rather than comprehensive. The scientific basis for optical transparency and for alpha over k can often be made in a paragraph with a citation rather than a derivation. And the Phase I work plan, which is what the Government is actually buying, should not be the section you compress to make room for background.
Follow all instructions under the Phase I Proposal Instructions section in the DoW SBIR Program BAA, and use the Phase I technical volume template provided as Appendix A in that BAA, since the OSW-Reliance 21 instructions defer to it on formatting apart from the figures-count-inside rule.
Funding, Cost Structure, and OSW-Reliance 21 Mechanics
The award
$300,000 over 12 months. The Phase I base amount must not exceed the base limit set by the topic.
Worth noting that the other two Phase I topics in this release are funded at $314,363, and NV024 at $300,000 is slightly lower. There is no stated reason for the difference. Do not read anything into it beyond the ceiling itself.
Cost volume mechanics, which differ from most components
OSW-Reliance 21 requires the use of the DSIP online Cost Volume webform. No separate Excel template is required. If supplementary cost detail is desired, it may be uploaded as a PDF attachment within Volume 3.
This is a genuine difference from components that mandate a downloadable spreadsheet, and it simplifies preparation. Provide enough information to allow evaluators to assess your plans to use the requested funds, following the Cost Breakdown Guidance in the DoW 2026 SBIR BAA.
Percentage of Work, with no exceptions
Review the updated Percentage of Work calculation details included in the DoW solicitation. OSW-Reliance 21 will not accept any deviation to the POW requirements.
That sentence is unusually flat. For a ceramics topic, the temptation is to subcontract powder synthesis, hot pressing or spark plasma sintering, or optical characterization to a university or a commercial lab. Model your POW before you build the team, because a plan that puts too much of the work outside your firm cannot be fixed by negotiation.
Technical and Business Assistance, which is unusually generous
The OSW SBIR/STTR Program will consider TABA requests in accordance with 15 U.S.C. 638(q). Phase I awardees may request up to $6,500 in TABA funding. Phase II awardees may request up to $50,000 per Phase II project. TABA funding is in addition to the Phase I and Phase II cost ceilings and is not subject to profit or fee.
The $50,000 Phase II figure is double what DARPA offers in the same cycle and is at the high end across components. If you expect to reach Phase II, that is a meaningful amount of non-dilutive assistance funding to plan around.
All requests for TABA must be completed using the SBIR/STTR TABA Request Form, and the completed form must be included in Volume 5 of the proposal submission in DSIP. OSW will not accept requests for TABA that do not utilize the form or that are not included as a submission document in Volume 5.
Read that twice if you intend to request TABA. The form is mandatory and it must be in Volume 5. A TABA request made any other way is not accepted.
Supporting documents that are optional but encouraged
Letters of Support from prospective transition stakeholders within DEVCOM C5ISR Center, PAE Maneuver Ground, PAE Maneuver Air, CPE Autonomy, the Naval Research Laboratory, or the Air Force Research Laboratory.
A Data Management Plan addressing provenance, licensing, and protection of pre-training data and government-furnished data.
The named organization list is worth reading as a map of who this program office talks to. For an IR aperture material, the Naval Research Laboratory is the obvious fit, and the topic description itself refers to Navy laboratory work and Navy independent characterization. A letter from an NRL stakeholder is the single highest-value optional document available on this topic.
The Data Management Plan language reads as written for artificial intelligence topics rather than for ceramics, but the underlying concerns still apply if your effort will handle government-furnished data or materials data with licensing constraints.
The Company Commercialization Report, and a contradiction worth knowing about
Completion of the CCR as Volume 4 is required.
The Phase I Proposal Guidelines section of this document states that information contained in the CCR will be considered by OSW-Reliance 21 during proposal evaluations. That is unusual. Many components, DARPA among them, explicitly exclude the CCR from evaluation. Here it counts, which means your prior Phase II commercialization history is part of your Phase I score.
