Software Defined Antenna for Interceptor-to-Interceptor Communications - SBIR Topic MDA26BZ04-NV003

Funding Amount:

Phase I - $314,000

Deadline to Apply:

August 19th, 2026

ITAR:

The technology within this topic is restricted under the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (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 the Export Administration Regulation (EAR), 15 CFR Parts 730-774, which controls dual use items. Offerors must disclose any proposed use of foreign nationals (FNs), their country(ies) of origin, the type of visa or work permit possessed, and the statement of work (SOW) tasks intended for accomplishment by the FN(s) in accordance with the Announcement. Offerors are advised foreign nationals proposed to perform on this topic may be restricted due to the technical data under US Export Control Laws.

Objective:

Develop low-cost software defined circular-band (ring shape) antenna for near-omnidirectional missile to missile communication in high-speed endo-atmospheric and exo-atmospheric environments.

Description:

This topic seeks development of a flight antenna capable of multiple node, simultaneous, high-speed, secure communication in meshed High Assurance Internet Protocol Encryptors (HAIPE) "Zero Trust" platforms and networks.

System shall provide wideband, omnidirectional-like (quasi-isotropic) coverage with beam steering and shaping flexibility with multiple beam transmit and receive capability.

Antenna shall address frequency hopping, band switching, and modulation manipulation capabilities.

Antenna shall have the capabilities of multiple antenna reception and transmission polarization associated with flight.

Antenna shall have the ability to maintain secure communication while in contested spectrums.

Antenna shall be able to operate in S+ to Ka frequency bands, and transmit 250 km in exo-atmospheric and endo-atmospheric hypersonic environments.

For purposes of this topic, assume missile diameter of 10”.

Solutions shall minimize the size, weight, power, and cost.

PHASE I:

Design and develop innovative solutions, methods, and concepts for advanced software defined antenna capable of harsh flight survivability and operations.

Present data supporting initial design through modeling, experimentation, and/or testing.

PHASE II:

• Refine and document detailed requirements in collaboration with the interceptor system integrator.

• Develop a functional antenna prototype utilizing existing Software Defined Radio (SDR) assets.

• Conduct comprehensive testing of the antenna prototype in representative operational environments.

• Demonstrate successful antenna operation and data acquisition within the target system.

PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS:

• Define clear communication requirements and interface specifications in collaboration with the system integrator.

• Establish a functional communication link between two representative missile platforms.

• Demonstrate successful data exchange between the interceptor, validating interoperability.

• Assess communication range, latency, and data throughput.

Who will win?

If you can achieve the objective above better than any other company on the market, you have a very high-likelihood of success and should apply.

Who is eligible to apply?

Any company that meets the following criteria:

• For-profit company

• U.S.-owned and controlled.

• 500 or fewer employees (including affiliates)

How Can BW&CO Help?

1) End-to-end support including, strategy, writing of the full proposal, and administrative & compliance support.

2) Proposal strategy and review.

3) Administrative & compliance support.

Request to talk with a member of our team by completing the form below:

Radiation Hardening of Non-Hardened Commercial Microelectronics - SBIR Topic MDA26BZ04-NV002

Funding Amount:

Phase I - $314,000

Deadline to Apply:

August 19th, 2026

ITAR:

The technology within this topic is restricted under the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (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 the Export Administration Regulation (EAR), 15 CFR Parts 730-774, which controls dual use items. Offerors must disclose any proposed use of foreign nationals (FNs), their country(ies) of origin, the type of visa or work permit possessed, and the statement of work (SOW) tasks intended for accomplishment by the FN(s) in accordance with the Announcement. Offerors are advised foreign nationals proposed to perform on this topic may be restricted due to the technical data under US Export Control Laws.

Objective:

Develop a process to radiation harden commercial microelectronics that were not originally designed to operate in radiation environments.

Description:

The performance and survivability of Department of War (DoW) and space systems, especially those operating in space environments, are critically affected by radiation.

Radiation testing of parts is a major cost and schedule driver for DoW and space systems.

The market for microelectronics that meet government radiation requirements is small.

Commercial microelectronics could meet the government’s performance requirements while failing to meet its natural space requirements.

Some state-of-the-art processes like Gate All Around (GAA) technologies meet the DoW’s performance and Size, Weight, and Power (SWAP) requirements yet might not meet all of the DoW’s survivability requirements.

MDA seeks a process which utilizes advanced packaging techniques and chiplets to pair fast ‘non-hardened’ components with slower hardened packages together, thereby increasing the rad-hard (radiation hardened) tolerance while maintaining the high performance of non-hardened commercial technologies.

The goal is to target a minimum Single Event Latch-up (SEL) immunity of 75 Linear Energy Transfer (LET) and Total Ionizing Dose (TID) survival of 300 kRad(Si).

This topic will seek to take existing Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) parts/chiplets fabricated using state-of-the-art processes such as sub-16nm FinFETs (Fin Field Effect Transistor) or GAA, modify them or provide a package-on-package-like solution such that their radiation tolerance meets natural space requirements.

This includes solutions based on heterogeneous packaging, where a rad-hard "watchdog" chiplet is integrated to monitor and compensate for radiation-induced errors in the high-performance COTS component.

At a minimum, the final product should meet an SEL immunity requirement of at least 75 LET and must be able to survive at least a 300 kRad TID.

Solutions relying on shielding the part or requiring access at the state-of-the-art foundry to add or change masks are not of interest.

All solutions should start with already fabricated parts either in bare die form or packaged parts.

PHASE I:

Feasibility Study and Proof of Concept:

Develop the proposed approach to a sufficient level to demonstrate its viability and identify requirements for full development.

This should include detailed simulation and modeling of the proposed heterogeneous packaging architecture, showing predicted radiation tolerance improvements and potential performance impacts.

Explore different integration schemes for the hardened and non-hardened chiplets.

Component Selection and Characterization:

Identify suitable COTS components (e.g., FinFETs, Gate All Around (GAA), Fully Depleted Silicon on Insulator (FD-SOI) devices) and chiplets for the heterogeneous packaging approach.

Perform baseline radiation testing on the selected COTS components to quantify their initial radiation tolerance.

Design and Simulation:

Design the initial heterogeneous package, including interconnects, thermal management, and power distribution.

Simulate the radiation response of the packaged system, considering both TID and Single-Event Upset (SEU) effects.

Deliverables:

• Detailed feasibility study report outlining the proposed approach, simulation results, and component selection rationale.

• A preliminary design of the heterogeneous package.

• A test plan for Phase II radiation testing.

PHASE II:

Prototype Development and Fabrication:

Fabricate a prototype heterogeneous package based on the Phase I design.

This may involve collaboration with a packaging vendor or trusted foundry.

Radiation Testing and Optimization:

Conduct comprehensive radiation testing (TID, SEU, SEL, and dose rate) of the fabricated prototype to characterize its radiation tolerance.

Optimize the design and fabrication process based on the test results.

Performance Evaluation:

Evaluate the performance of the heterogeneous package in terms of speed, power consumption, and signal integrity.

Compare the performance to that of the original COTS component.

Integration and Validation:

Integrate the hardened component into a representative space avionic subsystem/system application.

Test in realistic space radiation environments.

PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS:

Deliverables:

• Fabricated and tested prototype heterogeneous package.

• Detailed radiation test report.

• Performance evaluation report.

Who will win?

If you can achieve the objective above better than any other company on the market, you have a very high-likelihood of success and should apply.

Who is eligible to apply?

Any company that meets the following criteria:

• For-profit company

• U.S.-owned and controlled.

• 500 or fewer employees (including affiliates)

How Can BW&CO Help?

1) End-to-end support including, strategy, writing of the full proposal, and administrative & compliance support.

2) Proposal strategy and review.

3) Administrative & compliance support.

Request to talk with a member of our team by completing the form below:

Next-Gen Thermal Batteries for Missile Defense Application - SBIR Topic MDA26BZ04-NV001

Funding Amount:

Phase I - $314,000

Deadline to Apply:

August 19th, 2026

ITAR:

The technology within this topic is restricted under the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (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 the Export Administration Regulation (EAR), 15 CFR Parts 730-774, which controls dual use items. Offerors must disclose any proposed use of foreign nationals (FNs), their country(ies) of origin, the type of visa or work permit possessed, and the statement of work (SOW) tasks intended for accomplishment by the FN(s) in accordance with the Announcement. Offerors are advised foreign nationals proposed to perform on this topic may be restricted due to the technical data under US Export Control Laws.

Objective:

Develop and demonstrate advanced thermal battery technology that significantly reduces size and weight while extending operational life, enabling enhanced performance and mission capabilities for missile defense systems.

Description:

Current thermal battery technologies, while highly reliable for critical power applications in missile defense, present limitations that directly impact the performance and capabilities of advanced interceptor systems.

Key constraints include their specific energy density, power density, size, weight, and operational lifespan. These factors limit the overall effectiveness and maneuverability of these crucial defense assets.

For example, the Standard Missile 3 (SM-3) currently utilizes multiple discrete Lithium thermal batteries to power its various subsystems, each with specific voltage, current, and duration requirements. The size, weight, and performance of these batteries are dictated by the manufacturer (Enersys, EaglePicher, and GYT) and the demands of the design, but there is a clear need for improved performance.

A single, more efficient battery solution could greatly simplify the power architecture, reduce weight, and enhance system responsiveness.

This SBIR topic seeks innovative research and development to create next-generation thermal batteries that overcome these limitations.

We are looking for proposals focused on achieving significant improvements in specific energy density, power density, operational lifespan, and miniaturization.

Ideally, solutions would be lightweight, exceptionally safe, and designed to operate reliably in the harsh environments typical of missile defense deployments.

Innovations may include, but are not limited to:

• Novel electrolyte chemistries

• Advanced electrode materials

• Improved thermal management techniques

• Alternative activation methods

The ultimate goal is a new generation of thermal batteries that enable enhanced missile defense capabilities through improved performance, reduced system footprint, and extended operational readiness.

PHASE I:

Phase I would focus on conducting a trade study to identify the most promising candidate materials and designs for smaller dimension, lightweight, and extended-duration thermal batteries.

This would include a feasibility analysis, a cost estimate, and the identification of candidate solution sets that use measurable metrics (e.g., specific energy, specific power, volume, weight, lifespan) to provide equivalent or better solutions than existing technologies.

Proposed Deliverable:

• Trade study report

• Modeling and simulation results

• Prototype cell test data

• Thermal management model

• Manufacturing feasibility assessment

• Detailed Phase II plan

PHASE II:

Phase II plan is to construct a prototype of the best candidate thermal battery design from Phase I and test it to qualify it as a potential replacement for current thermal batteries used in missile defense systems.

This would involve optimizing the battery design, improving manufacturing processes, and conducting comprehensive performance and safety testing.

The prototype would be tested under simulated operational conditions to validate its performance and reliability.

PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS:

The technologies developed during this SBIR, such as novel electrolytes, advanced electrode materials, and improved thermal management, could be translated to several civilian and other defense applications, creating a substantial dual-use market.

Who will win?

If you can achieve the objective above better than any other company on the market, you have a very high-likelihood of success and should apply.

Who is eligible to apply?

Any company that meets the following criteria:

• For-profit company

• U.S.-owned and controlled.

• 500 or fewer employees (including affiliates)

How Can BW&CO Help?

1) End-to-end support including, strategy, writing of the full proposal, and administrative & compliance support.

2) Proposal strategy and review.

3) Administrative & compliance support.

Request to talk with a member of our team by completing the form below:

Software Defined Radio for Link Diversity - STTR Topic MDA26TZ04-NV004

Funding Amount:

Phase I - $314,000

Deadline to Apply:

August 19th, 2026

ITAR:

The technology within this topic is restricted under the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (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 the Export Administration Regulation (EAR), 15 CFR Parts 730-774, which controls dual use items. Offerors must disclose any proposed use of foreign nationals (FNs), their country(ies) of origin, the type of visa or work permit possessed, and the statement of work (SOW) tasks intended for accomplishment by the FN(s) in accordance with the Announcement. Offerors are advised foreign nationals proposed to perform on this topic may be restricted due to the technical data under US Export Control Laws.

Objective:

Design and develop an agile software defined radio (SDR) system capable of supporting multi-band communications with advanced frequency management for interceptor platforms.

Description:

This topic seeks to design and develop an SDR featuring multi-band operation, advanced frequency management, and enhanced processing capabilities.

The program desires to create drop-in, or near drop-in replacements of existing radio systems to enhance communication capabilities of interceptors across S, X, and Ka bands.

The radio must feature independent RF chains capable of rapid frequency hopping, adaptive frequency selection based on signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and make-before-break handover mechanisms.

The system shall incorporate temperature-controlled crystal oscillation for precise timing and demonstrate the ability to continuously sense, rank order, and schedule frequencies within specified bands.

The radio must be survivable against the austere environments of interceptor flight while maintaining simultaneous communications with ground and space assets.

Specific communication bands and performance metrics will be provided after award.

PHASE I:

Phase I aims to establish and validate a Software Defined Radio (SDR) architecture that fulfills the operational requirements outlined in this description, with demonstrations conducted in a controlled laboratory environment (Technology Readiness Level 4).

The proposed solution must demonstrate technical feasibility while laying the groundwork for miniaturization and commercialization.

Through rigorous testing and systematic evaluation, the Phase I effort will focus on proving core functionalities and critical performance parameters of the SDR system.

To achieve these objectives, the SDR demonstration must successfully address the following key technical elements:

• Multiple independent RF chains capable of simultaneous operation through functional hardware implementation, including practical demonstration of chain isolation and interference mitigation.

• Measurements of link quality after frequency hopping e.g., bit error rate, signal quality, and recovery time.

• Quantification of in-band retune times and band-to-band hopping times with demonstrated make-before-break capabilities.

• Demonstrated frequency management and handover mechanism.

• Validated temperature-controlled oscillator performance.

• Demonstrated paths to a MIL-STD-1553 or similar bus interface.

PHASE II:

Phase II efforts will focus on implementing the proven radio architecture into a form factor compatible with existing interceptor radio dimensions.

This phase emphasizes the integration of all RF chain components, timing elements, and processing hardware into a single, survivable package while maintaining or improving upon Phase I performance metrics.

The prototype must demonstrate the ability to fully exploit the multi-band capabilities of advanced antenna systems while operating in representative environments.

