ONHS Report: FA875023S7009

ULTRA-BROADBAND TERAHERTZ RADIO DEVELOPMENT

Solicitation ID: FA875023S7009

Agency: AFRL/RI

Type: Presolicitation

Deadline: 2028-09-19T17:00:00 ET

Eligibility: Maybe (Dual Approval Required)

Funding: Total funding for this BAA is approximately $9.9M. Individual awards will normally range from $200K to $4M.

Doc Type: BAA

Clearance: Top Secret

Program Manager: Peter Ricci

Last Updated: 2025-11-24 13:08

Analyzed File: 23-09 Amend 6 second repub 2025.docx

Eligibility Reasoning

Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs) and Government entities... cannot propose to this BAA in any capacity unless they meet the following conditions: FFRDCs must clearly demonstrate that the proposed work is not otherwise available from the private sector; and FFRDCs must provide a letter on official letterhead from their sponsoring organization citing the specific authority establishing their eligibility to propose to Government solicitations and compete with industry... This information is required for FFRDCs proposing to be prime contractors or sub-awardees.

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

Summary

The Department of the Air Force, through the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Rome Research Site, has issued Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) FA8750-23-S-7009 for the "Ultra-broadband Terahertz Radio Development" program. This initiative seeks innovative research to develop and demonstrate an ultra-broadband radio operating above 100 GHz (specifically 100-300 GHz) for secure Air Force communications in contested spectrum environments. Key performance goals include a transmission range of 200m to 2km, data rates from 1 Mbps to 1 Gbps, and an instantaneous RF bandwidth of 5 GHz to 10 GHz. The BAA is an open, two-step process effective until September 19, 2028, requiring white paper submissions initially, with formal proposals by invitation only. The total estimated funding is $9.9 million, with multiple individual awards anticipated, typically ranging from $200K to $4M over 36 months. Award instruments may include contracts, grants, cooperative agreements, or Other Transactions (OTs). The program is generally closed to foreign participation.

Overall Technical Areas

Terahertz CommunicationsUltra-Broadband Radio DevelopmentFlexible Baseband Modem DesignHigh-Bandwidth RF SystemsTHz Antenna Array SubsystemsTerahertz BeamformingAntenna Pointing and TrackingAdaptive Radio CommunicationsAtmospheric Propagation AnalysisSecure Channelization TechniquesContested Spectrum OperationsTHz Component TechnologyCommunications System Integration

Probable LBNL Areas

CSAEESAESAETAPSA

Focus Areas

Example Priorities:

Seeking innovative research to develop and demonstrate an ultra-broadband radio operating above 100 GHz for future air force communications capabilities in contested spectrum environments.
develop a compact end-to-end communications system that operates in sub-terahertz/terahertz band.
AFRL/RI is interested in an integrated solution and encourages teaming between performers from multiple technical disciplines.
transmission range: 200 m threshold, 2000 m objective at ground level

Specific Technical Skills:

Systems EngineeringRF System IntegrationTHz System DesignHardware PrototypingField TestingLink Budget AnalysisSecure CommunicationsContested Spectrum Operations

Potential PIs for this Area:

Name	Score	Organization
Meriam Gay Bautista-Jurney	0.70	CSA \| AMCR \| Computer Science
Alp Sipahigil	0.70	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics
Stijn (Stan) Wielandt	0.70	EESA \| EG \| Geophysics Dept
Boubacar Kante	0.70	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics
Peter Tennessen	0.69	PSA \| Engineering \| Mechanical Engineering
Siyun Chen	0.69	PSA \| ATAP \| BELLA Center
Danish Nawaz	0.69	PSA \| Engineering \| Electronic Engineering
Matthias Sulzer	0.68	ETA \| Building Technology & Urban Systems \| Bldg Technologies Dept
Qiang Du	0.68	PSA \| Engineering \| Electronic Engineering
Zhao Hao	0.68	EESA \| EG \| Geochemistry Dept

Example Priorities:

...design, development and demonstration of an ultra-broadband radio that dynamically adjusts carrier frequency, output power and data rate within the frequency range of interest—100 to 300 GHz.
advances in material and device technology enabled components and sub-systems such as power amplifiers, low noise amplifiers, frequency multipliers and antenna array sub-systems that operate above 100 GHz.
instantaneous RF bandwidth: 5 GHz threshold, 10 GHz objective

Specific Technical Skills:

RF/Microwave EngineeringTerahertz ElectronicsMMIC DesignPower Amplifier DesignLow Noise Amplifier (LNA) DesignFrequency SynthesisBroadband Component DesignDevice PhysicsSemiconductor Technology

Potential PIs for this Area:

Name	Score	Organization
Boubacar Kante	0.70	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics
Sayeef Salahuddin	0.70	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics
Alp Sipahigil	0.69	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics
Zhao Hao	0.69	EESA \| EG \| Geochemistry Dept
Kaushalya Jhuria	0.69	PSA \| ATAP \| FS&IBT
Irfan Siddiqi	0.69	CSA \| AMCR \| Computer Science
Wei Liu	0.69	PSA \| ATAP \| BACI
Ran Cheng	0.68
Siyun Chen	0.68	PSA \| ATAP \| BELLA Center
Junqiao Wu	0.68	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics

Example Priorities:

The proposed system should include state-of-the-art modem design, for fast flexible baseband that can support spreading bandwidth up to 10 GHz and data rate of 1 Mbps – 1 Gbps...
...as well as adapt to atmospheric conditions, link requirements and the presence of interference.

