N0001425SF002_FY26 MURI FINAL.pdf

ONR Announcement N0001425SF002 ARO Announcement W911NF25S0004

AFOSR Announcement NOFOAFRLAFOSR20250002

NOTICE OF FUNDING OPPORTUNITY (NOFO)

Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Department of Defense Multidisciplinary Research Program of the University Research Initiative (MURI)

Deadlines

White Paper Inquiries and Questions 18 April 2025

White Papers must be received no later than

02 May 2025 at 5:00 PM Eastern Time

Application Inquiries and Questions 22 August 2025

Applications must be received no later than

05 September 2025 at 5:00 PM Eastern Time

SPECIAL NOTE (1): Applications must be ‘VALIDATED’ by Grants.gov by the application deadline, which can take up to 48 hours after successful submission. See Section II.D.6.d.i. Timely Receipt Requirements and Proof of Timely Submission. It is strongly recommended that applications be submitted at least 2 business days ahead of the stated deadline.

SPECIAL NOTE (2): For ONR submissions: FedConnect is only used for white paper submissions.

Do NOT use the FedConnect message center to submit questions or responses to this announcement. The message center is not monitored and your correspondence will not be received or responded to. Please contact the appropriate individual listed in Section A.9 Agency Contact Information for questions, and follow the FedConnect ReadySetGo guide for instructions on submitting a white paper response.

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Contents Overview of the Research Opportunity A. Basic Information

1. Federal Agency Name

2. Funding Opportunity Title

3. Announcement Type

4. Funding Opportunity Number

5. Assistance Listing Number

6. Funding Details

a. Funded Amount and Period of Performance

7. Key Dates

8. Executive Summary

9. Agency Contact Information

B. Eligibility

1. Eligibility for Competition

2. Eligible Applicants

3. Contracted Fundamental Research

4. Cost Sharing or Matching

5. Funding Restrictions

C. Program Description

1. Instrument Type

D. Application Contents and Format

1. Content and Form of Application Submission

a. General Information

b. White Papers

c. Full Proposals

E. Submission Requirements and Deadlines

1. Address to Request Application Package

2. Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) and System for Award Management (SAM)

3. Submission Instructions

a. White Paper Submission Instructions

b. Full Proposal Submission Instructions

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c. Applicant Support

4. Submission Dates and Times

F. Application Review Information

1. Timely Receipt Requirements and Proof of Timely Submission

a. Online Submission

b. Proposal Receipt Notice

2. Review Criteria

3. Review and Selection Process

a. Evaluation

b. Options

c. Evaluation Panel

4. Risk Review

a. Risk-based Security Review Process

b. FAPIIS

G. Federal Award Notices

1. Email

H. Post-Award Requirements and Administration

1. Administrative and National Policy Requirements

2. Reporting

I. Other Information

1. TOPIC DESCRIPTIONS

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Overview of the Research Opportunity

The Department of Defense (DoD) Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative (MURI), one element of the University Research Initiatives (URI), is sponsored by the DoD research offices. Those offices include the Office of Naval Research (ONR), the Army Research Office (ARO), and the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) (hereafter collectively referred to as "DoD agencies" or “DoD”).

This publication constitutes a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) as contemplated in the Department of Defense Grants and Agreements regulations (DoDGARS) 32 CFR 22.315(a). The DoD agencies reserve the right to fund all, some, or none of the proposals received under this NOFO. The DoD agencies provide no funding for direct reimbursement of proposal development costs. Technical and budget proposals (or any other material) submitted in response to this NOFO will not be returned. It is the policy of the DoD agencies to treat all white papers and proposals submitted under this NOFO as sensitive competitive information and to disclose their contents only for the purposes of evaluation.

Hyperlinks have been embedded within this document and appear as underlined, blue-colored words. The reader may “jump” to the linked section by clicking the hyperlink.

A formal Request for Proposals (RFP), solicitation, and/or additional information regarding this announcement will not be issued.