Particular emphasis should be placed on the radio's ability to maintain reliable communications through intelligent frequency management across all available bands during simulated contested operations.

Primary objectives include:

• Integration of all RF chains and supporting hardware into a single enclosure matching existing interceptor radio dimensions.

• Demonstration of survivability under MIL-STD vibration PSDs and temperature limits (e.g., MIL-STD-810).

• Reduction of retune and band hop times by at least half from those achieved in Phase I.

• Implementation and demonstration of continuous sensing, frequency rank ordering, and scheduling.

• Achievement of sensitivity and noise figure requirements (to be provided upon award).

• Demonstrate the ability to engage in encrypted communications using publicly available, NIST-approved encryption schemes while maintaining frequency agility (e.g., FIPS-validated algorithms).

The Phase II effort must deliver functional radio hardware, complete design documentation, and comprehensive test results validating all requirements listed above.

Test results should include characterization of frequency agility, encryption performance, link quality measurements, and environmental test data.

All demonstrations must be performed in a relevant ground test environment.

Phase II deliverables shall include evidence that TRL 5 has been achieved and analysis showing commercial viability of the technology.

NOTE TO OFFERORS:

Due to the nature of this technology and its potential integration with existing interceptor systems, Phase II efforts may require transition to a classified environment.

Offerors must address in their initial proposal their ability to execute classified work, either through their own Facility Clearance Level (FCL) or through established relationships with cleared facilities capable of supporting classified efforts under DD-254 requirements.

Failure to demonstrate a viable path for classified execution may impact further consideration.

PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS:

Phase III efforts will focus on achieving operational requirements within an existing interceptor radio form factor and demonstrating flightworthiness through testing on a representative vehicle.

The radio must demonstrate full multi-band capability with advanced frequency management, make-before-break handover, and integration with military encryption standards.

Commercial applications of this technology include satellite communications systems, commercial aviation, and other platforms requiring secure, reliable communications across multiple bands.

Additional reduction in SWaP while maintaining or enhancing performance across all communication bands is encouraged.

The small business is expected to obtain funding from non-SBIR government and private sector sources to transition the technology into viable commercial products.

Who will win?

If you can achieve the objective above better than any other company on the market, you have a very high-likelihood of success and should apply.

Who is eligible to apply?

Any company that meets the following criteria:

• For-profit company

• U.S.-owned and controlled.

• 500 or fewer employees (including affiliates)

How Can BW&CO Help?

1) End-to-end support including, strategy, writing of the full proposal, and administrative & compliance support.

2) Proposal strategy and review.

3) Administrative & compliance support.

Request to talk with a member of our team by completing the form below:

Low-Volatility, Reduced-Toxicity Hypergolic Propellants - STTR Topic MDA26TZ04-NV003

Funding Amount:

Phase I - $314,000

Deadline to Apply:

August 19th, 2026

ITAR:

The technology within this topic is restricted under the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (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 the Export Administration Regulation (EAR), 15 CFR Parts 730-774, which controls dual use items. Offerors must disclose any proposed use of foreign nationals (FNs), their country(ies) of origin, the type of visa or work permit possessed, and the statement of work (SOW) tasks intended for accomplishment by the FN(s) in accordance with the Announcement. Offerors are advised foreign nationals proposed to perform on this topic may be restricted due to the technical data under US Export Control Laws.

Objective:

Develop and demonstrate low-volatility, reduced-toxicity hypergolic fuels suitable for Divert and Attitude Control System (DACS) thrusters while maintaining critical performance metrics when paired with standard oxidizers.

Description:

This topic seeks novel hypergolic fuels featuring significantly reduced volatility and toxicity compared to traditional hypergolic fuels while maintaining rapid, reliable ignition characteristics essential for missile defense applications.

Current DACS systems typically use highly toxic and volatile fuels which, while offering excellent ignition delays and specific impulse, present significant handling and safety concerns.

The program desires to explore cost-effective alternative fuels that offer reduced vapor pressures while simultaneously minimizing ignition delays to ensure adequate DACS responsiveness in missile defense scenarios.

Candidate solutions might include, but are not limited to:

• Ionic liquids

• Reaction-driven amines

• Boranes

• Others

Hypergolic fuel blends are also an acceptable alternative so long as they could be justified in terms of miscibility and maintained performance across operational temperature ranges.

PHASE I:

The purpose of Phase I is to demonstrate viable low-volatility fuel candidates suitable for DACS applications.

Through laboratory-scale synthesis and testing, the fuel formulation must demonstrate significantly reduced vapor pressure compared to traditional hydrazine-based fuels while maintaining rapid ignition characteristics with standard oxidizers.

Laboratory demonstrations must validate vapor pressure, ignition delay, and basic handling characteristics.

Primary objectives include:

• Demonstration of fuel vapor pressure below 5 kPa at 20°C.

• Initial characterization of density, viscosity, and thermal stability.

While it is acknowledged that there may be trade-offs in performance, the Offeror must quantify the ignition delay and specific impulse using appropriate oxidizers and provide this information to the Government.

Material compatibility testing with common aerospace alloys and preliminary safety assessments must be conducted.

Phase I deliverables should include test data validating the above metrics, with sufficient characterization to enable assessment of potential integration challenges.

PHASE II:

Building upon successful Phase I fuel development, Phase II efforts would focus on validating performance through incremental testing culminating in sub-scale hot-fire demonstrations.

Initial characterization would include drop tests and static mixing evaluations, followed by 3-5 hot-fire demonstrations in a thrust chamber representative of DACS applications (<50 lbf thrust class).

Test campaigns should characterize:

• Ignition reliability and delay times

• Chamber pressure and temperature profiles

• Specific impulse validation

• Material compatibility in fired configuration

• Start-up and shutdown transients

The Phase II effort must deliver comprehensive test data demonstrating repeatable performance, complete fuel production documentation at the subscale level, and analysis showing scalability to flight systems.

Moreover, the Offeror must initially quantify any human and environmental toxicity concerns and detail these in comparison to the present art in hypergolic fuels, as well as initially describe a plausible path to mass production consistent with future needs.

Successful completion would achieve TRL 5 through demonstration in a relevant environment.

PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS:

Phase III efforts would focus on scaling the validated fuel formulation to flight-qualified hardware and demonstrating performance in an operational environment.

The fuel must demonstrate reliable ignition and sustained performance when integrated with flight-representative DACS hardware.

Following this, the Offeror would develop and execute a plan to scale fuel production to the quantities needed.

Commercial applications of this technology include satellite propulsion systems, particularly for constellation deployment where reduced ground handling complexity offers significant operational advantages.

Commercial space companies conducting frequent launches could benefit from safer ground operations enabled by low-volatility fuels.

The small business is expected to obtain funding from non-SBIR government and private sector sources to transition the technology into viable commercial products.

Who will win?

If you can achieve the objective above better than any other company on the market, you have a very high-likelihood of success and should apply.

Who is eligible to apply?

Any company that meets the following criteria:

• For-profit company

• U.S.-owned and controlled.

• 500 or fewer employees (including affiliates)

How Can BW&CO Help?

1) End-to-end support including, strategy, writing of the full proposal, and administrative & compliance support.

2) Proposal strategy and review.

3) Administrative & compliance support.

Request to talk with a member of our team by completing the form below:

Open Topic for Historical Radiation Data Analysis for Enhanced Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS) Modeling and Prediction - STTR Topic MDA26TZ04-NP002

Funding Amount:

Phase I - $314,000

Deadline to Apply:

August 19th, 2026

ITAR:

The technology within this topic is restricted under the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (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 the Export Administration Regulation (EAR), 15 CFR Parts 730-774, which controls dual use items. Offerors must disclose any proposed use of foreign nationals (FNs), their country(ies) of origin, the type of visa or work permit possessed, and the statement of work (SOW) tasks intended for accomplishment by the FN(s) in accordance with the Announcement. Offerors are advised foreign nationals proposed to perform on this topic may be restricted due to the technical data under US Export Control Laws.

Objective:

This open topic seeks to develop and implement advanced analytical techniques for processing and interpreting historical radiation data (space-based and simulated) to improve the accuracy and predictive capabilities of radiation models, particularly concerning sensor performance and spacecraft survivability.

Description:

The performance and survivability of Department of War (DoW) and space systems, especially those operating in space environments, are critically affected by radiation. Radiation testing of parts are major cost and schedule drivers for DoW and space systems. This topic seeks to conduct a rigorous statistical analysis of long-term radiation trends and their impact with the goal of either reducing or justifying the need for rigorous and costly radiation testing. DoW systems must determine a part’s susceptibility to many forms of radiation including but not limited to: neutron, proton, heavy ion, displacement damage, total ionizing dose. Successful proposals may focus on all or some subset of these radiation environments and would seek innovative approaches to analyze historical radiation data from various sources in the open literature, including but not limited to:

Archived space-based radiation measurements (e.g., from past and current satellite missions).

Data from ground-based radiation testing facilities and simulation environments.

Historical performance data of space components and subsystems exposed to radiation.

Legacy data of previous test failures to analyze and attribute the event to the natural space environments.

Proposers should be able to conduct their analysis without data provided by the Missile Defense Agency.

The analysis should focus on:

Trend Identification: Identifying long-term trends and patterns in radiation effects of microelectronics. For example, the development of a-priori expectations based on part type, node size and process technology, and trends in lot-to-lot variation of radiation performance for particular devices.

Correlation Studies: Correlating historical radiation data with observed performance degradation of sensors, electronics, and other critical spacecraft components. This includes exploring the relationships between radiation dose, single event effects (SEUs), total ionizing dose (TID), and other radiation-induced phenomena, with failures or degradation of space systems.

Predictive Modeling: Developing predictive models that use historical radiation data to forecast the radiation environment impact on future and current microelectronics devices and process technologies. This may involve incorporating machine learning techniques to identify complex relationships and improve prediction accuracy.

Uncertainty Quantification: Quantifying the uncertainties associated with historical data and predictive models and assessing their implications for risk management, decision-making and design margin.

PHASE I:

Identify and acquire relevant historical radiation datasets from available sources in the open literature. Develop and implement data processing and analysis techniques, including statistical methods, machine learning algorithms, and visualization tools. Conduct preliminary correlation studies between radiation data and observed performance degradation of DoW components. Develop an initial predictive model and assess its accuracy and limitations. Provide analysis of existing data and historical data with respect to high energy events. Demonstrate the applicability of the proposed models to one or more existing DoW systems.

PHASE II:

Refine data processing and analysis techniques, incorporating new datasets and advanced algorithms.

Conduct comprehensive correlation studies, focusing on specific radiation-induced failure mechanisms and their impact on performance.

Develop and validate predictive models using independent datasets.

Quantify uncertainties and assess their impact on decision-making.

Integrate with data from other government sources, with respect to test failures, to determine if there are any connections between the events of interest and the observed trends.

PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS:

Commercialization potential exists in the medical, aviation, homeland security sector, power and automotive industries. Modern integrated circuits are increasingly more susceptible to Single-Event Effects (SEE) to the point that even non-space, terrestrial assets such as large computing centers are facing radiation effects challenges. This topic would help to assess quality control features for the selection and testing of future devices to ensure survivability in radiation environments.

Who will win?

If you can achieve the objective above better than any other company on the market, you have a very high-likelihood of success and should apply.

Who is eligible to apply?

Any company that meets the following criteria:

• For-profit company

• U.S.-owned and controlled.

• 500 or fewer employees (including affiliates)

How Can BW&CO Help?

1) End-to-end support including, strategy, writing of the full proposal, and administrative & compliance support.

2) Proposal strategy and review.

3) Administrative & compliance support.

Request to talk with a member of our team by completing the form below:

Novel Ignition Systems for multi-pulse Solid Propellant Rocket Motors - STTR Topic MDA26TZ04-NV001

Funding Amount:

Phase I - $314,000

Deadline to Apply:

August 19th, 2026

ITAR:

The technology within this topic is restricted under the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (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 the Export Administration Regulation (EAR), 15 CFR Parts 730-774, which controls dual use items. Offerors must disclose any proposed use of foreign nationals (FNs), their country(ies) of origin, the type of visa or work permit possessed, and the statement of work (SOW) tasks intended for accomplishment by the FN(s) in accordance with the Announcement. Offerors are advised foreign nationals proposed to perform on this topic may be restricted due to the technical data under US Export Control Laws.

Objective:

Develop a reliable, lightweight ignition system for solid propellant propulsion systems that is capable of multiple ignitions.

Description:

Solid propellant propulsion systems which utilize multiple pulses commonly use separate pyrotechnic or pyrogen igniters for each pulse. In recent years, alternative ignition methods have been conceptualized which could ignite rocket motors multiple times with the same ignition hardware. Alternative ignition methods may also eliminate the need for sensitive pyrotechnic initiators typically used in conventional igniters, reducing the danger of inadvertent initiation. Ignition systems which are capable of multiple ignitions facilitate the design of systems which provide more flexible use of propellant.

PHASE I:

Design an ignition system capable of generating combustion gases from reduced smoke propellant grains with mass flow rates adequate to achieve stable combustion with multiple ignitions. Proposed designs must consider attenuation from combustion products. Proposed ignition system should minimize use of novel subcomponents and maximize the use of commercially available subcomponents. Proposed work plans must include demonstration of combustion gases to validate models.

PHASE II:

Develop an ignition system which could ignite solid propellant propulsion systems in multiple ignitions with a single ignition system. The igniter should be applicable to several propellant compositions. The proposed ignition system must be demonstrated to achieve motor rise times with a wide range of motor free volumes, and the mass of the proposed ignition system should be lower than the mass of a conventional pyrogen or pyrotechnic igniter. Proposer should specify the energy requirements and energy source for the proposed igniter system. Required power should not exceed capabilities of existing commercially available thermal batteries and power supplies. Work with propulsion system supplier or system level integrator to further define performance attributes.

PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS:

Design and build an ignition system for solid propellant rockets capable of igniting rockets with free volumes and motor rise times specified by prime contractors. The proposed ignition system must be capable of multiple ignitions for multiple rocket pulses with the same hardware.

Who will win?

If you can achieve the objective above better than any other company on the market, you have a very high-likelihood of success and should apply.

Who is eligible to apply?

Any company that meets the following criteria:

• For-profit company

• U.S.-owned and controlled.

• 500 or fewer employees (including affiliates)

How Can BW&CO Help?

