Federal Project Grant Award Summary

The Research Foundation of the City University of New York received a $487,074 Project Grant awarded on April 15, 2026, under the National Science Foundation's Integrative Activities program (CFDA 47.083) to acquire a broadly tunable, narrow linewidth laser system for City College of New York. The primary deliverable is a shared research instrument integrating an optical parametric oscillator, titanium sapphire tunable laser, and frequency stabilization wavemeters capable of producing stable, single-frequency light across the ultraviolet, visible, and infrared spectrum. This instrument will enable resonant optical spectroscopy and coherent control of quantum emitters, including color centers in diamond and silicon carbide, defect-based emitters in hexagonal boron nitride, and excitonic systems in two-dimensional semiconductors, while supporting investigations of Rydberg-like electronic states and charge transfer within nanoscale defect clusters.

Beyond the instrumentation acquisition, the award supports interdisciplinary research infrastructure and workforce development across physics, chemistry, materials science, and engineering disciplines. The instrument serves as a shared facility that will expand access to advanced experimental capabilities currently unavailable at the institution, enhance collaborative research efforts, and provide hands-on training in quantum science and nanotechnology through integration with ongoing educational and outreach activities. The project performance period extends through March 31, 2029, and addresses the Integrative Activities program's objectives of building research capacity and advancing critical infrastructure for the nation's science and engineering enterprise.