Request for Information: Domestic Manufacturing of Emerging Quantum Sensors

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Contract Opportunity

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Microsystems Technology Office (MTO) seeks information on realizing long-term economic viability domestic manufacturing of emerging quantum sensing technologies. DARPA is interested in manufacturing metrics, economic frameworks, business development strategies, novel manufacturable sensing architectures, supporting technologies, novel manufacturing technologies, and processes to enable a future vision of economically sustained domestic manufacturing of advanced quantum sensors.

The goals of this Request for Information (RFI) include, but are not limited to:
• Identification of financial and manufacturing metrics to realize and sustain domestic manufacturing of quantum sensors
• Definitions of specific metrics that could be used to track the “manufacturability” and “scalability” for the manufacturing of different technologies, including optimal unit economic costs to produce quantum sensors, domestically
• Economic structures and frameworks to enable domestic, scalable, and economically viable manufacturing, with an emphasis on the viability of creating and sustaining domestic self-reliance within the supply chain for quantum sensors
• New and advanced manufacturing technologies or processes that could be stood up domestically to support emerging technologies, leapfrogging, if practical, conventional methods of semiconductor or optical component production
• Business development strategies to enable and encourage small business growth, third party investment, and long-term economic viability of a quantum sensor supply chain
• Identification of sensor architectures or designs that are inherently more amenable to domestic manufacturing processes in view of the above
Additional information that should be included if applicable for nearer term solutions are:
• Identification of facility costs and required supply chain costs (e.g., volume of quantum sensors needed to sustain enabling components of the quantum sensor supply chain)

Responses to this RFI will be used to inform potential solutions and key metrics for a future DARPA program.

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