The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Defense Sciences Office (DSO) is sponsoring an Information Session webcast to provide information to potential proposers on the objectives of the anticipated Synthetic Quantum Nanostructures (SynQuaNon) Disruption Opportunity (DO). The Information Session will be held via webcast on July 10, 2023, from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. (Eastern Time). Advance registration is required to attend the webcast. Note that all times listed in this announcement and on the registration website are Eastern Time.
The goals of the SynQuaNon DO Information Session are to (1) introduce the research community (proposers, academia, and Government) to the SynQuaNon DO vision and goals; and (2) explain the mechanics of a DARPA DO and the milestones of this particular effort. DARPA anticipates releasing the SynQuaNon DO in July 2023. If released, the DO will be available on https://sam.gov/. Following the event, DARPA may post the presented materials and a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) list to the DARPA/DSO Opportunities website.
Disruption Opportunities are released as Presolicitation Notices under the Disruptioneering Program Announcement and are rapid, targeted, limited scope investments made as part of an overall balanced portfolio. Disruptioneering enables DARPA to initiate a new investment in less than 120 days from idea inception.[1]
DARPA anticipate that successful proposals to the DO will inform and support a subsequent experimental program on new modalities of Superconducting (SC) nanoelectronic devices for applications to Quantum Information Science (QIS). DARPA anticipates that the full program solicitation will be released later this year.
OBJECTIVE AND DESCRIPTION
The SynQuaNon DO will demonstrate the feasibility of band-engineering approaches for enhancement of conventional SC material properties relevant to a range of quantum-limited nanoelectronic devices. In a manner analogous to the development of acoustic or optical metamaterials, recent theoretical and experimental findings have demonstrated the potential of nanopatterned electronic materials, Moiré materials, superlattices, and other quantum heterostructures to tune electronic band structure, electron-phonon coupling, and related microscopic properties. By leveraging our mature understanding of Bardeen–Cooper–Schrieffer (BCS) or BCS-type materials, this DO will establish theoretical foundations, material parameters, and a quantitative roadmap for the use of various synthetic quantum nanostructures to enhance or tune macroscopic and device-relevant material properties. Such properties include the superconducting transition temperature, thermal conductivity, the strength of kinetic nonlinearities, and other parameters that can lead to enhanced performance of a range of SC nanoelectronic devices.
All awards made as a result of the SynQuaNon DO issued under the anticipated Program Announcement for Disruptioneering will be Other Transactions (OTs) for prototype projects awarded under the authority of 10 U.S.C. § 4022. DARPA anticipates releasing the Program Announcement for Disruptioneering in July 2023. Once published, potential proposers are highly encouraged to review it for information eligibility requirements to respond to a Disruption Opportunity. If released, the Disruptioneering Program Announcement will be available on SAM.gov.
Potential proposers may choose to share their information with other registrants via all, some, or none of the following options to discover potential collaboration opportunities:
- Attendee List (limited distribution): Participant contact information (name, organization, email address) will be distributed to all other SynQuaNon Information Session attendees. The registration website will ask registrants to indicate whether they approve publication of their contact information.
- Proposer Profile (limited distribution): Information Session registrants interested in discovering collaboration opportunities for this announcement may submit a one-page profile. The proposer’s profile should include their contact information (name, organization, email, telephone number, mailing address, and, if applicable, organization website), a brief description of their technical competencies, and, if applicable, their desired expertise from other teams/organizations. All profiles must be emailed to [email protected] no later than 4:00 p.m. on July 3, 2023. Following this deadline, the consolidated Proposer Profile will be sent via email to Information Session registrants who submitted a valid profile for distribution. Specific content, communications, networking, and team formation are the sole responsibility of the participants. Neither DARPA nor the Department of Defense (DoD) endorse the information and organizations contained in the consolidated Proposer Profile document, nor does DARPA or DoD exercise any responsibility for improper dissemination of the Proposer Profile.