DoD's MURI program addresses high-risk basic research and attempts to understand or achieve something that has never been done before. The program was initiated 40 years ago and it has regularly produced significant scientific breakthroughs with far reaching consequences to the fields of science, economic growth, and revolutionary new military technologies. Key to the program’s success is the close management of the MURI projects by Service Program Officers and their active role in providing research guidance.

Awards will take the form of grants. FOR ARO SUBMISSIONS ONLY, awards will take the form of grants and/or cooperative agreements. Any assistance instrument awarded under this announcement will be governed by the award terms and conditions that conform to DoD’s implementation of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) circulars applicable to financial assistance. Terms and conditions will reflect DoD implementation of OMB guidance in 2 CFR Part 200, “Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards.”

Please note the following important items:

• Applicants should be alert for any amendments that may modify the announcement. Amendments to the original NOFO will be posted to the Grants.gov webpage: https://www.grants.gov/

• A project abstract is required with the application and must be publicly releasable as specified in Section D.1.c.b).ii.

• Responses to the Certifications and Representations indicated in Section H.1. of this NOFO are required with the application.

• The notice that advisors external to the U.S. government may be used as subject-matter-expert technical consultants in the evaluation of the proposals after signing non-disclosure statements is contained in Section F.3.c..

https://www.grants.gov/

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The complete list of topics is below. See Section I. Other Information for topic descriptions and more information.

Topic 1: Characterization and Modeling of the Mesosphere and Lower Thermosphere

Topic 2: Ethical Constructs and Adaptive Learning Systems

Topic 3: Structured Light for High Field, High Intensity Laser-Matter Interactions

Topic 4: Optics with Dynamically Reconfigureable Arrays of Molecules and Atoms (OhDRAMA)

Topic 5: 2D/3D Heterostructures via Remote Epitaxy

ARO

Topic 6: Fungalphabet: Deciphering the Hidden Language of Fungal Networks for Environmental Intelligence

Topic 7: Evolving Chemistry and Biology to Degrade Polymers with Stable Chemical Bonds

Topic 8: Space-time Metamaterials for Multi-dimensional Wave Transformation

Topic 9: Altermagnetic Topology

Topic 10: Ontology Engineering for Machine Learning in Open-ended Sensor, Model, User Systems

Topic 11: Entanglement Engineering with Holographic Duality

Topic 12: Curved Electromagnetic Propagation

Topic 13: Optimized Photonic Inference Systems

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Topic 14: Evaluation and Monitoring of Large-Scale Generative AI

Topic 15: Brain-inspired Large Neural Models for Intelligent Robots

Topic 16: Reading between the lines: Connecting Deep Ocean Currents & Bedform Morphology

Topic 17: Impacts of Aerosol Injection, Evolution, and Deposition on 3D Radiative Balance

Topic 18: Interfacial Thermal Energy Transduction

Topic 19: Inherent stability in hybrid metal halide perovskite semiconductors through understanding of in situ electrochemistry

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Topic 20: Visual Perception and Attention for Real-Virtual Hybrid Environments

Topic 21: Continuous Improvement and Assessment to Achieve Autonomous Skilled Performance

Topic 22: Gas/Material Interactions for Ultra-high-temperature Materials in Hypersonic Flows

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A. Basic Information

1. Federal Agency Name

Office of Naval Research One Liberty Center 875 N. Randolph Street Arlington, VA 22203-1995

Army Research Office 800 Park Office Drive Research Triangle Park, NC 27709

Air Force Office of Scientific Research 875 North Randolph Street Arlington, VA 22203

2. Funding Opportunity Title

Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Department of Defense Multidisciplinary Research Program of the University Research Initiative

3. Announcement Type

Initial Announcement

4. Funding Opportunity Number

ONR: N0001425SF002

ARO: W911NF25S0004

AFOSR: NOFOAFRLAFOSR2025002

5. Assistance Listing Number

ONR: 12.300

ARO: 12.431

AFOSR: 12.800

6. Funding Details

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a. Funded Amount and Period of Performance

The total amount of funding for the five years available for grants resulting from this MURI NOFO is estimated to be approximately $170 million dollars pending out-year appropriations. MURI awards are contingent on availability of funds, the specific topic, and the scope of the proposed work. Typical annual funding per grant is up to $1.5M. The amount of the award and the number of supported researchers should generally not exceed the limit specified for the individual topics in Section I.1.

