A -- SEMICONDUCTOR TECHNOLOGY FOCUS CENTER RESEARCH PROGRAM

Notice Date

October 19, 2000

Contracting Office

Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), Contract Management Office (CMO), 3701 N. Fairfax Dr., Arlington, VA 22203-1714

ZIP Code

22203-1714

Solicitation Number

RA01-04

Response Due

December 8, 2000

Point of Contact

D. Radack, DARPA/MTO, FAX (703) 696-2206

Description

Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), Contracts Management Office (CMO), 3701 North Fairfax Drive, Arlington, VA 22203-1714. A SEMICONDUCTOR TECHNOLOGY FOCUS CENTER RESEARCH PROGRAM, SOL RA 01-04, DUE 120800, POC D. RADACK, DARPA/MTO, FAX (703) 696-2206. PROGRAM OBJECTIVES AND DESCRIPTION: The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the Office of the Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Science & Technology (DUSD/S&T), and the Microelectronics Advanced Research Corp. (MARCO) are soliciting proposals for new Focus Centers in "Materials, Structures & Devices' and in "Circuits, Systems & Software" at United States Institutions of Higher Education. The Focus Centers will concentrate research attention and resources on a discovery research process to provide radical innovation in semiconductor technology that provide solutions to barrier problems in the path of sustaining the historical productivity growth and performance enhancement of semiconductor integrated circuits. The overall goal of this collaborative effort between the Department of Defense and industry is to sustain the unprecedented four decades of uninterrupted performance improvement in information processing power. This steady advance in capability resulted from research and development efforts on the part of both military and industrial agencies. It has provided the Department of Defense with an unmatched technological edge in advanced weaponry and provided the U.S. economy with the productivity enhancements that underlie the phenomenal strength of the U.S. economy. MARCO is a not-for-profit organization that will manage the Focus Center Research Program (FCRP) in microelectronics technology for its Participants and other contributors. DARPA is participating in this program as part of the DUSD(S&T)'s Government-Industry Co-Sponsorship of University Research (GICUR) initiative. As a co-sponsor with DARPA/ DUSD(S&T), MARCO anticipates contributing more than half of the total funds for this R&D program; however, cost sharing from other means is strongly encouraged. DARPA and MARCO will jointly evaluate all proposals submitted in accordance with the guidelines set forth in this RA and the associated Proposer Information Pamphlet. This program, entitled the "Semiconductor Technology Focus Center Research Program" will address major challenges in semiconductor technology on long-range innovative research. Only U.S. Institutions of Higher Education or research institutions associated with those institutions will be considered for funding. Proposals may include other organizations, but those other organizations must be funded by some other means; they cannot receive funding for activities through the proposed Focus Center. Research funded under the FCRP is generally very high risk, high-payback, long-term and targeted to high performance, cost-effective integrated circuit (IC) technology. DARPA and MARCO seek proposals in the following three focus areas: (I) Materials, Structures, and Devices; (II) Circuits, Systems, and Software; and (III) Other Areas Where Difficult or Intractable Problems are Anticipated. Each of these areas is of equal technical importance for proposal purposes. Offerors may propose innovative research in one or more area. Additional information on these technology areas is provided in the Areas of Interest section of the RA 01-04 Proposer Information Pamphlet referenced below. PROGRAM SCOPE: Single awards are expected in each of the three new focus areas identified above. While this solicitation is being published in anticipation of receiving funds next fiscal year, a total of about $100 million is expected to be available over the next three years to fund the new Focus Center awards and the ongoing efforts. Following proposal selection, DARPA and MARCO plan to award grants, cooperative agreements, or other transactions as appropriate for base periods of up to three years. The option for three-year renewals exists, dependent on the overall success of the program, the technical progress of the Center, and the availability of funds. The technical POCs for this effort are: Daniel J. Radack (DARPA/MTO, fax: (703) 696-2206, electronic mail: dradack@darpa.mil) and Egbert D. Maynard (MARCO, fax: (919) 941-9450, email: sonny@fcrp.org). GENERAL INFORMATION: Proposers must obtain a pamphlet entitled "RA 01-04, Semiconductor Technology Focus Center Research Program, Proposer Information Pamphlet" which provides further information on areas of interest, the submission, evaluations, and funding processes, proposal formats, and other general information. This pamphlet may be obtained from the World Wide Web (WWW) or by fax, electronic mail or mail request to the administrative contact address given below. Proposals not meeting the format described in the pamphlet may not be reviewed. Proposers must submit an original and six (6) copies of the proposal to DARPA/MTO, 3701 North Fairfax Drive, Arlington, VA 22203-1714 (Attn.: RA 01-04) on or before 4:00 p.m., local time, Friday, December 8, 2000, in order to be considered. This notice, in conjunction with the RA 01-04 Proposer Information Pamphlet, constitutes the total RA. No additional information is available, nor will a formal Request for Proposals (RFP) or other solicitation regarding this announcement be issued. Requests for the same will be disregarded. The Government reserves the right to select for award all, some, or none of the proposals received. All responsible sources capable of satisfying the FCRP needs may submit a proposal, which shall be considered by DARPA and MARCO. Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Minority Institutions (MIs) are encouraged to submit proposals and join others in submitting proposals; however, no portion of this RA will be set aside for HBCU and MI participation due to the impracticality of reserving discrete or severable areas of research in the FCRP. Any objections to the terms of this RA or the RA 01-04 Proposer Information Pamphlet must be presented in writing within fifteen (15) calendar days of the publication of this RA in the CBD. Any objections to the conduct of receipt, evaluation or award of grants, cooperative agreements, contracts (MARCO only) or other transactions must be presented in writing within the (10) calendar days of the date the objector knows or should have known the basis for its objection. Objections must be provided in letter format, clearly stating that it is an objection or protest to this RA or to the conduct of evaluation or award of a grant, cooperative agreement, contract (MARCO only) or other transaction, and providing a clearly detailed factual statement of the basis for objection. Objections must be received at the address stated above for delivery of proposals within the times indicated in order to be considered. All administrative correspondence and questions on this solicitation, including requests for information on how to submit a proposal to this RA, should be directed to one of the administrative addresses below; e-mail or fax is preferred. DARPA intends to use electronic mail and fax for correspondence regarding RA 01-04. Proposals may not be submitted by fax or e-mail; any so sent will be disregarded. DARPA and MARCO encourage the use of the WWW for retrieving the Proposer Information Pamphlet and any other related information that may subsequently be provided. EVALUATION CRITERIA: Evaluation of proposals will be accomplished through a technical review of each proposal using the following criteria, which are listed in descending order of relative importance: (1) Overall scientific and technical merit, including the likely impact on meeting the technology challenges at the ITRS horizon; (2) Ingenuity, novelty, and impact of overall Center and new frontier projects; (3) Potential contributions to the DARPA, DUSD(S&T), and MARCO missions; (4) Offeror's capabilities and related experience, including personnel, resources, facilities, equipment, and data to perform the work; (5) Cost realism. Cost realism will only be significant for proposals that have seriously over or under estimated the cost to complete. As this is a joint solicitation, the proposal evaluation and selection process will be performed jointly by MARCO and DARPA. The administrative addresses for this RA are: Fax: (703) 351-8685 (Addressed to DARPA/MTO, RA RA 01-04). Electronic Mail: RA01-04@darpa.mil. Mail: DARPA/MTO, ATTN: RA 01-04, 3701 North Fairfax Drive, Arlington, VA 22203-1714. This announcement and the Proposer Information Pamphlet may be retrieved via the WWW at URL http://www.darpa.mil/ in the solicitation area.

Record

Loren Data Corp. 20001023/ASOL004.HTM (W-293 SN5047C6)