Note that the Direct to Phase II Proposal Guidelines section of the same document says the opposite, stating that CCR information will not be considered by "SCO" during proposal evaluations. The reference to SCO appears to be residual text from another organization's instructions. For a Phase I proposal to NV024, the applicable statement is the one in the Phase I section: the CCR will be considered. Fill it out carefully and completely rather than treating it as a formality, and if the discrepancy matters to you, raise it through DSIP Topic Q&A.
Evaluation and selection
All proposals will be evaluated in accordance with the evaluation criteria listed in the DoW solicitation.
Government technical evaluators from Army DEVCOM C5ISR Center, Army DEVCOM Army Research Lab, the Naval Research Laboratory, and the Air Force Research Laboratory may participate in the evaluation. Non-government support contractors may assist in administrative handling of proposals if the individual has signed a non-disclosure agreement, and they will not participate in selection decisions.
Proposing firms will be notified of selection or non-selection status within 90 days of the closing date of the topic. Notifications will be issued through DSIP to both the Corporate Official and the Principal Investigator listed on the proposal.
Ninety days from October 21, 2026 is approximately January 19, 2027.
That evaluator list is tri-service and it tells you something about how to write. Your reviewer may be an Army materials scientist or an Air Force sensor engineer rather than a Navy ceramist, even though the topic originates in Navy work. Do not assume familiarity with the specific Navy laboratory result, and do not write only to a naval use case.
Protests after award should be submitted, as prescribed in FAR 33.106(b) and FAR 52.233-3, to osd.ncr.ousd-r-e.mbx.SBIR-STTR-Protest@mail.mil. Refer to the DoW solicitation for procedures to protest the announcement itself.
Tri-service coordination and the TPOC question
This topic is of joint interest to the U.S. Army, meaning DEVCOM C5ISR Center and DEVCOM ARL, the U.S. Navy, meaning the Naval Research Laboratory, and the U.S. Air Force and Space Force, meaning the Air Force Research Laboratory. Proposers are strongly encouraged to engage the Technical Point of Contact listed in the topic description during the pre-release period to discuss technical scope and transition opportunities across the Services.
One practical problem: no Technical Point of Contact appears in the NV024 topic description, or in any of the four topic descriptions in this release. Use DSIP Topic Q&A during the pre-release and open periods, and direct administrative questions about the program and these instructions to osd.pentagon.ousd-atl.mbx.communities-of-interest@mail.mil.
Classification
Phase I efforts are expected to be performed at the Unclassified and CUI level. Classified proposals are not accepted. The inclusion of classified data in an unclassified proposal may be grounds for the Agency to determine the proposal non-responsive and not evaluate it.
In some instances, work being performed on Phase II contracts will require security clearances. If a Phase II contract requires classified work, the offeror must have a facility clearance and appropriate personnel clearances to perform the classified work.
For a hypersonic aperture material, that Phase II possibility is not remote. If you do not hold a facility clearance, understand that it is a long lead item and start thinking about sponsorship early.
Export control and foreign nationals
The technology within this topic is restricted under ITAR, 22 CFR Parts 120-130, which controls the export and import of defense-related material and services including export of sensitive technical data, or EAR, 15 CFR Parts 730-774, which controls dual use items.
Offerors must disclose any proposed use of foreign nationals, their countries of origin, the type of visa or work permit possessed, and the statement of work tasks intended for accomplishment by the foreign nationals, in accordance with the Announcement.
Foreign national participation will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis and may be restricted due to U.S. export control laws.
Note the "case-by-case basis" language in the release's Additional Information section. That is more accommodating than a flat prohibition, but it means disclosure has to be specific: which person, which country, which visa, which tasks. If your ceramics expertise sits with a foreign national researcher or a university collaborator, resolve this before submitting rather than hoping it goes unexamined.
The References
Only four, and each maps to a distinct part of the technical problem.
Chaim, Levin, Shlayer, and Estournes, "Sintering and densification of nanocrystalline ceramic oxide powders: a current understanding," Advances in Applied Ceramics, 2008. This is the coarsening problem itself, and it is the paper that explains why the topic exists.
Goldstein, "Correlation between MgAl2O4-spinel structure, properties and scale-up product performance in IR-windows and domes," Optical Materials, 2012. Spinel is the incumbent transparent ceramic for IR windows and domes, and this reference is about scale-up performance specifically. Treat spinel as the baseline your material must beat, and say how.