It is strongly recommended that Applicants communicate with the Research Topic Chiefs listed with the topic descriptions in Section I.1. regarding these issues before the submission of formal proposals. Depending on the results of the proposal evaluation, there is no guarantee that any of the proposals submitted in response to a particular topic will be recommended for funding. On the other hand, more than one proposal may be recommended for funding for a particular topic.

7. Key Dates

Anticipated Schedule of Events * Event Date Time

(Local Eastern Time) Questions Regarding Eligibility and Technical Requirements **

18 April 2025

White Papers Due (not required but strongly recommended)

2 May 2025 5:00 PM Eastern Time

Notifications of Initial Evaluations of White Papers*

13 June 2025

Questions for Grants Officer Regarding Proposal Submission**

22 August 2025 5:00 PM Eastern Time

Proposals or Invited Proposals Due

5 September 2025 5:00 PM Eastern Time

Notification of Selection for Award * January 2026 Start Date of Grant* 1 May 2026

*These dates are estimates as of the date of this announcement.

**Questions submitted after the Q&A deadline may not be answered.

IMPORTANT NOTE: White Papers are OPTIONAL but strongly recommended

8. Executive Summary

Since its inception in 1985, the Department’s MURI program has funded teams of investigators with the hope that collective insights from multiple disciplines could facilitate the cutting-edge basic research required to address the Department’s unique problem sets. The MURI program complements

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the Department’s single-investigator basic research grants and aims to make contributions to current and future needs of both the DoD and the larger scientific ecosystem.

9. Agency Contact Information

All UNCLASSIFIED communications shall be submitted via e-mail to the Technical Point of Contact (POC) with a copy to the designated Business POC, as designated below.

Comments or questions submitted should be concise and to the point, eliminating any unnecessary verbiage. In addition, the relevant part and paragraph of the Funding Opportunity Announcement NOFO) should be referenced. Questions submitted within 2 weeks prior to a submission deadline may not be answered, and the due date for submission of the white paper and/or full proposal will not be extended.

One or more Research Topic Chiefs are identified for each SPECIFIC MURI TOPIC. Questions of a technical nature on a specific topic shall be directed to one of the Research Topic Chiefs identified in Section I.1. entitled “TOPIC DESCRIPTIONS” of this NOFO.

NOTE: DO NOT SUBMIT QUESTIONS VIA THE FEDCONNECT MESSAGE CENTER. For questions, send an email directly to the appropriate point of contact listed below.

• Questions of a policy nature shall be directed as specified below:

MURI Program Points of Contact:

Office of Naval Research: Dr. Amanda Netburn Email: Amanda.N.Netburn.civ@us.navy.mil

Army Research Office: Dr. Sue Kase Email: usarmy.rtp.devcom-arl.mbx.aro-muri@army.mil

Air Force Office of Scientific Research: Ms. Katie Wisecarver Email: afosr.rtb.muri@us.af.mil

• Questions of a business nature should be submitted to:

Veronica Lacey

OFFICE OF NAVAL RESEARCH

Email: veronica.y.lacey.civ@us.navy.mil

Ramila Century

USARMY ACC

Email: ramila.century.civ@army.mil

Jorge Gallegos

AIR FORCE MATERIEL COMMAND, AIR FORCE RESEARCH LABORATORY,

CONTRACTING OFFICE (AFMC/AFRL RBKR)

mailto:Amanda.N.Netburn.civ@us.navy.mil mailto:usarmy.rtp.devcom-arl.mbx.aro-muri@army.mil mailto:afosr.rtb.muri@us.af.mil mailto:veronica.y.lacey.civ@us.navy.mil mailto:ramila.century.civ@army.mil

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Email: jorge.gallegos@us.af.mil

B. Eligibility

1. Eligibility for Competition

Proposals for supplementation of existing projects are not eligible to compete with applicants for new Federal awards under this NOFO.

