Federal Limited Opportunities

Quantum Sensing Challenges for Transformational Advances in Quantum Systems (QuSeC-TAQS)

The Quantum Sensing Challenges for Transformational Advances in Quantum Systems (QuSeC-TAQS) program supports interdisciplinary teams of three (3) or more investigators to explore highly innovative, original, and potentially transformative research on quantum sensing. The QuSeC-TAQS program supports coordinated efforts to develop and apply quantum sensor systems, with demonstrations resulting in proof of principle or field-testing of concepts and platforms that can benefit society. The QuSeC-TAQS program aligns with recommendations articulated in the strategy report, Bringing Quantum Sensors to Fruition, that was produced by the National Science and Technology Council Subcommittee on Quantum Information Science, under the auspices of the National Quantum Initiative.

This is a crosscutting program with participation from NSF Directorates: BIO, CISE, EHR, ENG, MPS and TIP. This is no longer a "Big Ideas" solicitation because the quantum leap big idea activity is now part of the larger quantum information science and engineering priority area.

Limit on Number of Proposals per Organization: 2

Up to two (2) preliminary proposals and up to two (2) invited full proposals may be submitted per lead institution contingent to the requirement the proposed projects are in substantially different research areas.

• Federal Sponsor: NSF
• Internal Deadline: October 28, 2022
• Preliminary Proposal Due Date (required) December 16, 2022
• Full Proposal Deadline: April 03, 2023

Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) Program: 

The Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) Program (MRI Program Website) serves to increase access to multi-user scientific and engineering instrumentation for research and research training in our Nation's institutions of higher education and not-for-profit scientific/engineering research organizations. An MRI award supports the acquisition of a multi-user research instrument that is commercially available through direct purchase from a vendor, or for the personnel costs and equipment that are required for the development of an instrument with new capabilities, thereby advancing instrumentation capabilities and enhancing expertise for instrument design and fabrication at academic institutions. 

Available Tracks:

Track Two:   "Track 2" has been revised to include proposals that request funds from NSF greater than or equal to $1,400,000 up to and including $4,000,000.

Track Three:  A new track has been added ("Track 3") to incorporate opportunities, consistent with section 10373 of the "CHIPS and Science Act of 2022" (42 U.S.C. 19083),for proposal requests that include the acquisition, development, installation, operation, and maintenance of equipment and instrumentation to reduceconsumption of helium.

One application allowed for each Track Two and Track Three.

• Federal Sponsor: NSF
• Internal Deadline: December 14, 2022
• Full Proposal Submission Deadline Window: January 16, 2023 - February 21, 2023

DISTRIBUTED RESILIENT SYSTEMS 

The DOE SC program in Advanced Scientific Computing Research (ASCR) hereby announces its interest in receiving applications focusing on basic research in computer science that explores innovative approaches to creating distributed resilient systems for science. Such systems might be national or global in scale, linking geographically-distributed computing systems and scientific instruments, and might involve a large number of edge devices or sensors, but regardless, must manage computation and data in scalable and fault-tolerant manner. Important research challenges involve techniques for advanced middleware and operating and runtime systems, with this FOA targeting two research areas: 1) scalable system modeling, and 2) adaptive management and partitioning of resources. Advances in these areas will contribute to scaling-up our increasingly complex and interconnected scientific enterprise.

• Dartmouth is limited to two applications as the lead institution
• Federal Sponsor:  Department of Energy
• Internal Deadline: January 18, 2023
• Required Pre-Application Deadline: February 09, 2023

Advanced Computing Systems & Services: Adapting to the Rapid Evolution of Science and Engineering Research

The intent of this solicitation is to request proposals from organizations who are willing to serve as resource providers within the NSF Advanced Computing Systems and Services (ACSS) program. Resource providers would (1) provide advanced cyberinfrastructure (CI) resources in production operations to support the full range of computational- and data-intensive research across all of science and engineering (S&E), and (2) ensure democratized and equitable access to the proposed resources. The current solicitation is intended to complement previous NSF investments in advanced computational infrastructure by provisioning resources, broadly defined in this solicitation to include systems and/or services, in two categories:

Category I, Capacity Resources: production computational resources maximizing the capacity provided to support the broad range of computation and data analytics needs in S&E research; and
Category II, Innovative Prototypes/Testbeds: innovative forward-looking capabilities deploying novel technologies, architectures, usage modes, etc., and exploring new target applications, methods, and paradigms for S&E discoveries.

• Dartmouth is limited to one application as the lead institution
• Federal Sponsor:  NSF
• Internal Deadline Category I Submissions: January 20, 2023 
• Full Proposal Submission Deadline Category I Submissions: February 21, 2023 
• Internal Deadline Category II Submissions:: July 28, 2023 
  Full Proposal Submission Deadline Category II Submissions: October 31, 2023

Partnerships for Innovation (PFI)

The Partnerships for Innovation (PFI) Program within the Division of Translational Impacts (TI) offers researchers from all disciplines of science and engineering funded by NSF the opportunity to perform translational research and technology development, catalyze partnerships and accelerate the transition of discoveries from the laboratory to the marketplace for societal benefit.