Nordahl, Hartnett, Gattuso, and Gentilman, "Optical and Mechanical Properties of Nano-Composite Optical Ceramics," Raytheon Integrated Defense Systems, DTIC accession ADA527006, 2009. This is prior nanocomposite optical ceramic work from a defense prime, retrievable from DTIC, and it is the closest published precedent to what the Navy has demonstrated.
Katsui and Goto, "Coatings on ceramic powders by rotary chemical vapor deposition and sintering of the coated powders," Journal of the Ceramic Society of Japan, 2018. This is a specific synthesis strategy for the exact problem: coat the powder so the phases stay separated and fine through densification.
The set is short enough that all four are worth reading before you write. The Katsui and Goto route in particular is a strong hint about the kind of powder synthesis approach that would satisfy the "innovative powder synthesis and consolidation" language, and positioning your route relative to it, whether you use it, improve on it, or reject it, shows a reviewer you know the space.
Timeline and What to Do When
The dates
Topic opens: September 23, 2026
DSIP Topic Q&A closes: October 7, 2026, two weeks before the topic closes, per the DoW SBIR Program BAA
Proposal deadline: October 21, 2026
Selection notification: within 90 days of the closing date, approximately January 19, 2027
Period of performance: 12 months from award
A working backward plan
Before September 23. Identify your material system and be able to defend the composition choice against spinel as the incumbent. Assemble your existing micrographs, XRD patterns, and any porosity or transparency data, and select the few figures that will fit in ten pages. Confirm access to XRD and to SEM with EDS, since those are the named characterization methods. Estimate or find alpha and k for your composition and compute the ratio at 1000 degrees C, since Phase I explicitly accepts an estimate. Model your Percentage of Work before finalizing subcontracts, because no POW deviations are accepted. Read the four references. Reach out to Naval Research Laboratory and other named stakeholder organizations about a letter of support, which is optional but is the highest-value optional document here. Resolve any foreign national participation questions. Confirm SAM registration and your CMMC Level 1 posture. Download the DoW SBIR Program BAA Appendix A Phase I technical volume template.
September 23 through October 5. Draft the 10-page technical volume against the DoW Appendix A template. Structure it around the material system, the synthesis and consolidation route that avoids coarsening, the scientific basis for 80 percent SWIR and MWIR transmission, the thermal stability argument to 1200 degrees C, the alpha over k estimate, and the scalability pathway addressing both capacity and component size. Keep the Phase I work plan substantial rather than compressing it for background. Draft the 3,000 character cover sheet abstract and the 3,000 character anticipated benefits and commercial applications discussion.
October 6 through October 7. Submit any remaining questions through DSIP Topic Q&A before it closes, including the Direct to Phase II ambiguity if that path interests you and the CCR evaluation discrepancy if it affects you.
October 8 through October 14. Build the cost volume in the DSIP online webform. Price powder synthesis, consolidation runs, XRD and SEM with EDS characterization time, optical transmission measurement, thermal property measurement or modeling, and high-temperature exposure testing. Add supplementary cost detail as a PDF in Volume 3 if useful. Complete the SBIR/STTR TABA Request Form if you want the $6,500 and put it in Volume 5.
October 15 through October 18. Complete Volume 4, the Company Commercialization Report, carefully rather than perfunctorily, since the Phase I instructions state it will be considered during evaluations. Assemble Volume 5 with the TABA form, any letters of support, and a Data Management Plan if applicable. Complete Volume 6 training and the Volume 7 foreign affiliations webform, remembering that Volume 7 must be the webform and will not be accepted as a PDF in Volume 5, and that no previous versions of the form should be uploaded to Volume 5. Run compliance: 10 pages maximum with figures, tables, charts, and references counted inside, unclassified or CUI only, no classified data, no separate appendices.
October 19 through October 20. Submit and certify in DSIP.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is OSW-Reliance 21 SBIR topic OSW26BZ06-NV024?
