ONHS Report: DARPA-PS-26-141

Atomically Precise Molecules (APM)

Solicitation ID: DARPA-PS-26-141

Agency: DARPA/MXO

Type: Solicitation

Deadline: 2026-12-18T13:00:00 ET

Eligibility: Maybe (Dual Approval Required)

Funding: Up to $25,000 for the Optional Phase I CMMC Milestone

Doc Type: PS

Clearance: CUI

Program Manager: APM@darpa.mil

Last Updated: 2026-09-26 16:04

Analyzed File: DARPA-PS-26-141.pdf

Eligibility Reasoning

FFRDCs... are not eligible to submit proposals as prime proposers under this solicitation. These entities may participate only as subcontractors... FFRDCs: (1) FFRDCs must clearly demonstrate that the proposed work is not otherwise available from the private sector. (2) FFRDCs must provide a letter, on official letterhead from their sponsoring organization, that (a) cites the specific authority establishing their eligibility to propose to Government solicitations and compete with industry, and (b) certifies the FFRDC’s compliance with the associated FFRDC sponsor agreement’s terms and conditions.

Note: This is an AI-generated summary...

Summary

The DARPA Atomically Precise Molecules (APM) program seeks to fund the development of innovative synthesis techniques for creating programmable precision polymers (PPPs) with exact control over monomer sequence, orientation, and composition. The primary application is to produce revolutionary nonlinear optical (NLO) materials for use in technologies like LiDAR and optical communications. This 36-month, two-phase program requires performers to first develop and demonstrate a PPP synthesis capability resulting in an NLO material that meets state-of-the-art performance (Phase I, 12 months). Subsequently, performers will optimize these synthesis methods to create a revolutionary NLO material with significantly enhanced properties (e.g., n3r33 ≥ 8000 pm/V) and integrate it into a government-provided electro-optic modulator for final demonstration (Phase II, 24 months). The program emphasizes the use of computational modeling to guide synthesis and material design, and it requires a clear path to scalability and integration into manufacturing processes. Performance will be validated by an independent government team. The solicitation excludes proposals focused solely on inorganic materials or incremental improvements to existing technologies.

Overall Technical Areas

Polymer Synthesis TechniquesNonlinear Optical (NLO) MaterialsProgrammable Precision PolymersSequence-Controlled PolymerizationComputational Materials DesignMultiscale Modeling & SimulationMolecular Dynamics SimulationComputational Chemistry (DFT)Molecular Self-AssemblyElectro-Optic Device IntegrationOptical Performance MeasurementAdvanced Materials CharacterizationMaterial Production ScalingFoundry Process Integration

Probable LBNL Areas

BSACSAESAETAPSA· Electro-Optic Materials

Focus Areas

Example Priorities:

The synthesis of complex polymeric materials in which monomer sequence, stereochemistry/orientation, and composition are strictly controlled remains an elusive synthetic challenge.
APM aims to catalyze future materials capabilities through scalable PPP synthesis approaches, where the sequence, orientation, and composition of materials are programmable.
Provide a detailed review of the synthesis approach, including the chemical mechanisms that result in sequence, orientation, and compositional control.
Generalizability, through demonstration of monomer sequence and orientation control over a wide range of monomer compositions.

Specific Technical Skills:

Polymer ChemistrySynthetic Organic ChemistryStereocontrolled PolymerizationSequence-Defined PolymersCatalysisMonomer SynthesisSupramolecular ChemistryMaterials Characterization

Potential PIs for this Area:

Name	Score	Organization
F. Dean Toste	0.78	ESA \| CSD \| Catalysis · Catalysis
John Hartwig	0.77	ESA \| CSD \| Catalysis · Synthetic Organic Chemistry
Brooks Abel	0.77	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics · Stereocontrolled Polymerization
Harold Barnard	0.77	ESA \| ALS \| Photon Science Development · Materials Characterization
Beihang Yu	0.77	ESA \| MF \| MF Nanofabrication Facility · Sequence-Defined Polymers
Kin Yu	0.76	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics · Materials Characterization
Thomas Russell	0.76	ESA \| MSD \| Material Chemistry · Polymer Chemistry
Brett Helms	0.76	ESA \| MF \| MF Organic Facility · Supramolecular Chemistry
Jeremy Demarteau	0.76	ESA \| MF \| MF Organic Facility · Monomer Synthesis
Robert Bergman	0.75	ESA \| CSD \| Catalysis · Supramolecular Chemistry

Example Priorities:

Describe how computational approaches will be used to enhance material development.
Include a description of how computational methods (e.g., DFT, molecular dynamics, field-theoretic models) will be used to 1) develop and optimize the synthesis approach, 2) constrain the design space of possible materials...
Material design, through demonstration of multiscale modeling/simulation with an emphasis on multi-body and dynamic approaches (e.g., bottom-up or top-down self-assembly).
Polymer design, through demonstration of modeling/simulation strategies that guide synthesis towards desired material performance.

