Scalable Nanomanufacturing  (SNM)

CONTACTS

PROGRAM GUIDELINES

Solicitation  13-545

Important Notice to Proposers

A revised version of the NSF Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (PAPPG), NSF 13-1, was issued on October 4, 2012 and is effective for proposals submitted, or due, on or after January 14, 2013. Please be advised that, depending on the specified due date, the guidelines contained in NSF 13-1 may apply to proposals submitted in response to this funding opportunity.

Please be aware that significant changes have been made to the PAPPG to implement revised merit review criteria based on the National Science Board (NSB) report, National Science Foundation's Merit Review Criteria: Review and Revisions. While the two merit review criteria remain unchanged (Intellectual Merit and Broader Impacts), guidance has been provided to clarify and improve the function of the criteria. Changes will affect the project summary and project description sections of proposals. Annual and final reports also will be affected.

A by-chapter summary of this and other significant changes is provided at the beginning of both the Grant Proposal Guide and the Award & Administration Guide.

SYNOPSIS

The National Science Foundation (NSF) announces a third year of a program on collaborative research and education in the area of scalable nanomanufacturing, including the long-term societal implications of the large-scale implementation of nanomanufacturing innovations.  This program is in response to and is a component of the National Nanotechnology Initiative Signature Initiative: Sustainable Nanomanufacturing - Creating the Industries of the Future (http://www.nano.gov/node/611).  Although many nanofabrication techniques have demonstrated the ability to fabricate small quantities of nanomaterials and devices for characterization and evaluation purposes, the emphasis of this program is on research to overcome the key impediments that prevent the low cost production of useful nanomaterials, devices and systems at industrially relevant scale.  Therefore, competitive proposals will incorporate three elements in their research plans:

• A persuasive argument that the nanomaterials, devices or systems to be produced have or are likely to have sufficient demand to justify eventual scale-up;
• A clearly identified and arguably complete set of research issues that must be addressed to enable the low cost production of high quality products; and
• A compelling research plan with clear objectives to overcome the identified research issues that is supported by preliminary results relevant to scale-up.

The mode of support is Nanoscale Interdisciplinary Research Teams (NIRT).  Proposals submitted to this program must address at least one, and preferably more than one, of the following interconnected themes:

• Novel processes and techniques for continuous and scalable nanomanufacturing;
• Directed (e.g. physical/chemical/biological) self-assembly processes leading to heterogeneous nanostructures with the potential for high-rate production;
• Fundamental scientific research in well-defined areas that are compellingly justified as critical impediments to scale-up;
• Principles and design methods to produce machines and processes to manufacture nanoscale structures, devices and systems; and/or
• Societal, environmental and educational implications of the large-scale production and use of nanomaterials, devices and systems, including the life-cycle analysis of such nanomaterials, devices and systems.

Other research and education projects in nanoscale science and engineering will continue to be supported in the relevant programs and divisions.

Please see requirements for submitting proposals for collaborations; a single proposal with subcontracts must be submitted for collaborations and the submission of separate proposals from multiple investigators for collaborative projects ('collaborative proposals') is not allowed.

THIS PROGRAM IS PART OF

Cross Division/Directorate Funding Opportunities

What Has Been Funded (Recent Awards Made Through This Program, with Abstracts)

Map of Recent Awards Made Through This Program