OSW26BZ06-NV024 is a Phase I SBIR topic titled "Engineered Microstructures for Enhanced IR Aperture Performance," released under the Office of the Secretary of War, Reliance 21, 2026 SBIR Broad Agency Announcement, Release 6. The objective is to spur research into industrially scalable production methods for an IR-transparent composite ceramic exhibiting sub-100 nanometer microstructural features in all phases on samples larger than 2 by 4 by 0.5 inches, porosity below 0.1 percent, microstructural and optical stability to 1200 degrees C, and a thermal expansion to thermal conductivity ratio at or below 1.0 micrometers per watt at 1000 degrees C.
How much funding is available?
$300,000 over 12 months for Phase I. Phase I awardees may also request up to $6,500 in Technical and Business Assistance, which is in addition to the cost ceiling and not subject to profit or fee, using the mandatory SBIR/STTR TABA Request Form in Volume 5.
When is the proposal deadline?
The topic opens September 23, 2026 and proposals are due October 21, 2026 through the Defense SBIR/STTR Innovation Portal at dodsbirsttr.mil.
How long can my technical volume be?
Ten pages. That is the shortest limit of the four topics in this release. All figures, tables, charts, and references must be included within the page count. Any pages past the limit will not be considered, and no separate appendices will be evaluated.
What are the four hard specifications?
Sub-100 nanometer microstructural features in all phases. Porosity below 0.1 percent. Short-wave to mid-wave infrared transparency of at least 80 percent. And samples exceeding 2 by 4 by 0.5 inches. The topic states that all three of the microstructure, porosity, and transparency specifications must be achieved at scale for the material to be suitable for transition.
What has the Navy already demonstrated?
A composite ceramic with IR transparency, distinct phases, microstructural feature sizes below 100 nanometers in all phases, and porosity below 0.1 percent, on component parts as large as 0.4 inch in lateral dimension. Characterization was by X-ray diffraction and SEM cross-sections with EDS analysis. The gap this topic addresses is scale, not existence.
Why is scale-up hard?
Conventional ceramic processing routes relying on mechanical mixing or co-precipitation of constituent phases typically cause microstructural coarsening during densification, which precludes achieving sub-100 nanometer feature sizes in all phases. The topic seeks innovative powder synthesis and consolidation approaches that avoid that mechanism.
What size components does the Navy ultimately want?
The proposed processes should be industrially scalable in both capacity and final component size, with a path towards producing components in the 3 by 9 inch range or larger. Phase II targets samples exceeding 2 by 4 by 0.5 inches.
What is the thermal stability requirement?
The composite must retain its microstructure and IR transparency after exposure to temperatures up to 1200 degrees C for 10 minutes, without phase transformation or grain growth.
What is the alpha over k requirement?
A low ratio of thermal expansion coefficient to thermal conductivity. The threshold is 1.0 micrometers per watt and the target is 0.5 micrometers per watt at 1000 degrees C. This is effectively a thermal shock figure of merit for an aperture experiencing rapid aerothermal heating.
Do I have to measure alpha over k in Phase I?
No. Phase I asks the applicant to provide an estimate or measurement of the alpha over k ratio, which explicitly permits a calculated or literature-based estimate.
What is Phase I actually buying?
Feasibility of a material system and processing approach. Phase I asks you to investigate and demonstrate the potential to hit the microstructure and porosity targets, address initial process tuning, explore pathways to scalability by showing the approach can plausibly be extended to industrially relevant sizes, and provide a scientific basis for the optical and thermal property goals. It does not ask you to deliver a full-size part.
Can I submit a Direct to Phase II proposal for this topic?
The Phase I section of the topic contains a sentence referring to Direct to Phase II proposals, but NV024 appears only in the Phase I table of the topic index and not in the Direct to Phase II table, which lists only DV025 and DV027. No DP2 award amount, duration, or page limit is established for this topic. The D2P2 sentence appears to be residual boilerplate. Confirm through DSIP Topic Q&A before pursuing that path.
What does Phase II involve?