PFI has five broad goals, as set forth by the American Innovation and Competitiveness Act of 2017 (“the Act”, S.3084 — 114th Congress; Sec. 602. Translational Research Grants): (1) identifying and supporting NSF-sponsored research and technologies that have the potential for accelerated commercialization; (2) supporting prior or current NSF-sponsored investigators, institutions of higher education, and non-profit organizations that partner with an institution of higher education in undertaking proof-of-concept work, including the development of technology prototypes that are derived from NSF-sponsored research and have potential market value; (3) promoting sustainable partnerships between NSF-funded institutions, industry, and other organizations within academia and the private sector with the purpose of accelerating the transfer of technology; (4) developing multi-disciplinary innovation ecosystems which involve and are responsive to the specific needs of academia and industry; (5) providing professional development, mentoring, and advice in entrepreneurship, project management, and technology and business development to innovators.

In addition, PFI responds to the mandate set by Congress in Section 601(c)(3) of the Act (Follow-on Grants), to support prototype or proof-of-concept development work by participants with innovations that because of the early stage of development are not eligible to participate in a Small Business Innovation Research Program or a Small Business Technology Transfer Program.

Finally, PFI seeks to implement the mandate set by Congress in Section 102(c)(a) of the Act (Broader Impacts Review Criterion Update) by enhancing partnerships between academia and industry in the United States, and expanding the participation of women and individuals from underrepresented groups in innovation, technology translation, and entrepreneurship. 

This solicitation offers two broad tracks for proposals in pursuit of the aforementioned goals:

The Technology Translation (PFI-TT) track offers the opportunity to translate prior NSF-funded research results in any field of science or engineering into technological innovations with promising commercial potential and societal impact. PFI-TT supports commercial potential demonstration projects for academic research outputs in any NSF-funded science and engineering discipline. This demonstration is achieved through proof-of-concept, prototyping, technology development and/or scale-up work. Concurrently, students and postdoctoral researchers who participate in PFI-TT projects receive education and leadership training in innovation and entrepreneurship. Successful PFI-TT projects generate technology-driven commercialization outcomes that address societal needs.

The Research Partnerships (PFI-RP) track seeks to achieve the same goals as the PFI-TT track by supporting instead complex, multi-faceted technology development projects that are typically beyond the scope of a single researcher or institution and require a multi-organizational, interdisciplinary, synergistic collaboration. A PFI-RP project requires the creation of partnerships between academic researchers and third-party organizations such as industry, non-academic research organizations, federal laboratories, public or non-profit technology transfer organizations or other universities. Such partnerships are needed to conduct use-inspired research on a stand-alone larger project toward commercialization and societal impact. In the absence of such synergistic partnership, the project’s likelihood for success would be minimal.

The intended outcomes of both PFI-TT and PFI-RP tracks are: a) the commercialization of new intellectual property derived from NSF-funded research outputs; b) the creation of new or broader collaborations with industry (including increased corporate sponsored research); c) the licensing of NSF-funded research outputs to third party corporations or to start-up companies funded by a PFI team; and d) the training of future innovation and entrepreneurship leaders.

• Dartmouth is limited to one application for PFI-RP track
• Federal Sponsor: NSF
• Internal Deadline: February 3, 2023
• Full Proposal Submission Deadline: May 2, 2023

EPSCoR Research Infrastructure Improvement (RII) Track-4: EPSCoR Research Fellows

The Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) is designed to fulfill the mandate of the National Science Foundation (NSF) to promote scientific progress nationwide. EPSCoR jurisdictions that are eligible for Research Infrastructure Improvement (RII) competitions are listed in the RII Eligibility table, which can be found here. Through this program, NSF establishes partnerships with government, higher education, and industry that are designed to effect sustainable improvements in a jurisdiction's research infrastructure, Research and Development (R&D) capacity, and hence, its R&D competitiveness.

EPSCoR RII Track-4: EPSCoR Research Fellows directly aligns with NSF EPSCoR strategic goal of establishing sustainable Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) professional development pathways that advance workforce development in STEM and effects engagement in STEM at national and global levels. EPSCoR RII Track-4: EPSCoR Research Fellows provides awards to build research capacity in institutions and transform the career trajectories of investigators and further develop their individual research potential through collaborations with investigators from the nation's premier private, governmental, or academic research centers. The fellowship provides opportunities to establish strong collaborations through extended or periodic collaborative visits to a selected host site. Through collaborative research activities with the host site, Fellows will be able to learn new techniques, develop new collaborations, advance existing partnerships, benefit from access to unique equipment and facilities, and/or shift their research toward potentially transformative new directions. The experiences gained through the fellowships are intended to have lasting impacts that will enhance the Fellows' research trajectories well beyond the award period. 

• Dartmouth is limited to four applications for RII Track-4 to NSF
• Federal Sponsor: NSF
• Internal Deadline: February 10, 2023
  Full Proposal Submission Deadline: April 11, 2023