1) End-to-end support including, strategy, writing of the full proposal, and administrative & compliance support.

2) Proposal strategy and review.

3) Administrative & compliance support.

Request to talk with a member of our team by completing the form below:

T3CP Patent Holiday SBIR Open Topic Call - SBIR Topic OSW26BZ04-DP013

Funding Amount:

Phase I - $250,000

Direct to Phase II - $2,153,927

Deadline to Apply:

August 19th, 2026

Objective:

Develop innovative, transition-ready prototype solutions that leverage Department of War inventions made available through the T3CP Patent Holiday Initiative in the areas of Microelectronics, Advanced Materials, Energetics, Munitions, and Critical Minerals and supply-chain-enabling technologies.

Description:

The Office of Technology, Transition and Commercial Partnerships (T3CP) is seeking innovative approaches that accelerate the commercialization and dual-use transition of government funded intellectual property made available through the T3CP Patent Holiday Initiative.

Launched in January 2026, the Patent Holiday Initiative curates priority inventions from intellectual property (IP) in which the government holds either title or statutory rights of use and offers no-cost commercial evaluation licenses (CELs) to qualifying industry partners, enabling small businesses to prototype, evaluate, and commercialize products built on DoW-origin patents.

T3CP is seeking proposals that translate and mature these priority government funded inventions into prototype capabilities with clear commercial relevance and credible transition potential.

This topic is structured as a broad open topic with five sector areas.

Offerors should propose within the sector most aligned to the patent or patents they seek to commercialize, clearly identifying the target product concept, end users, integration pathway, technical approach, and measurable milestones.

Proposed research should investigate innovative approaches that enable meaningful advances in devices, components, materials, manufacturing processes, software-enabled tools, or integrated product concepts.

Specifically excluded is research that primarily results in evolutionary improvements to the existing state of practice without a credible prototype and commercialization pathway.

Sub-categories of interest under this topic include, but are not limited to, the following:

1. Microelectronics

The rapid advancement of commercial microelectronics offers significant potential for accelerating DoW capabilities in sensing, communications, positioning, and cyber-resilient systems.

T3CP is interested in technologies that leverage DoW patents to develop commercially relevant microelectronics-based products with defense and dual-use transition potential.

Sub-categories of interest under Microelectronics include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Resilient communications and adaptive networking systems

• Assured position, navigation, and timing; GNSS spoofing detection and timing integrity technologies

• RF sensing, radar, spectrum awareness, and electronic support tools

• Compact, wideband, metamaterial, or reconfigurable antenna technologies

• Embedded electronics and sensing for autonomous systems or edge-deployed platforms

• Secure network automation, physical-layer identification, and infrastructure resilience technologies

2. Advanced Materials

Advances in functional materials, coatings, composites, and manufacturing processes offer significant commercial and defense potential.

T3CP is interested in technologies that apply DoW patents to create innovative products in advanced materials, functional surfaces, protective textiles, and materials-enabled sensing.

Sub-categories of interest under Advanced Materials include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Corrosion-resistant, thermal barrier, anti-fouling, or multifunctional coating systems

• Conductive polymers, functional thin films, and stimuli-responsive material systems

• Graphene, 2D materials, ALD/ALE, wide-bandgap, and semiconductor-enabling materials and processes

• Protective textiles, wearables, personal protective equipment, and CBRN-resistant fabrics

• Sorbent, catalytic, or reactive materials for filtration, decontamination, and chemical agent defeat

• Sensing-integrated and material-embedded monitoring platforms

3. Energetics

DoW patents in energetics and energy-related systems offer broad commercial potential in areas including oxygen generation, propulsion, diagnostics, and advanced air mobility support.

T3CP is interested in technologies that apply DoW patents to develop commercially viable products with dual-use applicability.

Sub-categories of interest under Energetics include, but are not limited to, the following:

• On-demand oxygen generation systems for emergency, industrial, medical, or confined-space applications

• Advanced fuel, combustion, and propulsion-enabling technologies for UAV, portable power, marine, or light aircraft applications

• Quantum-enabled or RF-enabled sensing and diagnostics systems

• Weather, environmental hazard, or safety tools for aviation, advanced air mobility, and autonomous operations

• Safer pyrotechnic, gas-generant, or controlled energy-release applications for commercial or industrial use

4. Munitions

DoW patents in munitions, armaments, launch mechanisms, projectile design, ignition, detection, and non-lethal effects offer potential for prototyping commercially relevant and defense-relevant products where a credible transition pathway exists.

Sub-categories of interest under Munitions include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Propulsion-related subsystems and performance-enhancing components

• Projectile, fuze, launch mechanism, sabot, obturation, and terminal effects technologies

• Safe ignition, initiation, and energy transfer mechanisms for commercial or industrial applications

• Explosives detection, diagnostics, and safety systems

• Non-lethal, training, or controlled-effects technologies

• Armament-adjacent materials or components with commercial and industrial applications

5. Critical Minerals and Supply-Chain-Enabling Technologies

Securing domestic supply chains for critical materials is a national priority.

T3CP is interested in technologies that support strategic material processing, recovery, substitution, advanced manufacturing, and supply-chain resilience, leveraging DoW patents to create commercially viable and strategically important products.

Sub-categories of interest under Critical Minerals and Supply-Chain-Enabling Technologies include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Strategic material extraction, separation, refining, and recovery technologies

• Battery, electrode, electrolyte, and structural energy material innovations

• Process technologies that reduce reliance on scarce or foreign-controlled material inputs

• Sensing, monitoring, and quality assurance technologies for materials processing and refining

• Advanced manufacturing processes that improve domestic production capacity and resilience

• Commercial platforms and tools that support supply-chain awareness, performance, and security

6. Biomanufacturing

Advances in commercial biomanufacturing and bioindustrial technologies offer significant potential for accelerating DoW capabilities in biodefense, biosurveillance, protection, diagnostics, and resilient domestic production of critical biological products.

T3CP is interested in technologies that leverage DoW patents to develop commercially relevant biomanufacturing- and biosystems-based products with defense and dual-use transition potential.

Sub-categories of interest under Biomanufacturing include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Recombinant protein production systems, expression platforms, and cell-free synthesis methods

• Enzyme-based detoxification, decontamination, and protective technologies

• Biosensing, bioassay, and diagnostic platforms for detection of biological or chemical signatures

• Bioaerosol detection, environmental biosurveillance, and hazard monitoring systems

• Bioprocess monitoring, quality assurance, and manufacturing control technologies

• Wearable, portable, or field-deployable bio-enabled systems for exposure monitoring and operational decision support

Proposed research should investigate innovative approaches that enable revolutionary advances in devices, materials, systems, manufacturing processes, or software-enabled capabilities.

Specifically excluded is research that primarily results in evolutionary improvements to the existing state of practice.

PHASE I:

Phase I proposals will describe the selected DoW patent or patents being leveraged, the relevant sector area, the proposed product or prototype concept, the intended commercial and/or defense end use, the technical modifications required to adapt the patented invention for the target application, anticipated performance improvements or commercial value, the status of or plan to obtain a commercial evaluation license (CEL), impacts to logistics, safety, or regulatory considerations as applicable, and the proposed transition approach.

Results of Phase I will be detailed in a final technical report (Final Report).

Phase I deliverables include:

• Kick-Off Briefing, due 15 days from start of Base award

• Final Report, due 120 days from start of Base award

• Initial Phase II Proposal, due 120 days from start of Base award

This topic is eligible for Direct to Phase II proposals.

Proposers must demonstrate Phase I-equivalent feasibility work completed prior to submission, at their own expense or through the T3CP Patent Holiday Commercial Evaluation License (CEL) process, and must hold or have applied for a royalty-bearing patent license for the DoW patent(s) underlying the proposed effort.

PHASE II:

The scope of the Phase II effort will be specific to each project but is generally expected to develop and demonstrate a functional prototype that implements the Phase I concept and achieves defined performance goals, validate the prototype in a relevant environment appropriate to the sector, mature the transition plan including manufacturability, scalability, regulatory and safety considerations, and advance commercialization including licensing progression, pilot partnerships, customer validation, and product adoption strategy.

PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS:

DoW is particularly interested in dual-use applications because they can accelerate transition of DoD-origin inventions by leveraging existing commercial demand, private-sector investment, and established manufacturing capacity, while also strengthening the domestic industrial base and supply-chain resilience.

Dual-use pathways also help reduce time to fielding, expand the pool of nontraditional partners, and increase the likelihood that patented technologies will mature into sustainable products with both defense and commercial value.

The technologies developed under this topic could be used in a broad range of military and commercial applications, including secure communications, resilient networking, RF sensing, spectrum awareness, navigation assurance, cyber defense, autonomous systems, advanced manufacturing, advanced coatings and functional materials, protective textiles and CBRN protection systems, emergency oxygen and life-support systems, propulsion and power systems, advanced air mobility and UAV-enabling technologies, explosives detection and safety systems, non-lethal and training technologies, battery and energy storage innovations, strategic and critical material processing, industrial monitoring and sensing platforms, and domestic supply-chain and manufacturing resilience technologies.

Who will win?

If you can achieve the objective above better than any other company on the market, you have a very high-likelihood of success and should apply.

Who is eligible to apply?

Any company that meets the following criteria:

• For-profit company

• U.S.-owned and controlled.

• 500 or fewer employees (including affiliates)

How Can BW&CO Help?

1) End-to-end support including, strategy, writing of the full proposal, and administrative & compliance support.

2) Proposal strategy and review.

3) Administrative & compliance support.

Request to talk with a member of our team by completing the form below:

Integrated Multicomponent Module for Quantum Sensors - SBIR Topic OSW26BZ04-DV007

Funding Amount:

Est. $2,153,927

Deadline to Apply:

August 19th, 2026

Objective:

Develop one or more multicomponent prototypes realizing a commercially viable quantum-sensor-related component in an integrated module.

Description:

The DoW needs quantum sensing capabilities that are Size, Weight, and Power (SWaP) compatible with a broad range of vehicles and platforms, and it seeks to develop commercial, off-the-shelf (COTS) components with integrated capabilities that currently hinder low-SWAP quantum sensors.

Such COTS components could provide multiple advantages:

• Integrating capability for use in different sensor designs across the quantum industry.

• Accelerating the development of low SWaP, low-cost quantum sensors by focusing resources on COTS solutions that currently hinder such development from custom, discrete approaches.

• Expanding dual-use market opportunities through commercial application of such COTS components individually and by enabling quantum sensors with more attractive price points for commercial markets.

• Providing initial steps needed for eventual standardization of quantum technologies and quantum support devices targeting the most mature quantum technology currently available, i.e., quantum sensors.

• Attracting non-quantum commercial companies to leverage their expertise in microelectronic device manufacturing.

Proposed approaches should target capabilities needed for supporting quantum device operation broadly needed in the quantum sensor community with the result of lowering overall SWaP and cost of such sensors.

They should carefully consider the expected market potential for selling the resulting component to the quantum community and potentially beyond to non-quantum DoW and commercial markets.

The mix of component technologies that enable quantum devices should account for such market potential and be key elements in reducing the SWAP of overall quantum sensors.

Proposed solutions could leverage, but they are not limited to, photonic integrated circuits (PICs), microcells, and solid-state technologies like color centers, silicon nitride (SiN), and thin film lithium niobate (TFLN) to enable the production of compact and robust light sources, isolators, modulators, and other components used to realize quantum sensing, computing, and networking capabilities.

These components are still largely produced in isolation, incurring performance losses due to interfacing issues such as fiber insertion loss or reflection at waveguide facets.

Directly integrating these components onto (e.g.) a single substrate can reduce the losses resulting from internal interfaces and enable reduced form-factors, but they must balance a need for the modularity that enables reuse and accelerates innovation.

PHASE I:

Phase I efforts should develop a design for an integrated multicomponent COTS module that mitigates risk associated with component integration and manufacture.

The design should mitigate the risk of integrating the individual components as well as manufacturing the module, with alignment to facilities focused on commercial products versus research use.

The design should be documented in a detailed technical report alongside performance modeling or simulated performance of the proposed integrated components, as well as that of a manually integrated equivalent using state-of-the-art discrete components.

Module key performance parameters relevant to one or more quantum sensing applications should be identified in collaboration with the government.

The performance of the proposed module in these key performance parameters should be compared to that of a discrete-component approach, alongside expected performance impacts in the identified quantum application(s).

Expected SWaP reductions in quantum sensors and identified market potential of the resulting device will be key elements of the progress of this phase, and it will be used in evaluating the progression of the effort to the next phase.

Proposals elucidating initial paths and necessary development to achieve volume manufacturing of the final COTS device are especially encouraged.

Proposals should specify the level of integration necessary based on application and market demand.

Individual components to be integrated must already be sufficiently mature (e.g. Technology Readiness Level 4-5, or have accepted design criteria).

The designed prototype must have an immediate quantum sensor application but should also enable being rapidly integrated into non-quantum applications.

The designed prototype should be shown to meet or exceed the performance of equivalent manually-integrated state-of-the-art components as modeled and/or simulated.

This topic is accepting both Phase I and Direct to Phase II (DP2) proposals.

Proposers interested in submitting a DP2 proposal must provide documentation to substantiate that the scientific and technical merit and feasibility described above has been met and describe the potential commercial applications.

DP2 documentation may include:

• Technical reports describing results and conclusions of existing work.

• Presentation materials and/or white papers.

• Technical papers.

• Test and measurement data.

• Prototype designs/models.

PHASE II:

Phase II will focus on the production of a prototype as per the Phase I design, and the characterization and evaluation of the produced prototype.

In Phase II the performer will build one or more working prototypes agreeing with modeled or simulated performance from Phase I.

Phase II reporting should include characterization of the prototype(s) in terms of key performance parameters updated from those identified in Phase I and validation of the prototype(s) against updated manufacturing and integration risk mitigations from Phase I.

The prototype produced must be self-contained and/or the adjacent components to support operation, evaluation, and characterization must be available, along with benchmark specifications for device performance.

Optionally, the prototype could be physically integrated into a quantum sensing, computing, or networking device, and performance, including overall SWAP reductions, characterized.

Optionally, a module manually-assembled from state-of-the-art components could be characterized and compared to the prototype module.

The prototype is expected to meet or exceed the performance of manually-integrated components as modeled and/or simulated in Phase I or optionally built in Phase II.

Performers should show clear progress towards manufacturing and selling the resulting COTS component to one or more external vendors.