Specific Technical Skills:

Digital Signal Processing (DSP)Modem DesignBaseband ProcessingFPGA/ASIC DesignAdaptive Signal ProcessingCommunication TheoryLink AdaptationInterference MitigationHigh-Bandwidth Modems

Potential PIs for this Area:

Name	Score	Organization
Alp Sipahigil	0.69	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics
Stijn (Stan) Wielandt	0.69	EESA \| EG \| Geophysics Dept
Boubacar Kante	0.68	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics
Hasita Veluri	0.68	CSA \| AMCR \| Computer Science
Angelos Ioannou	0.67	CSA \| AMCR \| Computer Science
John Wu	0.67	CSA \| Scientific Networking (ESNET) \| Tech Adv and Engagement
Yilun Xu	0.67	PSA \| ATAP \| BACI
Edward Bethel	0.67	CSA \| SciData \| Data Science Research
Alexandre Moreira da Silva	0.66	ETA \| ESDR \| Energy Storage & Dist Dpt
Siyun Chen	0.66	PSA \| ATAP \| BELLA Center

Example Priorities:

Higher frequencies also mean narrower beamwidths which adds to the link security but in turn makes antenna pointing, acquisition and tracking challenging.
The proposed system should also feature ability to accurately form and shape the terahertz beams to control the signal’s presence in time and space while meeting communications requirements.
pointing accuracy: 10 percent threshold, 5 percent objective

Specific Technical Skills:

Beamforming AlgorithmsPhased Array AntennasAntenna PointingAcquisition and TrackingControl Systems EngineeringElectromagnetic PropagationSpatial Signal ProcessingRF Channel Modeling

Potential PIs for this Area:

Name	Score	Organization
Stijn (Stan) Wielandt	0.71	EESA \| EG \| Geophysics Dept
Qiang Du	0.68	PSA \| Engineering \| Electronic Engineering
Antoine Islegen-Wojdyla	0.68	ESA \| ALS \| Photon Science Development
Boubacar Kante	0.68	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics
David Blum	0.68	ETA \| Building Technology & Urban Systems \| Bldg Technologies Dept
Alp Sipahigil	0.67	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics
Dan Wang	0.67	PSA \| ATAP \| BACI
Andre Santos	0.67	EESA \| CESD \| Integrated Ecosystem Sciences
Bin Wang	0.67	ETA \| Energy Analysis & Environmental Impacts \| Sustainable Energy Dept
Danish Nawaz	0.67	PSA \| Engineering \| Electronic Engineering

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
Stijn (Stan) Wielandt	0.74	PSA \| Engineering \| Electronic Engineering · High-Bandwidth RF Systems
Ronald Cohen	0.74	ETA \| Energy Analysis \| Systems & Energy Tech Analysis · Atmospheric Propagation Analysis
Bruce Mah	0.73	CSA \| ESNET \| Tech Adv and Engagement · Communications System Integration
Jeremy Munday	0.72	PSA \| ATAP \| FS&IBT · THz Component Technology
Dipak Ghosal	0.72	CSA \| ESNET \| Tech Adv and Engagement · Adaptive Radio Communications
Najm Us Saqib	0.72	PSA \| Engineering \| Electronic Engineering · Antenna Pointing and Tracking
Zhi Jackie Yao	0.72	CSA \| AMCR \| Applied Mathematics · THz Antenna Array Subsystems
Abdelilah Essiari	0.71	CSA \| SciData \| Data Science Applications · Secure Channelization Techniques
Panagiotis Zarkos	0.71	PSA \| Engineering \| Electronic Engineering · Flexible Baseband Modem Design
Boubacar Kante	0.71	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics · Terahertz Communications

Fundamental Research Exemption (FRE)

As of the date of publication of this BAA, the Government cannot identify whether work proposed under this BAA may be considered fundamental research and may award both fundamental and non-fundamental research. Proposers should indicate in their proposal whether they believe the scope of the research included in their proposal is fundamental or not. While proposers should clearly explain the intended results of their research, the Government shall have sole discretion to select award instrument type and to negotiate all instrument terms and conditions with selectees. Appropriate clauses will be included in resultant awards for non-fundamental research to prescribe publication requirements and other restrictions, as appropriate.