Specific Technical Skills:

Density Functional Theory (DFT)Molecular Dynamics (MD)Multiscale ModelingQuantum ChemistryField-Theoretic ModelsHigh-Performance ComputingMaterials InformaticsSelf-Assembly Simulation

Potential PIs for this Area:

Name	Score	Organization
Kristin Persson	0.79	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics · Materials Informatics
Francesco Ricci	0.78	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics · Materials Informatics
Amartya Banerjee	0.77	CSA \| AMCR \| Applied Mathematics · Density Functional Theory (DFT)
Lisa Claus	0.76	CSA \| NERSC \| Sci Eng & Workflows Department · High-Performance Computing
Aurelie Champagne	0.76	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics · Density Functional Theory (DFT)
Yizhi Shen	0.76	CSA \| AMCR \| Applied Mathematics · Quantum Chemistry
Stephen Whitelam	0.74	ESA \| MF \| MF Theory Facility · Self-Assembly Simulation
Mohammad Kaazem Pur Mofrad	0.74	BSA \| Molecular Biophysics & Integrated Bioimaging \| Structural Biology Dept · Multiscale Modeling
John Terning	0.74	PSA \| PHY \| Theory Group · Field-Theoretic Models
Ahmad Omar	0.74	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics · Molecular Dynamics (MD)

Example Priorities:

Proposed research should investigate innovative approaches that enable revolutionary advances in material synthesis... culminating in the development of a prototype demonstration of a revolutionary NLO material.
Provide a detailed description of the approach to selection of monomers and subsequent polymers that will be pursued for materials with NLO applications.
Provide a detailed description of the analytical methods that will be employed to determine quality and performance metrics of the... optical properties described in the proposal.
Demonstration of progress towards n3r33 ≥ 8000 pm/V and an optical loss of 1 dB/cm.

Specific Technical Skills:

Nonlinear OpticsElectro-Optic MaterialsPhotonicsOptical CharacterizationSpectroscopyMaterial FormulationStructure-Property RelationshipsChromophore Design

Potential PIs for this Area:

Name	Score	Organization
Andrew Minor	0.78	ESA \| MF \| MF NCEM Facility · Structure-Property Relationships
Didier Perrodin	0.77	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics · Material Formulation
Mengjie Yu	0.77	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics · Photonics
Eric Schaible	0.77	ESA \| ALS \| ALS Photon Science Operations · Structure-Property Relationships
Francesco Ricci	0.77	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics · Material Formulation
Stephanie Gilbert Corder	0.76	ESA \| ALS \| ALS Photon Science Operations · Optical Characterization
Lane Martin	0.76	· Electro-Optic Materials
Yi Liu	0.76	ESA \| MF \| MF Organic Facility · Chromophore Design
Oliver Gessner	0.75	ESA \| CSD · Spectroscopy
Jeremy Munday	0.74	PSA \| ATAP \| FS&IBT · Nonlinear Optics

Example Priorities:

Technology sustainability, through evaluation of material integration into device production and scaling potential to application-specific quantities.
Describe the vision for scaling material production to relevant levels, detailing how the Phase I and Phase II prototype demonstrations will validate the scalability, reproducibility, and physical attribute of the synthesis approach...
This vision must also include the path to material integration in foundry processes that result in fully packaged devices.
For the final Phase II prototype demonstration (month 35), performer teams will work with the Government IV&V team to design a modulator compatible with their material.

Specific Technical Skills:

Process Scale-UpDevice FabricationSemiconductor Foundry ProcessesMaterials IntegrationTechnology TransitionManufacturing Process EngineeringElectro-Optic Modulator DesignQuality Control/Metrology

Potential PIs for this Area:

Name	Score	Organization
Kristin Persson	0.75	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics · Materials Integration
Arian Gashi	0.75	ESA \| MF \| MF Nanofabrication Facility · Device Fabrication
Marina Radulaski	0.75	ESA \| MF \| MF Nanofabrication Facility · Device Fabrication
Eric Masanet	0.75	ETA \| Energy Analysis \| Systems & Energy Tech Analysis · Technology Transition
Alex Newkirk	0.75	ETA \| Building Tech. & Urban Sys. \| Bldg & Industrial App Dpt · Technology Transition
Chang Dou	0.75	BSA \| Biological Systems & Engineering \| Process Engr & Analytics · Process Scale-Up
Mengjie Yu	0.74	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics · Electro-Optic Modulator Design
Kelly Kissock	0.74	ETA \| Building Tech. & Urban Sys. \| Bldg Technologies Dept · Manufacturing Process Engineering
Ian Lacey	0.73	ESA \| ALS \| Photon Science Development · Quality Control/Metrology
Panagiotis Zarkos	0.73	PSA \| Engineering \| Electronic Engineering · Semiconductor Foundry Processes

Potential LBNL PIs (Overall)

Note on PI Matching: These suggestions are generated through an AI-driven semantic analysis of LBNL staff profiles.

Name	Score	Organization
Francesco Ricci	0.79	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics · Computational Materials Design
Harold Barnard	0.79	ESA \| ALS \| Photon Science Development · Advanced Materials Characterization
Beihang Yu	0.77	ESA \| MF \| MF Nanofabrication Facility · Sequence-Controlled Polymerization
Stephen Whitelam	0.77	ESA \| MF \| MF Theory Facility · Molecular Self-Assembly
Brooks Abel	0.76	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics · Polymer Synthesis Techniques
Mengjie Yu	0.76	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics · Electro-Optic Device Integration
Mauro Del Ben	0.76	CSA \| AMCR \| Computer Science · Computational Chemistry (DFT)
Ian Lacey	0.75	ESA \| ALS \| Photon Science Development · Optical Performance Measurement
Ahmad Omar	0.75	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics · Molecular Dynamics Simulation
Ishan Srivastava	0.74	CSA \| AMCR \| Applied Mathematics · Multiscale Modeling & Simulation

Fundamental Research Exemption (FRE)

As of the date of publication of this solicitation, the Government expects that program goals as described herein either cannot be met by proposers intending to perform fundamental research or the proposed research is anticipated to present a high likelihood of disclosing performance characteristics of military systems or manufacturing technologies that are unique and critical to defense. Therefore, the Government anticipates restrictions on the resultant research that will require the awardee to seek DARPA permission before publishing any information or results relative to the program.