Such vendors could include other quantum-related companies, companies supporting other DoW applications, or companies unrelated to either.

Progress can include letters of interest from such vendors, plans for integration into designs from external DoW or commercial entities, detailed analyses of the feasibility of displacing existing sensors or components, and so on.

Providers are required to provide a defensible and progressive path to costing and market feasibility of the COTS component for use by external commercial vendors given any unknown limitations in realizing such a path.

Progress towards volume manufacturing and resulting cost reductions should be shown.

Leveraging of commercial manufacturing vendors is encouraged, although not necessary given sufficient justification for the proposed business path of the resulting COTS device.

Proposers are invited to consider use of the Microelectronic (ME) Commons fabrication and packaging capabilities to broaden device exploration.

Success of a primary COTS effort should not depend on the use of the ME Commons, however, as securing such capability is not guaranteed by being selected for this SBIR.

Proposers are further not required to use the ME Commons, and no special consideration or favor will be given to proposals that include the use of the ME Commons.

PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS:

The work in Phases I and II should provide a compelling path to move the component towards commercial viability within 12 months, pending production of the updated technical data packages required to drive manufacturing at scale.

The prototype outcomes of this project are expected to have utility in both DoW and non-DoW applications.

DoW applications should have quantum sensing as a primary one, but they can also include non-quantum solutions via programs focused on the rapid transition of technologies into fielded devices and systems.

Who will win?

If you can achieve the objective above better than any other company on the market, you have a very high-likelihood of success and should apply.

Who is eligible to apply?

Any company that meets the following criteria:

• For-profit company

• U.S.-owned and controlled.

• 500 or fewer employees (including affiliates)

How Can BW&CO Help?

1) End-to-end support including, strategy, writing of the full proposal, and administrative & compliance support.

2) Proposal strategy and review.

3) Administrative & compliance support.

Request to talk with a member of our team by completing the form below:

Large Étendue, High Spectral Resolution Asymmetric Spatial Heterodyne Interferometer for Quantum and Dual-Use Remote Sensing Applications - SBIR Topic OSW26BZ04-DV006

Funding Amount:

Est. $2,153,927

Deadline to Apply:

August 19th, 2026

Objective:

To design, develop, and demonstrate a large étendue, high spectral resolution Asymmetric Spatial Heterodyne (ASH) interferometer optimized for quantum sensing, quantum communication support, and dual-use remote sensing applications.

Description:

Quantum communication systems, quantum-enhanced LiDAR, and quantum sensing platforms share a critical and unmet instrumentation need: a spectrometer capable of simultaneously achieving large étendue (high optical throughput) and high spectral resolution.

In satellite-based and ground-based quantum key distribution (QKD), ground station receivers must collect single photons from spatially extended fields of view — demanding large étendue — while rejecting broadband background noise, including solar background in daylight operations, through extremely narrow spectral filtering — demanding high spectral resolution.

Similarly, quantum-enhanced atmospheric and oceanic remote sensing requires the collection of weak, Doppler-shifted optical returns distributed across large solid angles, while resolving velocity-induced frequency shifts at the sub-pm level.

Conventional spectrometer architectures, including grating spectrometers and Fabry-Perot etalons, face a fundamental étendue-resolution tradeoff that prevents simultaneous optimization of both parameters.

The Asymmetric Spatial Heterodyne (ASH) interferometer architecture — a derivative of the Doppler Asymmetric Spatial Heterodyne (DASH) interferometer — offers a compelling solution: its field-widened, static, no-moving-parts design provides the Jacquinot throughput advantage inherent to interferometric spectrometers while achieving high spectral resolving power through heterodyne detection of small Doppler and frequency shifts [1, 2], making it uniquely suited to serve the quantum and dual-use sensing communities.

In this topic, proposers should develop a fieldable ASH interferometer that simultaneously achieves large étendue and high spectral resolution suitable for the quantum and remote sensing applications described herein.

The instrument shall achieve:

• A minimum étendue of 0.1 cm² sr.

• A spectral resolving power (R = λ/Δλ) greater than 10⁵.

• Operation at one or more select wavelengths relevant to quantum sensing or communication (e.g., 486 nm H-β for Fraunhofer line sensing, 780 nm for rubidium-based quantum systems, 1550 nm for telecom-band QKD, or other well-motivated wavelengths between 400 nm and 1600 nm).

The design shall be static (no moving parts), compatible with space or airborne deployment environments with simultaneous high étendue and narrow spectral bandpass, and shall demonstrate a convincing path toward operation across multiple wavelengths relevant to both quantum and dual-use applications.

Proposers should clearly articulate the design trades between étendue, resolving power, and instrument volume, and should demonstrate that the proposed architecture is scalable and manufacturable beyond the prototype stage.

PHASE I:

The performer must demonstrate prior relevant capability in spatial heterodyne or asymmetric spatial heterodyne spectrometer design and fabrication, supported by experimental data addressing étendue, spectral resolving power, and instrument throughput.

The proposer must also provide measured or rigorously modeled data showing progress toward the étendue and resolving power goals of this topic.

Additionally, the proposer shall deliver a detailed Phase II instrument design, including:

• Optical layout.

• Diffraction grating parameters.

• Field-widening prism design.

• Exit optics.

• Detector architecture.

• A quantitative analysis of the étendue-resolution performance space achievable with the proposed approach.

A credible analysis of the target quantum and/or dual-use application(s) to be addressed, including the spectral line(s) of interest and required Doppler velocity sensitivity, shall also be included.

This topic is accepting both Phase I and Direct to Phase II (DP2) proposals.

Proposers interested in submitting a DP2 proposal must provide documentation to substantiate that the scientific and technical merit and feasibility described above has been met and describe the potential commercial applications.

DP2 documentation may include:

• Technical reports describing results and conclusions of existing work.

• Presentation materials and/or white papers.

• Technical papers.

• Test and measurement data.

• Prototype designs/models.

PHASE II:

Build and demonstrate a prototype ASH interferometer meeting the following minimum performance specifications:

• Étendue ≥ 0.1 cm² sr.

• Spectral resolving power R ≥ 10⁵ at the selected operating wavelength(s).

• Static design with no moving parts.

• Instrument volume not to exceed 10 liters in the packaged prototype configuration.

• Operation demonstrated on at least one quantum-relevant or remote sensing spectral line (e.g., 486 nm H-β Fraunhofer, O¹S 557.7 nm airglow, Rb 780 nm, K 770 nm, or O₂ A-band 762 nm).

The prototype shall be validated in a laboratory environment, with a clear demonstration of Doppler velocity sensitivity sufficient to resolve wind or current velocities at the 1–5 m/s level, or frequency shifts relevant to the proposed quantum application.

The proposer shall also deliver a convincing scalability and manufacturability analysis for a subsequent fieldable or space-qualifiable instrument, and shall identify a transition path to at least one DoD and one commercial application.

PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS:

The ASH interferometer developed under this effort is expected to have immediate commercial and government applicability following Phase II completion.

Applications include:

• Quantum communication ground terminals for satellite QKD links requiring daylight operation.

• Quantum-enhanced wind and atmospheric density profiling and space weather monitoring.

• Quantum LiDAR systems for precision Doppler ranging.

Civil and commercial dual-use applications include:

• Spaceborne and airborne upper atmosphere wind field profiling supporting weather prediction.

• Laboratory quantum sensing platforms for cold atom, Rydberg sensor, and atom interferometer velocity diagnostics.

A second-generation instrument is envisioned to be purpose-built for specific quantum sensing modalities — including atom interferometry-based inertial navigation, quantum-enhanced wind LiDAR, and entangled-photon atmospheric probing — all of which represent significant and growing dual-use markets spanning DoD, civil government, and the commercial quantum technology sector.

Who will win?

If you can achieve the objective above better than any other company on the market, you have a very high-likelihood of success and should apply.

Who is eligible to apply?

Any company that meets the following criteria:

• For-profit company

• U.S.-owned and controlled.

• 500 or fewer employees (including affiliates)

How Can BW&CO Help?

1) End-to-end support including, strategy, writing of the full proposal, and administrative & compliance support.

2) Proposal strategy and review.

3) Administrative & compliance support.

Request to talk with a member of our team by completing the form below:

High-speed Photon-Number-Resolution Quanta Imaging Sensor Array - SBIR Topic OSW26BZ04-DV005

Funding Amount:

Est. $2,153,927

Deadline to Apply:

August 19th, 2026

ITAR:

The technology within this topic is restricted under the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (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 the Export Administration Regulation (EAR), 15 CFR Parts 730-774, which controls dual use items. Offerors must disclose any proposed use of foreign nationals (FNs), their country(ies) of origin, the type of visa or work permit possessed, and the statement of work (SOW) tasks intended for accomplishment by the FN(s) in accordance with the Announcement. Offerors are advised foreign nationals proposed to perform on this topic may be restricted due to the technical data under US Export Control Laws.

Objective:

Demonstrate a Photon-Number-Resolution pixel array with high counting rates that remains scalable to megapixel size.

Description:

Single-photon counting and timing achieves light detection at the fundamental quantum limit, unlocking next generation capabilities in quantum imaging and environmental sensing. Many applications require counting/timing photons at very high rates (>GHz), leading to instantaneous photon bunching (“pileup”) that causes photons to be missed. The result is data loss, degraded statistics and nonlinearities.

Current detectors mitigate such deluges by breaking the flow of photons onto arrays of many small pixels, thereby reducing the count rate for each individual pixel and enabling reliable counting even for very impulsive signals. They also group counts into macropixels and time-bins to reduce analog-to-digital conversion limitations and off-chip data transfer bandwidth requirements.

However, quantum imaging often looks at time correlations between pairs of photons on femtosecond to picosecond time scales, which register as a single click on a Geiger detector. Photon Number Resolution (PNR) can enable measurement of simultaneous incident photons to provide insight into quantum and statistical properties of light.[1]

Scalable Superconducting Nanowire Single-Photon Detectors (SNSPDs) with PNR provide near ideal performance, but will not be considered for this topic due to cryogenic temperature operation. Quanta Imaging Sensors (QIS) with jots or other CMOS compatible fabrication have demonstrated PNR at room temperature by achieving ultra-low read noise.[2],[3],[4]

A variety of physical processes have demonstrated GHz count rates,[5],[6],[7],[8],[9] and novel circuits have also been developed to advance single-photon detection technologies such as spiking neural network (SNN) neuromorphic readout integrated circuits (ROICs).[10],[11],[12]

The camera architecture must support time-of-flight (ToF) or equivalent depth-ranging modalities, and should be compatible with entangled or correlated photon sources.

This topic seeks an ultimate PNR sensor with the following performance:

Pixel-Level Performance:

• Photon Counting Rate: ≥120 MHz per pixel

• Photon Number Resolution ≥16

• External Quantum Efficiency (EQE): ≥60% between 450 – 550 nm, including fill factor losses

Array & Architecture Scalability:

• Array Size: Scalable up to Megapixels

• Monochromatic

Readout & On-Chip Processing:

• Frame Rate: ≥120 MHz operating in 10 µs duration bursts at up to a 16 kHz repetition rate (i.e. ≥1200 frames in 10 µs, repeated every 62.5 µs).

• Hardware-Level Compression: On-chip accumulation must be able to support the summing of up to a minimum of 500 burst sequences prior to readout, enabling significant compression of raw data volume without sacrificing the frame-to-frame temporal resolution.

Operating temperature between -40 °C to +45 °C.

Overall, the photon capacity of the sensor should be able to process bursts of ≥1016 photons per second; for example, 200 MHz x 32 PNR x 2 MPixels.

Simultaneously, the sensor should have a dark count rate low enough to be able to capture signals as weak as 10⁸ photons per second across the array, with high fidelity.

Initial proposals for this topic should document current state-of-the-art commercial single-photon detector performance for the listed parameters, identify the physical factors limiting current performance, propose developing new detection mechanisms and/or circuit architectures that could exceed current limitations to meet the requirements, and identify the challenges in implementing the proposed solution.

The proposer should make a convincing case that the design is scalable.

PHASE I:

The Phase I effort should demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed concept and reduce risk in the identified implementation challenges.

Conduct detailed simulations of the proposed detector to validate the pixel-level performance.

Develop the schematic for the “3D” burst-frame storage logic and ROIC architecture.

Identify a specific foundry with a manufacturing pathway for eventual commercialization and outline your test-plan with available hardware to demonstrate a prototype’s performance.

This topic is accepting both Phase I and Direct to Phase II (DP2) proposals.

Proposers interested in submitting a DP2 proposal must provide documentation to substantiate that the scientific and technical merit and feasibility described above has been met and describe the potential commercial applications.

DP2 documentation may include:

• Technical reports describing results and conclusions of existing work

• Presentation materials and/or white papers

• Technical papers

• Test and measurement data

• Prototype designs/models

PHASE II:

Finalize the Graphic Database System II (GDSII) layout for a small array and submit it for fabrication as part of a Multi-Project Wafer (MPW) run at a foundry.

Through laboratory testing and modeling, demonstrate the prototype meets the performance requirements.

Demonstrate the logic for stacking/scaling the architecture and create a roadmap towards fabricating a Mpixel array.

PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS:

Phase III will scale the production to Mpixel arrays in a commercial foundry.

The camera technology is directly applicable to high resolution photon detection applications such as laser communications and high-rate quantum key distribution.

It is also well suited to extend the envelope of performance for high dynamic range sensing where an initial bright reflection from a laser pulse exponentially decays to photon starved detection such as fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM) in biomedical imaging and environmental sensing LiDAR.

Who will win?

If you can achieve the objective above better than any other company on the market, you have a very high-likelihood of success and should apply.

Who is eligible to apply?

Any company that meets the following criteria:

• For-profit company

• U.S.-owned and controlled.

• 500 or fewer employees (including affiliates)

How Can BW&CO Help?

1) End-to-end support including, strategy, writing of the full proposal, and administrative & compliance support.

2) Proposal strategy and review.

3) Administrative & compliance support.

Request to talk with a member of our team by completing the form below:

High-Speed Nanophotonic Spatial Light Modulators - SBIR Topic OSW26BZ04-DV012

Funding Amount:

Est. $2,000,000

Deadline to Apply:

August 19th, 2026

Objective:

The objective of this project is to develop a nanophotonic-enabled spatial light modulator array with modulation a few orders (>10X) faster than the state-of-the-art commercial technologies.

