DARPA is seeking proposals for basic or applied research in the technical domain of tunable optical materials for optical and photonic technologies.
Up to a total of USD$1M is available across 2 phases:
- Discovery/Feasibility Study (USD$450,000 over 12 months) and
- Demonstration/Proof of Concept (USD$550,000 over 12 months).
This solicitation is part of DARPA Disruption Opportunity DARPA-PA-22-01.
The goal of the ATOM program is to discover and develop new tunable optical materials (TOMs) that can enable low-loss, high-switching-speed free-space optics, integrated photonics, and emissivity control applications. Specifically, the program will identify materials operating over broad spectral bandwidths in the visible and mid-/long-wave infrared (MWIR-LWIR) spectrums.
Research Objectives:
- Discovery of tunable visible or infrared materials with large refractive index contrast across the full band, with low loss and fast switching times.
- Demonstration of a device with a minimum area of 250 um2, capable of achieving repeatable, stable multi-state switching while maintaining bandwidth and performance.
Proposals are due 30 June 2023.
Supporting documents
ATOM Solicitation: DARPA-PA-22-01-03
Program Announcement for Disruptioneering: DARPA-PA-22-01