2. Eligible Applicants

This MURI competition is open only to, and proposals are to be submitted only by, U.S.

institutions of higher education (universities) with degree-granting programs in science and/or engineering, including DoD institutions of higher education. To the extent that it is part of a U.S.

institution of higher education and is not designated as a Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC), a University Affiliated Research Center (UARC) is eligible to submit a proposal to this MURI competition and/or receive MURI funds. Ineligible organizations (e.g., industry, DoD laboratories, FFRDCs, and foreign entities) may collaborate on the research but may not receive MURI funds directly or via subaward.

To assess risk posed by Applicants, we review your application, proposal, and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) designated repositories of government-wide public and non-public data, including comments you have made, as required by 41 U.S.C. 2313 and described in 2 CFR 200.206 and 32 CFR 22.410 to confirm you are qualified, responsible, and eligible to receive an award.

When additional funding for an ineligible organization is necessary to make the proposed collaboration possible, such funds may be identified via a separate proposal from that organization. This supplemental proposal shall be attached to the primary MURI proposal and will be evaluated in accordance with the MURI review criteria by the responsible Research Topic Chief. If approved, the supplemental proposal may be funded using non-MURI or non- Government funds.

Disclosures of current and pending support made in this application may render an applicant ineligible for funding. Prior to award and throughout the period of performance, DoD may continue to request updated continuing and pending support information, which will be reviewed and may result in discontinuation of funding.

Limitations on Number of Applications – There is no limitation on the number of applications an applicant (organization) may submit under the announcement.

3. Contracted Fundamental Research

With regard to any restrictions on the conduct or outcome of work funded under this NOFO, ONR will follow the guidance on and definition of “contracted fundamental research” as mailto:jorge.gallegos@us.af.mil

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provided in the Under Secretary of Defense (Acquisition, Technology and Logistics) Memorandum of 24 May 2010. The memorandum can be found at https://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/dars/pgi/docs/2012- D054%20Tab%20D%20OUSD%20(ATL)%20memorandum%20dated%20May%2024%202010.

pdf.

As defined therein the definition of “contracted fundamental research,” in a DoD contractual context, includes research performed under grants and contracts that are (a) funded by RDT&E Budget Activity 1 (Basic Research), whether performed by universities or industry or (b) funded by Budget Activity 2 (Applied Research) and performed on campus at a university.

Pursuant to DoD policy, research performed under grants and contracts that are (a) funded by Budget Activity 2 (Applied Research) and NOT performed on-campus at a university or (b) funded by Budget Activity 3 (Advanced Technology Development) or Budget Activity 4 (Advanced Component Development and Prototypes) does not meet the definition of “contracted fundamental research.” In conformance with the USD (AT&L) guidance and National Security Decision Directive 189 found at https://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/dars/pgi/docs/National_Security_Decision_Directive_189.pdf, DoD will place no restriction on the conduct or reporting of unclassified “contracted fundamental research,” except as otherwise required by statute, regulation or executive order. The research shall not be considered fundamental in those rare and exceptional circumstances where the applied research effort presents a high likelihood of disclosing performance characteristics of military systems or manufacturing technologies that are unique and critical to defense, and where agreement on restrictions have been recorded in the contract or grant. For certain research projects, it may be possible that although the research being performed by the prime contractor is restricted research, a subcontractor may be conducting “contracted fundamental research.” In those cases, it is the prime contractor’s responsibility in the proposal to identify and describe the subcontracted unclassified research and include a statement confirming that the work has been scoped, negotiated, and determined to be fundamental research according to the prime contractor and research performer.

Normally, fundamental research is awarded under grants with universities and under contracts with industry. Non-fundamental research is normally awarded under contracts and may require restrictions during the conduct of the research and DoD pre-publication review of such research results due to subject matter sensitivity. Potential Applicants should consult with the appropriate DoD Technical POCs to determine whether the proposed effort would constitute fundamental or non-fundamental research.