Description:

Adaptive optics (AO), with wavefront sensors and deformable mirrors based on spatial light modulators (SLMs) has been used for active laser beam control and propagation path compensation.

The liquid crystal on silicon (LCoS) is the most mature technology used for SLMs. But it suffers from a slow response time of tens to hundreds of milliseconds (~ kHz).

Micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS)-based movable micromirrors, known as digital micromirror device (DMD) or deformable mirror (DM) technology, offer faster spatial light modulation typically at 10 kHz to low MHz.

However, the absence of compact and inexpensive SLMs that can freely modulate the wavefront of light at a high speed is hindering the widespread adoption of popular technologies such as LiDAR (light detection and ranging), free-space laser communications, quantum sensing, imaging, etc.

The advances in nanophotonics and integrated photonic technologies offer new opportunities to address these grand challenges in adaptive optics by providing compact, high-speed, and high-performance reconfigurable metasurfaces and SLMs with capabilities for amplitude and phase modulation.

PHASE I:

As this is a Direct-to-Phase II (D2P2) topic, no Phase I awards will be made as a result of this topic.

To qualify for this D2P2 topic, the Air Force expects the applicant to demonstrate the feasibility of the switching and modulation technology that is currently at an acceptable stage to Phase II.

For a proposer to demonstrate that their technology is at an appropriate level for a D2P2 award, the proposer should have experience developing numerical simulations and predictive calculations in similar device technology and the requisite experience and facilities to perform electrical and optical measurements for performance characterization.

Applicants interested in participating in this topic must include in their response to this topic Phase I feasibility documentation that substantiates the scientific and technical merit and “Phase I-type” effort.

Documentation should include all relevant information, including, but not limited to:

• Technical reports

• Test data

• Prototype designs/models

• Performance goals/results for establishing the scientific and economic feasibility of the proposed work

Work submitted within the feasibility documentation must have been substantially performed by the offeror.

PHASE II:

Demonstrate a nanophotonic-enabled spatial light modulator with both amplitude and phase modulation capabilities at a speed greater than 1Gbps.

The proposal should provide demonstrations of platform technology for multiple use cases. These are to include:

1. SLMs at near infrared (NIR) wavelength for classical and quantum sensing.

2. SLMs at midwave infrared (MWIR) wavelength for classical and quantum imaging.

It is expected that a fully integrated prototype system—comprising all custom hardware, software, modifiable/changeable code, and at least 5 devices—will be delivered to, installed, and demonstrated in a representative laboratory environment at AFRL.

This operational milestone and the delivery of all associated source code and technical documentation related to operating the prototype shall be completed no later than one quarter (three months) prior to the conclusion of the Phase II period of performance.

PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS:

Phase III efforts are intended to transition technologies developed with further scaling of performance metrics for dual use applications into operational use and/or commercial markets, leveraging non-SBIR/STTR funding.

Phase III work may include productization, integration, certification, and large-scale deployment of the capability developed in Phases I and II.

By effectively executing Phase III effort and transitioning the technology into operational and commercial use, the project aims to maximize the impact and value of the SBIR/STTR-funded R&D efforts, ultimately contributing to national security, economic growth, and technological innovation.

A design for performance approach for defense system in partnership with a defense contractor and a design for cost for commercial applications will be planned.

Who will win?

If you can achieve the objective above better than any other company on the market, you have a very high-likelihood of success and should apply.

Who is eligible to apply?

Any company that meets the following criteria:

• For-profit company

• U.S.-owned and controlled.

• 500 or fewer employees (including affiliates)

How Can BW&CO Help?

1) End-to-end support including, strategy, writing of the full proposal, and administrative & compliance support.

2) Proposal strategy and review.

3) Administrative & compliance support.

Request to talk with a member of our team by completing the form below:

Adaptive AI-Driven Waveform Design - SBIR Topic OSW26BZ04-DV009

Funding Amount:

Est. $314,363

Deadline to Apply:

August 19th, 2026

ITAR:

The technology within this topic is restricted under the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (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 the Export Administration Regulation (EAR), 15 CFR Parts 730-774, which controls dual use items. Offerors must disclose any proposed use of foreign nationals (FNs), their country(ies) of origin, the type of visa or work permit possessed, and the statement of work (SOW) tasks intended for accomplishment by the FN(s) in accordance with section 3.5 of the Announcement. Offerors are advised foreign nationals proposed to perform on this topic may be restricted due to the technical data under US Export Control Laws.

Objective:

Develop an AI/ML-controlled radar waveform generator that dynamically designs a waveform, including adjustments to frequency, modulation, or code in real time to optimize performance under changing conditions and to evade jamming.

Description:

Modern radar operations face unprecedented challenges in increasingly congested and contested environments. Traditional radar systems rely on fixed or pre-programmed waveform libraries, making their transmissions highly predictable and susceptible to sophisticated electronic attack (EA).

Near-peer adversaries now deploy advanced cognitive jammers and digital radio frequency memory (DRFM) systems that can rapidly analyze incoming radar pulses and generate deceptive or noise-based interference. Furthermore, the rapid proliferation of both commercial and military emitters introduces significant unattended Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) that further degrades system performance.

To maintain spectrum dominance and ensure reliable target detection, the next generation of radar systems must move beyond deterministic programming and embrace fully cognitive, AI-driven adaptability.

Adaptive waveform design leverages advanced machine learning techniques, particularly deep reinforcement learning (DRL), to autonomously select, synthesize, and optimize transmit waveforms on the fly.

By treating radar waveform design as a sequential decision-making process, a neural agent can continuously interact with the electromagnetic environment. The agent ingests real-time spectral observations—such as interference patterns and target returns—and actions it by adjusting key waveform parameters.

These parameters include:

• Pulse repetition frequency (PRF)

• Pulse width

• Bandwidth

• Modulation type (e.g., non-linear frequency modulation, polyphase coding)

• Frequency hopping schemes

Implementing this capability requires bridging the gap between high-level AI algorithms and low-latency, real-time hardware execution. The neural network inference must execute within microseconds to alter parameters on a pulse-to-pulse or coherent processing interval (CPI) basis.

Therefore, the developed models must be highly optimized for deployment on edge-computing architectures, such as software-defined radios (SDRs) backed by field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) or specialized system-on-chip (SoC) processors, ensuring high performance without exceeding strict Size, Weight, and Power (SWaP) constraints.

Phase I consists of researching algorithms (e.g. Deep Q-Network or policy gradient RL) that ingest real or simulated sensor data (e.g. jamming signatures, clutter maps) and output waveform properties/design (frequency, bandwidth, etc.). A prototype would show improved detection vs. fixed waveforms in a variety of simulated clutter and jamming environments.

In Phase II, the system would be implemented in small-SWaP radar hardware (leveraging SDR and FPGA capabilities) to adapt waveforms in real-time.

Phase III would integrate the adaptive waveform engine into Army radars (e.g. airborne or UAS platforms) to improve anti-jam resilience.

Because this capability could also benefit commercial radar or comms (e.g. automotive radar avoiding interference, dynamic spectrum sharing radios), it has dual-use potential.

PHASE I:

The objective of Phase I is to conduct a feasibility study to determine the scientific, technical, and commercial merit of applying AI/ML algorithms—specifically Deep Reinforcement Learning (DRL)—to dynamic radar waveform adaptation.

Offerors are expected to develop simulated RF environments that incorporate realistic adversarial jamming, unattended Radio Frequency Interference (RFI), and clutter.

Within these scenarios, performers will train neural models to autonomously design and select waveform parameters that maximize critical metrics, such as Signal-to-Interference-plus-Noise Ratio (SINR) and target detection probability.

The desired end product is a proof-of-concept software model and a small-scale prototype that successfully validates technical feasibility by demonstrating measurably improved detection performance against traditional fixed-waveform baselines.

PHASE II:

Offerors are expected to implement the AI/ML adaptive waveform controller onto edge-computing hardware, leveraging FPGA or DSP architectures integrated with a Software-Defined Radio (SDR) front-end.

A critical expectation is the rigorous optimization of the machine learning inference models to achieve the ultra-low latency required for pulse-to-pulse or coherent processing interval (CPI) adaptation.

The resulting system must be integrated with a radar prototype and subjected to comprehensive laboratory or relevant field testing against dynamic, realistic jamming sources and complex interference.

The minimum required deliverable is a fully integrated, physical prototype of the AI-driven waveform engine that demonstrates quantifiable improvements in target detection and anti-jam performance compared to traditional fixed-waveform systems.

This prototype must be sufficiently mature to establish a clear path toward commercial viability and subsequent integration into future DoD sensor platforms.

PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS:

In Phase III, the developed technology is expected to transition into operational military systems and viable commercial products, supported by non-SBIR/STTR funding.

For DoD and military applications, the adaptive waveform engine will be integrated into existing and future Army radar and systems to enable cognitive modes that dynamically adapt to contested spectrums and complex threat environments.

Specific military applications include:

• Enhancing UAS sensors

• Ground surveillance systems

• Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radars with the capability to autonomously evade advanced jammers

In the commercial sector, this technology possesses strong dual-use potential for advanced automotive radars (e.g., autonomous vehicle navigation) and civil air-traffic control systems, allowing them to actively mitigate unattended interference in dense RF environments.

Additionally, the core capability can be leveraged for dynamic spectral coexistence, enabling commercial sensors and advanced telecommunications networks to share bandwidth efficiently without mutual degradation.

Who will win?

If you can achieve the objective above better than any other company on the market, you have a very high-likelihood of success and should apply.

Who is eligible to apply?

Any company that meets the following criteria:

• For-profit company

• U.S.-owned and controlled.

• 500 or fewer employees (including affiliates)

How Can BW&CO Help?

1) End-to-end support including, strategy, writing of the full proposal, and administrative & compliance support.

2) Proposal strategy and review.

3) Administrative & compliance support.

Request to talk with a member of our team by completing the form below:

Tunable Nonlocal Metasurfaces for Edge Computing and Processing - SBIR Topic OSW26BZ04-DV011

Funding Amount:

$1,500,000

Deadline to Apply:

August 19th, 2026

Objective:

Design, fabricate and characterize tunable nonlocal metasurfaces that perform light-based pre-processing and computing functions on the edge, including Fourier operations, de-noising and object recognition, directly in the optical path of mid-wave infrared thermal-imaging systems under partially coherent illumination.

Description:

Current thermal-imaging systems rely heavily on digital post-processing to perform feature extraction and image processing, increasing latency, power consumption and system complexity.

Recent advances in nonlocal metasurfaces have demonstrated analog optical operations including spatial differentiation, edge detection and image filtering by engineering the optical response in momentum space. However, most prior demonstrations have been limited to coherent illumination in controlled laboratory environments and do not sufficiently address realistic partially coherent mid-wave infrared (MWIR) thermal-imaging conditions.

Novel devices are sought to operate directly in the optical path of thermal-imaging systems to perform front-end analog image processing and reduce the computational burden on downstream electronics.

Devices should be based on patterned metasurfaces using practical MWIR-compatible materials, including silicon, gallium arsenide or other high-index transparent dielectrics, suitable for scalable fabrication.

Offerors must address the effect of partial coherence on device performance and develop predictive design rules linking source coherence, transfer function, contrast, throughput, signal-to-noise ratio, and numerical-aperture compatibility.

Preference will be given to approaches providing broadband MWIR operation, low SWaP burden, and clear paths to integration in deployable sensing architectures.

Approaches enabling tunability at electro-optical speeds are of particular interest.

The successful team will design and demonstrate proof-of-concept devices under realistic illumination conditions.

PHASE I:

As this is a Direct-to-Phase-II (D2P2) topic, no Phase I awards will be made as a result of this topic.

To qualify, the Government expects the applicant(s) to demonstrate feasibility by means of a prior "Phase I-type" effort that does not constitute work undertaken as part of a prior or ongoing SBIR/STTR funding agreement.

In this effort, the applicant shall have designed and characterized nonlocal metasurface structures capable of at least one analog image-processing function, such as edge detection or spatial differentiation, at relevant infrared wavelengths, with simulation or experimental evidence linking unit-cell geometry to momentum-space transfer function.

Fabricated and bench-characterized prototype devices are strongly preferred.

A D2P2 award is requested because prior work has established the scientific basis and initial feasibility of nonlocal metasurfaces for analog image processing.

Prototype nonlocal metasurface devices have been successfully demonstrated to perform analog edge-detection functions at relevant wavelengths, with a defined transfer function and measurable contrast enhancement under controlled imaging conditions.

Awarding a Phase II SBIR would enable maturation of these concepts to tunable operation, MWIR-compatible materials, and system-relevant prototype demonstrations aligned with Air Force sensing and edge-computing needs.

PHASE II:

Awardee(s) will develop, fabricate, and test prototype MWIR nonlocal metasurfaces for analog image processing, refining system requirements in coordination with the topic's principal investigator.

The effort will encompass:

• Development of a predictive simulation framework for partially coherent MWIR illumination.

• Design of metasurface layouts compatible with relevant numerical apertures, bandwidth, and signal-to-noise requirements.

• Fabrication using practical MWIR-compatible materials.

• Experimental characterization benchmarked against modeled transfer functions.

Key metrics include:

• Throughput.

• Signal-to-noise ratio.

• Bandwidth.

• Isotropy or controlled anisotropy.

• Numerical-aperture compatibility.

• Robustness to partial coherence.

Tunable or multifunctional operation may be pursued as a secondary objective when consistent with timely delivery of a primary prototype.

It is expected that a fully integrated prototype system—comprising all custom hardware, software, modifiable/changeable code, and at least 5 devices—will be delivered to, installed, and demonstrated in a representative laboratory environment at AFRL.

This operational milestone and the delivery of all associated source code and technical documentation related to operating the prototype shall be completed no later than one quarter (three months) prior to the conclusion of the Phase II period of performance.

PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS:

Energy-directing and image-processing devices of this type have broad defense and commercial applications.

Military uses include:

• Compact thermal-imaging systems.

• Onboard edge preprocessing.

• Low-latency feature extraction for airborne, spaceborne, and deployable platforms where SWaP-C reduction is critical.

Commercial applications include:

• Thermal cameras.

• Industrial inspection.

• Machine vision.

• Advanced infrared imaging modules.

Devices meeting the desired criteria would provide a considerable improvement over existing solutions and find widespread application in these areas.

Who will win?