Scaling the process and optimizing the material, across seven named objectives: refining the composition and process route to hit all specifications on samples exceeding 2 by 4 by 0.5 inches; verifying nanoscale feature retention via SEM and EDS cross-sections; demonstrating industrial scalability with a path to 3 by 9 inches or larger; validating microstructural and optical stability after 1200 degrees C exposure; measuring alpha over k against the 1.0 threshold and 0.5 target at 1000 degrees C; initial mechanical characterization including hardness, flexural strength, and fracture toughness at ambient temperature; and providing representative samples to the Navy for independent characterization along with a final cost estimate for scale-up and per-unit material cost.
How do I get a Phase II award?
Phase II proposals may only be submitted by Phase I awardees. Submission notices are issued by the OSW SBIR/STTR Program Office to eligible Phase I performers through DSIP, with submission windows announced individually following Phase I final review. Notices go to the Corporate Official and Principal Investigator listed on the Phase I award. Phase II efforts shall include a transition plan addressing at least two of the three Services, and contracting actions are anticipated to be firm-fixed-price or cost-plus-fixed-fee at the Contracting Officer's discretion.
Will the Navy test my samples themselves?
Yes, in Phase II. Providing representative samples to the Navy for independent characterization is a named Phase II objective. Plan for conservative claims, well-documented measurement conditions, and enough sample volume to send parts out.
Is this topic ITAR restricted?
Yes. The technology is restricted under ITAR, 22 CFR Parts 120-130, or EAR, 15 CFR Parts 730-774. Offerors must disclose any proposed use of foreign nationals, their countries of origin, visa or work permit type, and the specific statement of work tasks assigned to each. Foreign national participation is evaluated case by case and may be restricted.
What CMMC level applies?
The projected requirement for this topic is CMMC Level 1.
Is the Company Commercialization Report evaluated?
For Phase I under this release, yes. The Phase I Proposal Guidelines state that information contained in the CCR will be considered by OSW-Reliance 21 during proposal evaluations. Note that the Direct to Phase II section of the same document states the opposite and refers to a different organization, which appears to be residual text. Treat the CCR as scored and complete it carefully.
What cost volume format do I use?
The DSIP online Cost Volume webform. OSW-Reliance 21 does not require a separate Excel template. Supplementary cost detail may be uploaded as a PDF attachment within Volume 3.
Are there Percentage of Work restrictions?
Yes, and they are strict. OSW-Reliance 21 will not accept any deviation to the Percentage of Work requirements described in the DoW solicitation. Model your POW before finalizing subcontracts for powder synthesis, consolidation, or characterization.
How do I request TABA?
Using the SBIR/STTR TABA Request Form, included in Volume 5 of the DSIP submission. OSW will not accept TABA requests that do not use the form or that are not submitted in Volume 5. Phase I is up to $6,500 and Phase II is up to $50,000 per project, both in addition to the cost ceilings and not subject to profit or fee.
What optional documents help?
Letters of support from prospective transition stakeholders within DEVCOM C5ISR Center, PAE Maneuver Ground, PAE Maneuver Air, CPE Autonomy, the Naval Research Laboratory, or the Air Force Research Laboratory. For this topic the Naval Research Laboratory is the most natural fit. A Data Management Plan addressing provenance, licensing, and protection of pre-training and government-furnished data is also encouraged.
Who evaluates my proposal?
Government technical evaluators from Army DEVCOM C5ISR Center, Army DEVCOM Army Research Lab, the Naval Research Laboratory, and the Air Force Research Laboratory may participate. Non-government support contractors may assist with administrative handling under a non-disclosure agreement but do not participate in selection decisions.
When will I hear back?
Within 90 days of the closing date of the topic, which is approximately January 19, 2027. Notifications go through DSIP to both the Corporate Official and the Principal Investigator listed on the proposal.
Can I submit a classified proposal?
No. Phase I efforts are expected to be performed at the Unclassified and CUI level, and classified proposals are not accepted. Including classified data in an unclassified proposal may make the proposal non-responsive. Some Phase II contracts may require facility and personnel clearances.
Who is the technical point of contact?
The release strongly encourages engaging the Technical Point of Contact listed in the topic description during the pre-release period, but no TPOC appears in the NV024 description or in any of the four topic descriptions in this release. Use DSIP Topic Q&A, and send administrative questions to osd.pentagon.ousd-atl.mbx.communities-of-interest@mail.mil.