4. Cost Sharing or Matching

Cost sharing is not expected and will not be used as a factor during the merit review of any application hereunder. However, the Government may consider voluntary cost sharing if proposed.

5. Funding Restrictions https://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/dars/pgi/docs/2012-D054%20Tab%20D%20OUSD%20(ATL)%20memorandum%20dated%20May%2024%202010.pdf https://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/dars/pgi/docs/2012-D054%20Tab%20D%20OUSD%20(ATL)%20memorandum%20dated%20May%2024%202010.pdf https://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/dars/pgi/docs/2012-D054%20Tab%20D%20OUSD%20(ATL)%20memorandum%20dated%20May%2024%202010.pdf https://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/dars/pgi/docs/National_Security_Decision_Directive_189.pdf

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Section 889 of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 (Public Law 115-232) prohibits the head of an executive agency from obligating or expending loan or grant funds to procure or obtain; extend, or renew a contract to procure or obtain; or enter into a contract (or extend or renew a contract) to procure or obtain the equipment, services, or systems prohibited systems as identified in section 889 of the NDAA for FY 2019.

1. In accordance with 2 CFR 200.216 and 200.471, recipients and subrecipients of all awards that are issued on or after August 13, 2020 are prohibited from obligating or expending loan or grant funds to:

(1) Procure or obtain;

(2) Extend or renew a contract to procure or obtain; or

(3) Enter into a contract (or extend or renew a contract) to procure or obtain equipment, services, or systems that uses covered telecommunications equipment or services as a substantial or essential component of any system, or as critical technology as part of any system. As described in Public Law 115-232, section 889, covered telecommunications equipment is telecommunications equipment produced by Huawei Technologies Company or ZTE Corporation (or any subsidiary or affiliate of such entities).

i. For the purpose of public safety, security of government facilities, physical security surveillance of critical infrastructure, and other national security purposes, video surveillance and telecommunications equipment produced by Hytera Communications Corporation, Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Company, or Dahua Technology Company (or any subsidiary or affiliate of such entities).

ii. Telecommunications or video surveillance services provided by such entities or using such equipment.

iii. Telecommunications or video surveillance equipment or services produced or provided by an entity that the Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the Director of the National Intelligence or the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, reasonably believes to be an entity owned or controlled by, or otherwise connected to, the government of a covered foreign country.

2. In implementing the prohibition under Public Law 115-232, section 889, subsection (f), paragraph (1), heads of executive agencies administering loan, grant, or subsidy programs shall prioritize available funding and technical support to assist affected businesses, institutions and organizations as is reasonably necessary for those affected entities to transition from covered communications equipment and services, to procure replacement equipment and services, and to ensure that communications service to users and customers is sustained.

3. See Public Law 115-232, section 889 for additional information.

COVERED FOREIGN COUNTRY means the People’s Republic of China.

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C. Program Description

The MURI program supports basic research in science and engineering at U.S. institutions of higher education (hereafter referred to as "universities") that is of potential interest to DoD. The program is focused on multidisciplinary research efforts where more than one traditional discipline interacts to provide rapid advances in scientific areas of interest to the DoD. As defined in the DoD Financial Management Regulation:

Basic research is systematic study directed toward greater knowledge or understanding of the fundamental aspects of phenomena and of observable facts without specific applications towards processes or products in mind. It includes all scientific study and experimentation directed toward increasing fundamental knowledge and understanding in those fields of the physical, engineering, environmental, and life sciences related to long-term national security needs. It is farsighted high payoff research that provides the basis for technological progress (DoD 7000.14-R, vol. 2B, chap. 5, para. 050105. A.)

DoD’s basic research program invests broadly in many fields to ensure that it has early cognizance of new scientific knowledge.

Detailed descriptions of the topics and the Topic Chief for each can be found in Section I.1., entitled, “TOPIC DESCRIPTIONS.” The detailed descriptions are intended to provide the Applicant a frame of reference and are not meant to be restrictive to the possible approaches to achieving the goals of the topic and the program. Innovative ideas addressing these research topics are highly encouraged.