If you can achieve the objective above better than any other company on the market, you have a very high-likelihood of success and should apply.

Who is eligible to apply?

Any company that meets the following criteria:

• For-profit company

• U.S.-owned and controlled.

• 500 or fewer employees (including affiliates)

How Can BW&CO Help?

1) End-to-end support including, strategy, writing of the full proposal, and administrative & compliance support.

2) Proposal strategy and review.

3) Administrative & compliance support.

Request to talk with a member of our team by completing the form below:

Survivable & Affordable Lens Technology (SALT) - SBIR Topic OSW26BZ04-NV010

Funding Amount:

Est. $250,000

Deadline to Apply:

August 19th, 2026

ITAR:

The technology within this topic is restricted under the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (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 the Export Administration Regulation (EAR), 15 CFR Parts 730-774, which controls dual use items. Offerors must disclose any proposed use of foreign nationals (FNs), their country(ies) of origin, the type of visa or work permit possessed, and the statement of work (SOW) tasks intended for accomplishment by the FN(s) in accordance with section 3.5 of the Announcement. Offerors are advised foreign nationals proposed to perform on this topic may be restricted due to the technical data under US Export Control Laws.

Objective:

The objective of this effort is to obtain low cost infrared optics for attritable unmanned drone vehicles. The scope of this topic is to investigate whether alkali-halide optical materials can be used as cost-effective alternatives to the more traditional materials used in military-grade uncooled infrared sensors. A preferred use-case encompasses an uncooled infrared sensor such as the Odd Systems Kurbas-640, which has a focal plane containing 640 × 512 detector elements with a 12 micron pitch spacing, and which is combined with an imaging lens having an 18 mm focal length operating at F#/1.1 and with a transmission exceeding 70%.

Description:

Modern warfare has increased the demand for low-cost, attritable unmanned drone vehicles. Examples of such platforms used worldwide are the Shahed 136 and the LUCAS. Thermal cameras give these platforms the ability to operate at night and under adverse weather conditions.

Uncooled thermal infrared focal plane detectors, operating in the 7.5 - 12.0 micron spectrum, are often the most cost effective for this purpose. Each camera requires a lens to focus the radiation from the scene onto the detector.

Traditional military optical lens materials which are transmissive in this spectral region include Ge, ZnSe, ZnS, as well as various chalcogenide glasses which typically contain elements such as Ge, Ar, Se, S, or Te in various ratios. All of these infrared optical materials are significantly more expensive than the optical glasses used for visible-spectrum optical devices such as binoculars and telescopes.

In many cases, the optics cost may exceed the cost of the detector assembly, resulting in the night vision sensor subsystem accounting for ⅓ or more of the total cost of the whole drone system.

However, there exists a family of significantly lower cost optical materials known as "alkali-halides" which include compounds such as NaCl, CsBr, and KBr. These "salt" materials provide exceptional spectral transmission over the infrared bands, and are widely used for laboratory spectrometers in the scientific instrument markets.

The military has traditionally not made use of the alkali-halide optical materials in the past, however, because they are all very susceptible to damage when exposed to water and moisture. Moisture resistance is important for both field use as well as long-term storage.

PHASE I:

The Phase I task shall include optical design exercises to evaluate the utility of alkali-halide materials as lens elements for the objective infrared camera system.

Analysis shall be conducted regarding the following major criteria:

• Optical image quality relative to the diffraction limit.

• Durability of the lens coatings per MIL-PRF-13830B to include humidity, adhesion, and moderate abrasion.

• High-volume manufacturability of the optimal design forms.

• Projected shelf-life limits for long term storage.

• A projected cost comparison versus a lens assembly using traditional infrared materials.

PHASE II:

The most promising design form(s) from Phase I shall be selected, refined, and manufactured into hardware demonstration units.

Witness samples with the appropriate moisture-resistant coatings shall be validated per MIL-PRF-13830B Section C.3.8.

Means of passive athermalization, accounting for both lens and housing material properties, shall be investigated and implemented.

Image performance shall be verified via laboratory testing as well as by imagery captured with an uncooled camera focal plane placed behind the lens.

Manufacturing data and cost projections shall be updated and refined.

PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS:

A Phase III effort may involve working with a commercial uncooled camera supplier to provide new low-cost lens assemblies based upon alkali-halide materials.

Alkali-halide optical materials are already used in the scientific instrument markets which may also benefit from the improvements developed under this topic.

Commercialization, as defined in 15 USC §638 (e)(10), may include either military or consumer market devices.

Who will win?

If you can achieve the objective above better than any other company on the market, you have a very high-likelihood of success and should apply.

Who is eligible to apply?

Any company that meets the following criteria:

• For-profit company

• U.S.-owned and controlled.

• 500 or fewer employees (including affiliates)

How Can BW&CO Help?

1) End-to-end support including, strategy, writing of the full proposal, and administrative & compliance support.

2) Proposal strategy and review.

3) Administrative & compliance support.

Request to talk with a member of our team by completing the form below:

High-speed Photon-Number-Resolution Quanta Imaging Sensor Array - STTR Topic OSW26TZ04-DV002

Funding Amount:

Est. $323,090 for Phase I and $2,153,927 for Direct to Phase II

Deadline to Apply:

August 19th, 2026

ITAR:

The technology within this topic is restricted under the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (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 the Export Administration Regulation (EAR), 15 CFR Parts 730-774, which controls dual use items. Offerors must disclose any proposed use of foreign nationals (FNs), their country(ies) of origin, the type of visa or work permit possessed, and the statement of work (SOW) tasks intended for accomplishment by the FN(s) in accordance with section 3.5 of the Announcement. Offerors are advised foreign nationals proposed to perform on this topic may be restricted due to the technical data under US Export Control Laws.

Objective:

Demonstrate a Photon-Number-Resolution pixel array with high counting rates that remains scalable to megapixel size.

Description:

Single-photon counting and timing achieves light detection at the fundamental quantum limit, unlocking next generation capabilities in quantum imaging and environmental sensing. Many applications require counting/timing photons at very high rates (>GHz), leading to instantaneous photon bunching (“pileup”) that causes photons to be missed. The result is data loss, degraded statistics and nonlinearities.

Current detectors mitigate such deluges by breaking the flow of photons onto arrays of many small pixels, thereby reducing the count rate for each individual pixel and enabling reliable counting even for very impulsive signals. They also group counts into macropixels and time-bins to reduce analog-to-digital conversion limitations and off-chip data transfer bandwidth requirements.

However, quantum imaging often looks at time correlations between pairs of photons on femtosecond to picosecond time scales, which register as a single click on a Geiger detector. Photon Number Resolution (PNR) can enable measurement of simultaneous incident photons to provide insight into quantum and statistical properties of light.[1]

Scalable Superconducting Nanowire Single-Photon Detectors (SNSPDs) with PNR provide near ideal performance, but will not be considered for this topic due to cryogenic temperature operation. Quanta Imaging Sensors (QIS) with jots or other CMOS compatible fabrication have demonstrated PNR at room temperature by achieving ultra-low read noise.[2],[3],[4] A variety of physical processes have demonstrated GHz count rates,[5],[6],[7],[8],[9] and novel circuits have also been developed to advance single-photon detection technologies such as spiking neural network (SNN) neuromorphic readout integrated circuits (ROICs).[10],[11],[12]

The camera architecture must support time-of-flight (ToF) or equivalent depth-ranging modalities, and should be compatible with entangled or correlated photon sources.

This topic seeks an ultimate PNR sensor with the following performance:

Pixel-Level Performance:

• Photon Counting Rate: ≥120 MHz per pixel

• Photon Number Resolution ≥16

• External Quantum Efficiency (EQE): ≥60% between 450 – 550 nm, including fill factor losses

Array & Architecture Scalability:

• Array Size: Scalable up to Megapixels

• Monochromatic

Readout & On-Chip Processing:

• Frame Rate: ≥120 MHz operating in 10 µs duration bursts at up to a 16 kHz repetition rate (i.e. ≥1200 frames in 10 µs, repeated every 62.5 µs).

• Hardware-Level Compression: On-chip accumulation must be able to support the summing of up to a minimum of 500 burst sequences prior to readout, enabling significant compression of raw data volume without sacrificing the frame-to-frame temporal resolution.

Operating temperature between -40 °C to +45 °C.

Overall, the photon capacity of the sensor should be able to process bursts of ≥10¹⁶ photons per second; for example, 200 MHz x 32 PNR x 2 MPixels. Simultaneously, the sensor should have a dark count rate low enough to be able to capture signals as weak as 10⁸ photons per second across the array, with high fidelity.

Initial proposals for this topic should document current state-of-the-art commercial single-photon detector performance for the listed parameters, identify the physical factors limiting current performance, propose developing new detection mechanisms and/or circuit architectures that could exceed current limitations to meet the requirements, and identify the challenges in implementing the proposed solution. The proposer should make a convincing case that the design is scalable.

PHASE I:

The Phase I effort should demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed concept and reduce risk in the identified implementation challenges. Conduct detailed simulations of the proposed detector to validate the pixel-level performance. Develop the schematic for the “3D” burst-frame storage logic and ROIC architecture. Identify a specific foundry with a manufacturing pathway for eventual commercialization and outline your test-plan with available hardware to demonstrate a prototype’s performance.

This topic accepting both Phase I and Direct to Phase II (DP2) proposals. Proposers interested in submitting a DP2 proposal must provide documentation to substantiate that the scientific and technical merit and feasibility described above has been met and describe the potential commercial applications.

DP2 documentation may include:

• Technical reports describing results and conclusions of existing work

• Presentation materials and/or white papers

• Technical papers

• Test and measurement data

• Prototype designs/models

PHASE II:

Finalize the Graphic Database System II (GDSII) layout for a small array and submit it for fabrication as part of a Multi-Project Wafer (MPW) run at a foundry. Through laboratory testing and modeling, demonstrate the prototype meets the performance requirements. Demonstrate the logic for stacking/scaling the architecture and create a roadmap towards fabricating a Mpixel array.

PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS:

Phase III will scale the production to Mpixel arrays in a commercial foundry.

The camera technology is directly applicable to high resolution photon detection applications such as laser communications and high-rate quantum key distribution. It is also well suited to extend the envelope of performance for high dynamic range sensing where an initial bright reflection from a laser pulse exponentially decays to photon starved detection such as fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM) in biomedical imaging and environmental sensing LiDAR.

Who will win?

If you can achieve the objective above better than any other company on the market, you have a very high-likelihood of success and should apply.

Who is eligible to apply?

Any company that meets the following criteria:

• For-profit company

• U.S.-owned and controlled.

• 500 or fewer employees (including affiliates)

How Can BW&CO Help?

1) End-to-end support including, strategy, writing of the full proposal, and administrative & compliance support.

2) Proposal strategy and review.

3) Administrative & compliance support.

Request to talk with a member of our team by completing the form below:

Collaborative Aided Target Recognition Using Next-Generation Foundation Models for Multi-Domain Unmanned Systems - STTR Topic OSW26TZ04-NV001

Funding Amount:

Est. $314,363

Deadline to Apply:

August 19th, 2026

ITAR:

The technology within this topic is restricted under the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (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 the Export Administration Regulation (EAR), 15 CFR Parts 730-774, which controls dual use items. Offerors must disclose any proposed use of foreign nationals (FNs), their country(ies) of origin, the type of visa or work permit possessed, and the statement of work (SOW) tasks intended for accomplishment by the FN(s) in accordance with section 3.5 of the Announcement. Offerors are advised foreign nationals proposed to perform on this topic may be restricted due to the technical data under US Export Control Laws.

Objective:

Develop and demonstrate a collaborative Aided Target Recognition (AiTR) capability for multi-domain unmanned systems (UAS, UGV, USV) that leverages next-generation pre-trained foundation models—including Vision-Language Models (VLMs), Vision-Language-Action models (VLAs), and/or modern State-Space Models (e.g., S4, S5, Mamba, Mamba-2)—to achieve robust, accurate, and predictive multi-platform, multi-modal target disambiguation in cluttered, contested, and partially observed operational environments.

Description:

Modern military operations across air, land, and sea domains increasingly rely on heterogeneous teams of unmanned platforms tasked with detecting, identifying, and disambiguating targets at long range, often under appearance ambiguity, viewpoint and scale variation, sensor heterogeneity, and degraded Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT).

Today, reconciling observations across platforms is largely a manual, communication-intensive process that is slow, cognitively demanding, and error-prone. Single-platform AiTR cannot resolve perceptual aliasing (e.g., identical vehicle classes in coordinated formations) or fragmented observations caused by occlusion and partial visibility.

Recent advances in foundation models offer transformative potential. Vision-Language Models (e.g., CLIP, LLaVA, Florence-2, Qwen-VL) provide view-invariant semantic representations; Vision-Language-Action models (e.g., RT-2, OpenVLA) couple perception with embodied decision-making; and State-Space Models (S4, S5, Mamba, Mamba-2) enable efficient long-sequence spatiotemporal reasoning with linear complexity—well-suited to multi-platform sensor fusion.

However, these models are not yet adapted for collaborative, multi-platform military AiTR under realistic battlefield constraints.

Offerors are encouraged to propose innovative technology-agnostic approaches built around next-generation foundation models (no legacy CNN-only solutions).

Development should address:

• Collaborative Multi-Platform Target Disambiguation (foundation-model-based representations enabling cross-platform target correspondence under appearance ambiguity, viewpoint, scale variation, and clutter)

• Geometry-Consistent Multi-Modal Sensor Fusion (heterogeneous modalities such as EO/IR, SAR, LiDAR, RF across platforms with diverse resolution, FoV, and noise characteristics)

• Spatiotemporal World Modeling for Predictive AiTR (collective world models that maintain persistent target identity and forecast scene evolution under asynchronous, partial, intermittent data)

• Friend-Foe-Neutral (Gray) Classification (robust discrimination among blue, red, and gray entities)

• Resilient Operation in Degraded Environments (desirable capability to operate in GPS/PNT-denied, comms-degraded conditions)

• An Agentic Autonomy Stack (a foundation-model-based framework orchestrating perception, reasoning, and tasking across heterogeneous platforms)

Tri-Service Relevance:

Army applications include multi-domain operations with ground/aerial scout teams; Navy/USMC applications include distributed maritime operations and expeditionary littoral reconnaissance; Air Force/Space Force applications include collaborative combat aircraft (CCA) and ISR drone swarms of varying size classes.