What is the commercial market?
Electro-optical and infrared sensor windows and domes for airborne and maritime platforms, hypersonic vehicle apertures, and commercial thermal imaging systems. Government users named include directed energy, EO and IR sensing, and hypersonic systems programs. Note that commercialization is to be pursued with ITAR and CUI-eligible organizations, which constrains the market but also raises barriers to entry.
Positioning Advice for Companies Considering This Topic
Beat spinel explicitly. Magnesium aluminate spinel is the incumbent transparent ceramic for IR windows and domes, and the topic cites a paper specifically about spinel scale-up product performance. A reviewer will be holding spinel in mind whether you mention it or not. Say what your composite does that spinel cannot, in the specific terms the topic uses: feature size, porosity, transmission, thermal stability, and alpha over k.
Name your coarsening defense in the first page. The topic identifies mechanical mixing and co-precipitation as the routes that fail and coarsening during densification as the mechanism. Whatever your approach is, powder coating, in situ phase formation, field-assisted sintering, a second phase that pins boundaries, state it early and explain the physics. That single argument is the topic's whole technical premise.
Say "in all phases" as often as the topic does. Keeping one phase below 100 nanometers is achievable. Keeping every phase there through full densification is the hard requirement, and it is stated four separate times. A proposal that presents an average grain size rather than per-phase data has answered a different question.
Report porosity like it is a specification, not a byproduct. Below 0.1 percent is a demanding density target for a nanostructured multiphase ceramic. State the measurement method, whether Archimedes, image analysis, or another approach, and be candid about its resolution near 0.1 percent, because that is exactly where measurement uncertainty starts to matter.
Address scalability in both dimensions. Capacity and final component size are both named. A single-part-per-month process that makes beautiful plates fails the capacity half. Give a throughput estimate and a route to 3 by 9 inches or larger, including what equipment scale-up requires and what it costs.
Connect alpha over k to the mission. The Critical Technology Area is Scaled Hypersonics and the thermal exposure is 1200 degrees C for 10 minutes. That is a flight thermal transient, not a furnace soak. Framing your thermal shock argument against an aerothermal profile rather than as an abstract ratio shows you understand why the requirement exists.
Fit in ten pages by cutting background, not the work plan. Every figure, table, chart, and reference counts inside the limit and no appendices are evaluated. Use multi-panel composite figures, keep the reference list short and load-bearing, and protect the space for the Phase I research plan, which is what the Government is buying.
Get a Naval Research Laboratory letter if you can. Letters of support are optional but encouraged, NRL is on the named list, and this topic originates in Navy laboratory work with Navy independent characterization built into Phase II. It is the single highest-leverage optional document available here.
Write for a tri-service reviewer. Evaluators may come from Army DEVCOM C5ISR, DEVCOM ARL, NRL, or AFRL. Do not assume your reviewer knows the specific Navy result, and do not write only to a naval application when directed energy and hypersonic systems programs are both named as government users.
Fill out the Company Commercialization Report properly. The Phase I instructions say it will be considered during evaluations, which is not true of every component. If you have prior Phase II awards, their commercialization outcomes are part of your score here.
Model Percentage of Work before you build the team. No deviations are accepted, and ceramics work invites subcontracting synthesis, consolidation, and characterization. Run the calculation first.
Use the TABA form or lose the TABA. Six thousand five hundred dollars in Phase I and fifty thousand in Phase II are both meaningful, and both require the SBIR/STTR TABA Request Form in Volume 5. A request made any other way is not accepted.
Do not over-promise Phase I. The Phase I verbs are investigate, explore, and provide a scientific basis, and an estimate of alpha over k is acceptable. Claiming you will deliver a full-size qualified part in 12 months on $300,000 reads as inexperience rather than ambition.
Start the clearance conversation if you might need one. Phase II contracts under this release may require classified work with a facility clearance and cleared personnel. For a hypersonic aperture material, that is a plausible outcome, and a facility clearance is a long lead item.
