Eligibility:Consult DOE Site Office (Prime Status)
Funding: Approximately $200 million is anticipated to be available, with awards typically funded between $100,000 and $300,000 per year.
Doc Type: BAA
Clearance:No
Program Manager: afosr.baa@us.af.mil
Last Updated: 2026-08-19 14:50
Analyzed File:FA955026S0001_AFOSR_Open_BAA.pdf
Eligibility Reasoning
Ineligible Entities None of the following entity types are eligible to submit proposals as primary award recipients under this announcement. • Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs)
Note: This is an AI-generated summary...
Summary
The Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) has released an open Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) to solicit proposals for fundamental research under the U.S. Air Force Defense Research Sciences Program. The program seeks to discover, shape, and champion revolutionary scientific breakthroughs to support the future needs of the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force. Research interests are detailed across three scientific branches: the Engineering, Information Science, Mathematics and Collaboration Branch (RESA); the Physical Sciences Branch (RESB); and the Bio-Cognitive Branch (RESC). Specific topics include but are not limited to aerodynamics, energetic materials, computational mathematics, quantum information sciences, space physics, biophysics, and human-machine teaming. AFOSR anticipates approximately $200 million for awards, typically funded between $100,000 and $300,000 per year for three to five years. Proposals from academia, non-profits, and industry are reviewed as they are received. The announcement emphasizes adherence to "Gold Standard Science" principles and requires a Fundamental Research Security Review (FRSR) for all key personnel.
Overall Technical Areas
Aerospace Structures & MaterialsHigh-Speed AerodynamicsPropulsion & Energy ConversionEnergetic Materials & MechanochemistryComputational Mathematics & ModelingDynamical Systems & ControlQuantum Information ScienceElectromagnetics & PhotonicsCondensed Matter PhysicsUltrashort Pulse Laser PhysicsAstrodynamics & Space PhysicsComputational Neuroscience & CognitionBiophysics & Synthetic BiologyData Fusion & Machine IntelligenceHuman-Autonomy Teaming
Probable LBNL Areas
N/A
Focus Areas
Example Priorities:
The flow field around a high-speed vehicle strongly influences its size, weight, lift, drag and heating loads.
conceive and implement new aerospace structural and/or material concepts for revolutionary improvement of performance for future US Air Force and Space Force platforms.
Partially ionized, nonequilibrium molecular plasmas including plasma-surface interactions, space environmental effects, mode transitions, and plasma transport mechanisms;
The fundamental physics and mathematics associated with spacecraft dynamics need to be re-examined in order to enable Space Situational Awareness (SSA) and Guidance, Navigation, and Control (GNC) for future missions.
understand critical chemical and physical behaviors in solid-state energy systems that arise due to compositional complexity under far-from-equilibrium conditions
Non-Equilibrium and Ultra-Fast Energy Conversion: detonation and other forms of locally controlled and compact combustion
design, processing, and characterization of novel composite materials to enable transformative enhancement in their performance through understanding of the chemistry, physics, and mechanics in heterogeneously structured materials.
Discovering how biomolecules can be used to create novel materials and systems that surpass the performance of both natural and synthetic materials in terms of manufacturing cost, function, and life cycle.
studies of cold and ultra-cold quantum gases, precision measurement, matter-wave optics, and non-equilibrium quantum dynamics.
significantly advance the fundamental understanding, control, and exploitation of non-classical phenomena for the analysis, collection, processing, storage, dissemination and protection of information.
explore and understand the broad range of physical phenomena accessible via the interaction of ultrashort pulse (USP) laser with matter
basic research (modeling/simulation) in linear/nonlinear Electromagnetics together with research in the general area of signal processing.
Specific Technical Skills:
Quantum Information ScienceAtomic, Molecular, and Optical (AMO) PhysicsPhotonics and OptoelectronicsLaser-Matter InteractionNonlinear OpticsHigh-Power ElectromagneticsQuantum SensingNanofabricationQuantum ComputingTheoretical Chemistry
Potential PIs for this Area:
Name
Score
Organization
Example Priorities:
develop innovative mathematical methods and fast, reliable and scalable algorithms aimed at making radical advances in computational science and large-scale engineering and design.
interplay of open dynamical systems and control theories, with the aim of developing innovative synergistic strategies for the design and analysis of controlled systems
radically transformatively advancing the mathematical and computational foundations of machine intelligence and human-machine alignment.
explore novel, promising concepts and methodologies that can establish a firm scientific foundation for cybersecurity
understand the neural mechanisms responsible for perception, cognition, and behavior/motor control.
optimizing the performance of the human within a system-of-systems (SoS) framework.
elucidates the social and cognitive principles and processes surrounding the establishment, maintenance, and repair of trust between and among humans and intelligent agents
gaining a better understanding of the biophysical, biochemical, and physiological mechanisms responsible for the behavioral, genetic, cellular, tissue and systems changes
supports basic research on the solar-terrestrial environment extending from the Sun through Earth’s magnetosphere and radiation belts to the mesosphere and lower thermosphere region.
harnessing the power of biotechnology, synthetic biology, and bio-inspired design to move beyond Earth-dependent supply chains toward self-sustaining, resilient space architectures.
investigates the fundamental physical principles governing the remote detection and characterization of objects.
provide revolutionary advances in the fundamental understanding of the physical processes that impact the motion and control of both natural and artificial objects moving in the gravity fields associated with the Earth/Moon/Sun system.
ESA | MSD | Material Physics · Aerospace Structures & Materials
Fundamental Research Exemption (FRE)
The Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) anticipates that the majority of grants and cooperative agreements awarded under this Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) will involve fundamental research. Consequently, it is expected that most awards will not require the generation, access, or safeguarding of Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI).
ONHS Funding Opportunity Report