Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics - Experiment ( AMO-E)

Proposals in the area of Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics - Experiment that are not governed by another funding opportunity should be submitted to the MPS Physics Research Programs (MPS Physics) funding opportunity.

---

Proposal submission Target Date:

• The fourth Wednesday in November

• November 25, 2026, for fiscal year 2027

• Proposals submitted after the Target Date of the fiscal year may be considered for funding in the following fiscal year.

---

The Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Physics - Experiment program (AMO-E) supports research that can be categorized by four broad, sometimes overlapping, sub-areas of the discipline:

(1)   Precision Measurements

(2)   Ultracold Atoms and Molecules

(3)   Optical Physics (including the ultrafast regime and strong field phenomena)

(4)   Atomic and Molecular Spectroscopy or Collisions.

Ions are included as a subset of Atoms and Molecules.

The focus of research in the AMO-E program is on the fundamental quantitative understanding of atoms and molecules and their interaction with light, the physics of extreme optical fields and quantum optics, and the application of AMO methods to foundational science in other disciplines supported by MPS Physics.

Examples of activities supported directly by the AMO-E program over the past decade include: quantum control, cooling and trapping of atoms and ions, low-temperature collision dynamics, collective behavior of atoms in weakly interacting gases (Bose-Einstein condensates and dilute Fermi degenerate systems), precision measurements,  effects of electron correlation on structure and dynamics, nonlinear response of isolated atoms to intense ultra-short electromagnetic fields, atom-cavity interaction at high fields, and quantum properties of the electromagnetic field.

The AMO-E program also supports precision measurement proposals to search for new physics beyond the Standard Model, to explore the classical-quantum boundary and the fundamental nature of entanglement and quantum coherence, to advance the foundations of quantum measurement and sensing, to probe the quantum vacuum (using ultra-intense lasers or the internal Coulomb fields of highly charged ions), and to use controlled collections of cold atoms to simulate physics which naturally occurs in fields such as condensed matter physics or astrophysics.

Proposals for multidisciplinary projects may be appropriate, especially when the focus of the proposed research is on AMO physics. Principal investigators (PIs) should contact the program to discuss whether their project is within the scope of the AMO-E program. 

NSF recognizes that some research projects supported by the program, such as precision measurement projects, may require more than three years to realize demonstrable research outcomes. For these and other projects that might be better served to be on a cycle matched to the natural time scale of graduate student research, PIs should consult the program about submitting a proposal with four- or five-year project duration.

Principal investigators who already have an active MPS Physics award or a pending proposal should contact the program before considering submitting a proposal for another concurrent award from the AMO-E program.