Special Considerations:

Cybersecurity (model integrity, adversarial robustness against evasion/poisoning), supply-chain provenance of pre-training data, and explainability of model outputs shall be addressed.

PHASE I:

Develop the conceptual design and demonstrate technical feasibility of a collaborative AiTR system based on next-generation foundation models.

Phase I shall include:

1. Selection and justification of foundation model architecture(s) (VLM/VLA/SSM or hybrid).

2. Preliminary algorithmic design for multi-platform target disambiguation, sensor fusion, and predictive world modeling.

3. Feasibility demonstration using simulated or limited real-world multi-platform datasets.

4. Initial assessment of computational requirements and PNT-denied operation.

5. A Phase II development plan with measurable milestones.

Phase I deliverables: feasibility study report, preliminary software prototype, and Phase II proposal.

PHASE II:

Develop, integrate, and validate a fully functional prototype across at least three (3) heterogeneous unmanned platforms representing multiple domains (air/ground/sea).

Conduct field demonstrations in operationally relevant environments.

Phase II deliverables: integrated software prototype with documented APIs; comprehensive technical report including architecture, training data provenance, and limitations; demonstration in relevant operational environment (TRL 6); and a transition plan addressing at least two of the three services.

Desired Key Performance Parameters (KPPs):

• Multi-platform target disambiguation precision/recall/F1 > 0.85 across >= 3 collaborating platforms

• Cross-platform correspondence accuracy > 90% under viewpoint variation >= 60 degrees

• Friend-foe-neutral classification accuracy > 95% (friend) and > 90% (foe)

• Predictive AiTR horizon >= 30 seconds with <= 2 m positional error

• Latency for collaborative inference (per platform) < 500 ms end-to-end

• Communication bandwidth requirement < 1 Mbps per inter-platform link

• Desirable operation under PNT-denied conditions with < 10% degradation

• Demonstrable model adaptability to new sensor modalities within 30 days of integration

PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS:

Defense:

• Multi-domain ISR

• Collaborative combat aircraft (CCA)

• Distributed maritime operations

• Ground reconnaissance swarms

Commercial:

• Autonomous vehicle fleets (cross-vehicle perception sharing)

• Search-and-rescue

• Wildfire monitoring with cooperative UAS

• Precision agriculture

• Port and border security

• Infrastructure inspection

Phase III refers to work that derives from, extends, or completes an effort made under prior SBIR/STTR funding agreements, but is funded by sources other than the SBIR/STTR Program.

Who will win?

If you can achieve the objective above better than any other company on the market, you have a very high-likelihood of success and should apply.

Who is eligible to apply?

Any company that meets the following criteria:

• For-profit company

• U.S.-owned and controlled.

• 500 or fewer employees (including affiliates)

How Can BW&CO Help?

1) End-to-end support including, strategy, writing of the full proposal, and administrative & compliance support.

2) Proposal strategy and review.

3) Administrative & compliance support.

Request to talk with a member of our team by completing the form below:

Replanning for Evasive Autonomy to Counter Threats (REACT) - SBIR Topic SOC26BZ04-DV005

Funding Amount:

Est. $2,600,000

Deadline to Apply:

August 19th, 2026

ITAR:

The technology within this topic is restricted under the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (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 the Export Administration Regulation (EAR), 15 CFR Parts 730-774, which controls dual use items. Offerors must disclose any proposed use of foreign nationals (FNs), their country(ies) of origin, the type of visa or work permit possessed, and the statement of work (SOW) tasks intended for accomplishment by the FN(s) in accordance with section 3.5 of the Announcement. Offerors are advised foreign nationals proposed to perform on this topic may be restricted due to the technical data under US Export Control Laws.

Objective:

The objective of this topic is to develop applied research toward an innovative capability that generates and executes game-theoretically optimized Courses of Action (COAs) for both Blue (swarm) and Red (adversary) forces. The contractor will co-develop realistic operational scenarios with the Government, encode Commander’s Intent into a formal utility function, and iteratively refine the autonomy using simulation environments integrated with a Tactical Assault Kit or another system. The final capability will enable a 200-agent UAS swarm to operate in degraded environments—such as those with EW interference, kinetic threats, or weather events—while achieving mission objectives in alignment with AFSOC’s provided Adaptive Airborne Enterprise (A2E) vision for tiered ISR.

Description:

As a part of this feasibility study, the proposers shall address all viable system design options with respective specifications. This capability will integrate AI-enabled multi-agent planning and adversarial reasoning into a software system that supports resilient, decentralized UAS swarm coordination. The autonomy system must produce and execute game-theoretically optimized Courses of Action (COAs) for both Blue (UAS swarm) and Red (adversarial threat) forces, accounting for the interdependence of their strategies. Blue’s optimal COA depends on Red’s, and vice versa.

The Government seeks scalable autonomy software that produces AI-generated, game-theoretically optimized Courses of Action (COAs) for both Blue (UAS swarm) and Red (adversary threat) forces in contested environments. The capability must be developed using a government-approved modeling framework (e.g. Markov decision process application programming interface) and demonstrated in a simulation environment chosen by the contractor.

The final solution will:

• Incorporate the provided Commander's Intent into a mission utility function.

• Support realistic operational scenarios aligned with AFSOC's Adaptive Airborne Enterprise (A2E) and the FANTOM Futures line of effort.

• Scale to control no fewer than 200 UAS simultaneously.

• Function in degraded conditions, including EW interference, kinetic threats, and adverse weather.

• Include decentralized decision-making, communication-aware planning, and peer-to-peer fallback behaviors for denied environments.

• Be suitable for integration into a maritime Find, Fix, Track, Target, Engage, assess (F2T2EA) demonstration >100 NM offshore against targets defended by notional integrated air defense systems.

PHASE I:

As a requirement of this Direct to Phase II (DPII) proposers must include a feasibility study that assess what is in the art of the possible that satisfies the requirements specified in the above paragraphs entitled "Objective" and "Description."

The objective is to document the results of a thorough feasibility study ("Technology Readiness Level 3") to investigate what is in the art of the possible within the given trade space that will satisfy a needed technology. The feasibility study should investigate all options that meet or exceed the minimum performance parameters specified in this writeup. It should also address the risks and potential payoffs of the innovative technology options that are investigated and recommend the option that best achieves the objective of this technology pursuit.

PHASE II:

Develop, install, and demonstrate a prototype autonomy system based on the most feasible solution identified in Phase I feasibility study. The prototype will support game-theoretic COA generation and execution for a 200-agent UAS swarm and will include decentralized planning, adversarial optimization, and real-time threat response under limited communication.

During the first year, the prototype will be tested in simulation using relevant threat scenarios (e.g., IADS, GPS denial, weather) to validate performance.

The second year will involve iterative improvement and preparation for integration into the A2E FANTOM Futures VANGUARD demonstration, targeting contested maritime operations beyond 100 NM.

The prototype shall meet TRL 6 by end of effort. The contractor shall deliver interim test reports, scenario replay visualizations, and a final demonstration summary outlining performance outcomes and transition path.

PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS:

This system has broad applicability across both military and commercial domains.

Militarily, it supports any mission set requiring coordinated action by multiple drones against a thinking, adaptive adversary—such as contested ISR, electronic attack, perimeter security, and dynamic targeting in denied environments. The decentralized, threat-aware autonomy can be transitioned to other DoD UAS programs across AFSOC, SOCOM, AFRL, DARPA, and Navy/Marine Corps distributed operations.

In commercial sectors, the same autonomy principles can be adapted for drone swarms used in logistics, infrastructure inspection, search-and-rescue, and disaster response.

For example, delivery drone fleets could benefit from decentralized planning and threat response capabilities when navigating adverse weather or deconflicting airspace shared with competing autonomous delivery services.

The system’s ability to adapt and replan in real time makes it highly valuable for industries operating fleets of autonomous aerial systems in dynamic or competitive environments.

Who will win?

If you can achieve the objective above better than any other company on the market, you have a very high-likelihood of success and should apply.

Who is eligible to apply?

Any company that meets the following criteria:

• For-profit company

• U.S.-owned and controlled.

• 500 or fewer employees (including affiliates)

How Can BW&CO Help?

1) End-to-end support including, strategy, writing of the full proposal, and administrative & compliance support.

2) Proposal strategy and review.

3) Administrative & compliance support.

Request to talk with a member of our team by completing the form below:

Advanced Stand-Off Detection of Concealed Materials (ASDCM) - SBIR Topic SOC26BZ04-DV004

Funding Amount:

Est. $5,800,000

Deadline to Apply:

August 19th, 2026

ITAR:

The technology within this topic is restricted under the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (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 the Export Administration Regulation (EAR), 15 CFR Parts 730-774, which controls dual use items. Offerors must disclose any proposed use of foreign nationals (FNs), their country(ies) of origin, the type of visa or work permit possessed, and the statement of work (SOW) tasks intended for accomplishment by the FN(s) in accordance with section 3.5 of the Announcement. Offerors are advised foreign nationals proposed to perform on this topic may be restricted due to the technical data under US Export Control Laws.

Objective:

The objective of this topic is to develop applied research toward an innovative capability to detect and identify high-risk materials (radiological, chemical, biological, energetic, or threat-associated components) without requiring physical access, line-of-sight, or direct contact with the target. The solution must enable special operations forces to characterize concealed threats in denied, cluttered, or operationally constrained environments using a stand-off, passive detection modality. Solutions already validated in commercial settings that can be transitioned to Special Operation Forces (SOF) use with minimal development are especially encouraged.

Description:

USSOCOM seeks a field-deployable capability to enable detection, discrimination, and triangulation of dangerous or restricted materials without direct sampling, physical breach, or active signal emission. As a part of this feasibility study, the proposers shall address all viable overall system design options with respective specifications to provide SOF elements with real-time awareness of concealed threats, explosives, advanced weapon systems (e.g., Man-portable Air-defense system (MANPADS), optical targeting systems), or radiological materials across mission sets including:

• Over-the-beach reconnaissance and interdiction

• Maritime boarding operations and cargo search

• Route clearance and sniper overwatch detection

• Counter-air asset protection through early threat detection

• Expeditionary medical diagnostics (e.g., cancer, infection, contamination)

• Environmental and infrastructure monitoring for hazardous agents

Key capability attributes include:

• Passive and non-emitting (non-radiative) operation, Low Probability of Interception/Low Probability of Detection (LPI/LPD) or off common frequency acceptable.

• Detection of materials through shielding, barriers, or enclosures.

• Miniaturization for man-portable or unmanned system deployment.

• Ability to support triangulation or multi-sensor cueing.

• Operability in low-light, GPS-denied, and high-interference environments.

• Compatibility with austere, tactical, or maritime conditions.

This topic specifically invites novel sensor modalities or approaches that extend beyond traditional radiation or vapor detection (e.g., those based on material resonance, atomic signature recognition, or other non-contact methodologies). Solutions that identify the presence of a threat based on what it is made of rather than what it emits are of particular interest.

Offerors should propose a research effort to validate the technical feasibility of such an approach, including a clear path toward miniaturization, field ruggedization, and tactical integration.

PHASE I (FEASIBILITY STUDY):

As a requirement of this Direct to Phase II (DPII), proposers must include a feasibility study that assess what is in the art of the possible that satisfies the requirements specified in the above paragraphs entitled "Objective" and "Description."

The objective is to document the results of a thorough feasibility study ("Technology Readiness Level 3") to investigate what is in the art of the possible within the given trade space that will satisfy a needed technology. The feasibility study should investigate all options that meet or exceed the minimum performance parameters specified in this writeup. It should also address the risks and potential payoffs of the innovative technology options that are investigated and recommend the option that best achieves the objective of this technology pursuit.

PHASE II:

Develop, install, and demonstrate a prototype system determined to be the most feasible solution during the Phase I feasibility study. The prototype(s) should be suitable for use in at least one SOF-relevant scenario and provide verifiable detection of concealed or containerized target materials at tactically relevant distances.

The intent is to evolve a commercially-validated baseline into a ruggedized, SOF-ready capability suitable for operational deployment.

PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS:

This system could be used in a broad range of military applications where this capability is expected to transition to SOF operational units for use in counter-threat identification, special reconnaissance, and sensitive site exploitation missions.

Civilian applications include:

• Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP): cargo/container screening, border security, port interdiction.

• Department of Energy (DOE) and National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA): radiological material monitoring and nuclear safety enforcement.

• First responders: hazmat detection, bomb squad support, CBRN response.

• Law enforcement: counter-narcotics and weapons detection in vehicles or facilities.

• Public venues: stadium security, transportation hubs, high-traffic event screening.

• Industrial and environmental: non-invasive detection of contamination or hazardous materials at critical infrastructure sites.

Who will win?

If you can achieve the objective above better than any other company on the market, you have a very high-likelihood of success and should apply.

Who is eligible to apply?

Any company that meets the following criteria:

• For-profit company

• U.S.-owned and controlled.

• 500 or fewer employees (including affiliates)

How Can BW&CO Help?

1) End-to-end support including, strategy, writing of the full proposal, and administrative & compliance support.

2) Proposal strategy and review.

3) Administrative & compliance support.

Request to talk with a member of our team by completing the form below:

DARPA | RF Architectures Applying Photonic Timing and Routing (RAAPTR)

Below is a brief summary. Please check the full solicitation before applying (link in resources section).

Executive Summary:

Application Deadline: August 24, 2026, at 1:00 p.m. (Eastern Time).

DARPA is seeking proposals for the Radiofrequency Architectures Applying Photonic Timing and Routing (RAAPTR) program to develop next-generation radiofrequency (RF) system architectures that use optical timing technologies to improve performance on compact mobile defense platforms. The program focuses on vibration-hardened photonic microwave oscillators, supporting analog and mixed-signal components, and RF system architectures that can maintain ultra-low phase noise and timing precision in demanding military environments.

DARPA anticipates investing $58,000,000 through three to five Other Transaction (OT) for Prototype Agreements under 10 U.S.C. 4022. The program is structured as a 42-month effort consisting of a 24-month component development phase followed by an 18-month system integration and demonstration phase.

This opportunity is intended for organizations capable of developing breakthrough RF and photonic technologies rather than incremental improvements. DARPA specifically excludes research that advances non-optical methods of microwave generation or produces only evolutionary improvements to existing technologies.

Companies interested in applying should begin preparing immediately. Before submitting a full proposal, applicants must complete several required pre-proposal steps, including requesting the Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) Addendum, submitting a required abstract, and providing a Notification of Intent to Propose.

Key dates include:

• CUI Addendum Request Deadline: July 6, 2026, at 5:00 p.m.

• Required Abstract Due Date: July 13, 2026, at 1:00 p.m.

• Notification of Intent to Propose: August 7, 2026, at 5:00 p.m.

• Question and Answer Deadline: August 7, 2026, at 5:00 p.m.

• Proposal Due Date: August 24, 2026, at 1:00 p.m.

• Estimated Period of Performance Start: December 1, 2026.

How much funding would I receive?

DARPA anticipates providing:

• Total anticipated funding: $58,000,000

• Anticipated number of awards: Three to five individual awards

• Award instrument: Other Transaction (OT) for Prototype Agreements under 10 U.S.C. 4022

The solicitation does not specify:

• Individual award sizes

• Minimum or maximum award amounts

• Expected funding by performer

• Funding allocations by technical area

Because DARPA expects only three to five awards across the full program budget, award values are expected to vary based on each selected proposal's scope of work and negotiated budget. The solicitation does not provide additional detail.

What could I use the funding for?

Funding is intended to support the development of RF system architectures that use an optical timing backbone to improve RF performance on compact mobile defense platforms.

DARPA is seeking work in several areas, including:

Develop vibration-hardened photonic microwave oscillators

Projects may focus on technologies capable of maintaining ultra-low phase noise and precise timing under challenging environmental conditions encountered by mobile military platforms.

Target component metrics include:

• Phase noise less than -120 dBc/Hz at 100 Hz offset

• Phase noise less than -150 dBc/Hz at 10 kHz offset

• Relative timing error less than 1 picosecond for 1–100 second intervals

• Oscillator volume less than 300 cc

Develop supporting RF components

Funding may support development of vibration-hardened ancillary analog and mixed-signal components needed to preserve optical timing performance throughout an RF system, including examples such as:

• RF mixers

• Amplifiers

• Digitizers

Design complete RF architectures

DARPA is seeking architectures that use optical technologies throughout the RF system rather than simply replacing an oscillator.

Potential capabilities include:

• Optical timing backbones

• Low-noise frequency synthesis

• Stable clock distribution

• Time and frequency synchronization

• High-bandwidth optical data transfer

• Digital signal processing architectures that exploit optical timing and data movement

Demonstrate defense-relevant use cases

Proposers are expected to identify defense applications for their architectures. The solicitation identifies examples including:

• Radar

• Signal direction finding

• Communications

• Electronic warfare (EW)

Build and demonstrate integrated prototypes

The program concludes with integration of developed technologies into a brassboard prototype for testing under relevant environmental conditions on a Government-furnished airborne platform.

DARPA states that proposals should pursue revolutionary advances rather than incremental improvements to current RF technologies. Research that advances non-optical microwave generation methods or produces only evolutionary improvements is specifically excluded.

Are there any additional benefits I would receive?

In addition to potential funding, selected performers may receive several forms of Government support during the program.

Government technical support

DARPA anticipates support from:

• Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)

• NIST's Precision Photonic Synthesis Group within the Time and Frequency Division

The Government expects to provide information, analysis, and support related to vibration-hardened optical reference cavities and photonic microwave generation techniques.

Government-furnished information

By Month 6, DARPA anticipates providing performers with:

• A Government reference design for a vibration-hardened chip-scale optical reference cavity

• Associated design details

• Test data

Government-furnished testing

At the end of Phase 2:

• Final noise-performance testing will occur at a Government test facility.

• Testing will use a Government-furnished airborne platform.

• The Government will coordinate and execute the testing.

• The Government will collect and post-process test data.

Potential follow-on opportunities

The solicitation states that:

• Follow-on production contracts or transactions may be awarded pursuant to 10 U.S.C. § 4022.

• During the transition between Phase 1 and Phase 2, DARPA intends to finalize technology application areas and notes there is potential for additional work based on architectural designs developed during Phase 1.

The solicitation does not guarantee any follow-on funding or production awards.

What is the timeline to apply and when would I receive funding?

Key dates include:

• CUI Addendum Request Deadline: July 6, 2026, at 5:00 p.m.

• Required Abstract Due Date: July 13, 2026, at 1:00 p.m.

• Notification of Intent to Propose: August 7, 2026, at 5:00 p.m.

• Question and Answer Deadline: August 7, 2026, at 5:00 p.m.

• Proposal Due Date: August 24, 2026, at 1:00 p.m.

• Estimated Period of Performance Start: December 1, 2026.

The solicitation states that the RAAPTR program is planned as a 42-month effort, consisting of:

Phase 1 (24 months)

• Component development

• RF architecture design

• Breadboard prototype development

• Environmental testing

Phase 2 (18 months)

• Brassboard integration

• Environmental testing

• Flight testing on a Government-furnished airborne platform

The solicitation does not specify exactly when individual award agreements will be executed or when awardees will receive funding. It states only that the Estimated Period of Performance Start is December 1, 2026.

Proposal Deadline: August 24, 2026, at 1:00 p.m. (Eastern Time).

Where does this funding come from?

This funding opportunity is offered by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) through the Multi X Office (MXO).

The program is titled Radiofrequency Architectures Applying Photonic Timing and Routing (RAAPTR) and is intended to advance radiofrequency (RF) system architectures that employ optical timing technologies for defense applications.

DARPA plans to award funding through Other Transaction (OT) for Prototype Agreements under 10 U.S.C. 4022.

According to the solicitation, the program is intended to support technologies that contribute to DARPA's mission of making "pivotal early technology investments that create or prevent technological surprise." Proposed efforts are evaluated in part on their potential contribution to the national security technology base.

Who is eligible to apply?

DARPA states that all responsible sources capable of satisfying the Government's needs may submit proposals.

Eligible applicants include:

• U.S. organizations

• Non-U.S. organizations

• U.S. and non-U.S. individuals, provided they comply with applicable security regulations, export control laws, nondisclosure agreements, and other governing statutes

• Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs)

• Small Businesses

• Small Disadvantaged Businesses

• Minority Institutions

Foreign participants must comply with:

• International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), if applicable

• Export Administration Regulations (EAR), if applicable

To be eligible for consideration, organizations must also satisfy several solicitation-specific requirements.

Applicants must:

• Request and receive the RAAPTR Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) Addendum using the procedures described in the solicitation.

• Submit a timely, compliant required abstract.

• Submit a proposal under the same organization identified by a unique CAGE code.

• Meet the required Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) Level 2 (Self-Assessment) requirements before award eligibility.

• Submit proposals through DARPA's Broad Agency Announcement Tool (BAAT).

Submission of the required abstract is mandatory. The solicitation states that only organizations that submit a timely, compliant abstract will be eligible to submit a full proposal.

Who is not eligible to apply?

The solicitation identifies several organizations and situations that are not eligible.

Organizations that are not eligible

The following organizations are not eligible to propose:

• Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs)

• University Affiliated Research Centers (UARCs)

• Government Entities, including National Laboratories

Organizations that will not be considered

DARPA states that proposals will not be considered if the organization:

• Did not request and receive the RAAPTR CUI Addendum.

• Did not submit a timely, compliant required abstract.

• Does not meet the required CMMC Level 2 eligibility requirements before award.

• Submits through a different CAGE code than the one authorized for the CUI Addendum.

Contractor conflicts

DARPA also states that contractors or performers are prohibited from concurrently:

• Providing Systems Engineering Technical Assistance (SETA),

• Providing Advisory and Assistance Services (A&AS), or

• Providing similar support services to DARPA,

while also serving as a technical performer on the program, unless a written waiver is granted by the DARPA Deputy Director.

The solicitation does not identify any additional eligibility exclusions.

What companies and projects are likely to win?

DARPA evaluates proposals using three criteria, listed in descending order of importance:

1. Overall Scientific and Technical Merit

2. Potential Contribution and Relevance to the DARPA Mission

3. Budget and Price

Based on these evaluation criteria, the strongest proposals are likely to:

Offer innovative technical approaches

DARPA states the proposed approach should be:

• Innovative

• Feasible

• Achievable

• Complete

Address the full technical challenge

Competitive projects will present a logical technical plan with clearly defined tasks, deliverables, milestones, and risk mitigation strategies.

Demonstrate strong technical teams

DARPA expects teams to possess the expertise and experience needed to complete the proposed work and to have clearly defined management structures, responsibilities, communication pathways, and decision-making authority.

Support DARPA's mission

Projects should demonstrate how they strengthen the national security technology base and create capabilities relevant to future defense systems.

Enable technology transition

DARPA will evaluate whether proposed intellectual property restrictions could significantly affect the Government's ability to transition the resulting technology.

Present realistic budgets

Budgets should:

• Reflect the proposed technical approach.

• Demonstrate an appropriate level of effort.

• Align milestone payments with the solicitation's milestone schedule.

For projects with commercial application, the solicitation states that appropriate direct cost sharing may be a positive factor in the evaluation.

The solicitation also states that DARPA is seeking revolutionary advances in photonic RF technologies and specifically excludes research that advances non-optical microwave generation methods or results only in evolutionary improvements to the current state of practice.

How competitive will this solicitation be?

The solicitation does not specify an expected number of proposals or anticipated success rate.

However, several factors indicate that this opportunity is likely to be highly competitive.

DARPA anticipates:

• $58,000,000 in total funding.

• Three to five individual awards.

The program also includes multiple mandatory pre-proposal requirements, including:

• Requesting the RAAPTR CUI Addendum.

• Submitting a required abstract.

• Submitting a Notification of Intent to Propose.

• Participating in oral presentations if invited.

Additionally, proposals are evaluated on scientific merit, relevance to DARPA's mission, and budget, with technical merit receiving the greatest weight.

The solicitation also requires applicants to demonstrate capabilities across multiple disciplines, including photonic technologies, RF systems, analog and mixed-signal components, digital architectures, system integration, environmental hardening, and platform demonstration.

The solicitation does not provide historical award rates, anticipated proposal volume, or estimated funding rate.

Are there any restrictions I should know about?

Yes. This solicitation includes several technical, security, submission, and eligibility requirements that applicants should understand before investing time in preparing a proposal.

Certain research is specifically excluded

DARPA states that the following work is not responsive to this solicitation:

• Research that advances non-optical methods of microwave generation

• Research that results in evolutionary improvements to the existing state of practice

The program is intended to support revolutionary advances in photonic RF technologies.

Submission of an abstract is mandatory

Organizations must submit a timely, compliant abstract to be eligible to submit a full proposal.

The required abstract is due:

July 13, 2026, at 1:00 p.m. (Eastern Time).

Organizations that do not submit a compliant abstract will not be considered.

Organizations must receive the RAAPTR CUI Addendum

Only organizations that:

• Request the RAAPTR CUI Addendum, and

• Are provided access to it

may submit proposals.

The CUI Addendum request deadline is:

July 6, 2026, at 5:00 p.m. (Eastern Time).

Organizations that do not receive the CUI Addendum will not be considered.

CMMC requirements apply

The required cybersecurity level is:

CMMC Level 2 (Self-Assessment) – Broad Protection of Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI).

To be eligible for award, the proposer's CAGE code must have:

• A valid, unexpired Final Level 2 CMMC status recorded in SPRS.

• A current annual CMMC affirmation recorded in SPRS.

Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI)

The program operates under Controlled Unclassified Information requirements.

Applicants handling CUI must comply with:

• DoD Instruction 5200.48

• NIST SP 800-171 Rev. 2

The solicitation also notes that portions of the program may involve classified information, although classified proposals are not required.

AI disclosure requirement

DARPA asks proposers to disclose whether artificial intelligence tools were used to prepare Volume 1 of the proposal.

If AI tools were used:

• The proposal must identify the tools used.

• AI-generated or AI-assisted technical content must include citations describing the tool, the content, and the purpose.

The solicitation states that this information will not be used for evaluation purposes.

Proposal submission restrictions

Applicants must:

• Submit proposals through the DARPA Broad Agency Announcement Tool (BAAT).

• Submit before the deadline.

• Email submissions will not be accepted.

• Late submissions will not be accepted.

DARPA encourages applicants to submit at least 48 hours before the deadline.

Other restrictions

Additional restrictions include:

• Pre-recorded oral presentations are not permitted.

• Contractors performing SETA, Advisory and Assistance Services (A&AS), or similar support services to DARPA may not simultaneously serve as technical performers without a written waiver.

• Some awards may include publication restrictions depending on whether the research is determined to be fundamental or non-fundamental research.

• The Government requires no less than Government Purpose Rights (GPR) to data developed under the program. Proposers must identify any pre-existing intellectual property restrictions that could affect technology transition.

How long will it take me to prepare an application?

Applicants should plan for a substantial proposal preparation effort.

The solicitation requires several activities before a full proposal can be submitted, including:

• Requesting access to the RAAPTR CUI Addendum.

• Preparing and submitting a required abstract.

• Submitting a Notification of Intent to Propose.

• Preparing a full technical proposal using multiple required templates and attachments.

• Preparing pricing documentation.

• Completing milestone schedules.

• Preparing for a potential oral presentation.

The solicitation also requires applicants to submit:

• Proposal Summary Slide

• Technical and Management Volume

• Price Volume

• DARPA Price Summary Spreadsheet

• Other Transaction Certification

• Task Description Document

• Schedule of Milestones and Payments

Organizations must also satisfy applicable cybersecurity, CUI handling, and security screening requirements.

Because of these requirements, along with the technical complexity of the RAAPTR program, applicants should allow significant time to coordinate technical contributors, subcontractors, budgets, compliance documentation, and proposal development.

The solicitation does not specify how long proposal preparation is expected to take.

How can BW&CO help?

Applying to DARPA programs requires more than writing a compelling technical narrative. Successful proposals also require a compliant submission, a clear commercialization and transition strategy where applicable, disciplined program management, and careful coordination across technical teams.

BW&CO can support applicants by:

• Determining whether the RAAPTR program aligns with your technology and business objectives.

• Developing a compliant proposal package aligned with DARPA's solicitation requirements.

• Coordinating technical writing across multiple contributors.

• Preparing milestone-based project plans and budgets.

• Reviewing proposal compliance before submission.

• Helping position your technical approach around the evaluation criteria described in the solicitation.

Additional Resources

Review the solicitation here.