Proposals from a team of university investigators are expected when the necessary expertise in addressing the multiple facets of the topics may reside in different universities. By supporting multidisciplinary teams, the program is complementary to other DoD basic research programs that support university research through single-investigator awards. Proposals shall name one Principal Investigator (PI) as the responsible technical point of contact. Similarly, one institution shall be the primary awardee for the purpose of award execution. The PI shall come from the primary institution.

The relationship among participating institutions and their respective roles, as well as the apportionment of funds including sub-awards, if any, shall be described in both the proposal text and the budget.

White papers and proposals addressing the following topics should be submitted to the respective agency following the submission instructions in Section E.3.a.

Please see additional Topic Information under Section I.1. Topic Descriptions.

1. Instrument Type

The authority for awards is 10 U.S.C. 2358 in accordance with 31 U.S.C. 63. The applicable regulations are 2 CFR 200, “Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards,” as implemented by 2 CFR Chapter XI, Subchapter A and DoDGARs at 32 CFR Subchapter C.

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In addition, for ARO:

a. Grant: A legal instrument consistent with 31 U.S.C. 6304, is used to enter into a relationship:

• The principal purpose of which is to transfer a thing of value to the recipient to carry out a public purpose of support or stimulation authorized by a law or the United States, rather than to acquire property or services for the Federal Government’s direct benefit or use.

• Substantial involvement is not expected between the Federal Government and the recipient when carrying out the activity contemplated by the grant.

• No fee or profit is allowed.

b. Cooperative Agreement: A legal instrument which, consistent with 31 U.S.C 6305, is used to enter into the same kind of relationship as a grant, except:

• Substantial involvement is expected between the Federal Government and the recipient when carrying out the activity contemplated by the cooperative agreement. No fee or profit is allowed. (For information on the substantial involvement DoD expects to have in cooperative agreements, prospective Applicants should contact the Technical Point of Contact identified in the research area of interest.)

• No fee or profit is allowed.

• In accordance with 10 U.S.C. §4021(i), as amended, the following information submitted during the solicitation and award process of Cooperative Agreement for performance of basic, applied, or advanced research authorized by section 4001 are exempt from disclosure requirements of 5 U.S.C. §552, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), for a period of five years from the date the Department receives the information. Offerors should mark the following documents with a legend asserting that they are submitted on a confidential basis:

• A proposal, proposal abstract, and supporting documents;

• A business plan submitted on a business proprietary basis;

• Technical information submitted on a controlled basis, as outlined in DoDI 5230.24, Distribution Statements on Technical Documents.

D. Application Contents and Format

1. Content and Form of Application Submission

a. General Information

All submissions will be protected from unauthorized disclosure in accordance with applicable law and DoD regulations. Applicants are expected to appropriately mark each page of their submission that contains proprietary information. Titles given to the submissions should be descriptive of the work they cover and not be merely a copy of the title of this announcement.

Regardless of whether or not a non-MURI funded collaboration is included in the proposal (see Section B.2.), the same submission process for white papers and proposals will be followed. The proposal submission process has two stages:

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• Applicants are strongly encouraged to submit a white paper; and

• Applicants must submit a proposal through Grants.gov.

Prospective awardees are encouraged to submit white papers to minimize the labor and cost associated with the production of detailed proposals that have very little chance of being selected for funding. Based on an assessment of the white papers, the responsible Research Topic Chief will provide informal feedback notification to the prospective awardees to encourage or discourage submission of proposals. The Research Topic Chief may also, on occasion, provide feedback encouraging re-teaming to strengthen a proposal.

b. White Papers

a) Format

• Paper size – 8.5 x 11-inch

• Margins – 1 inch

• Spacing – single-spaced

• Font – Times New Roman, 12-point

• Page limit – No more than four (4) pages, single-sided pages (excluding cover letter, cover page, references, and curriculum vitae). White paper pages beyond the 4-page limit may not be evaluated or read.

b) Content

The white papers and proposals submitted under this NOFO are expected to address unclassified basic research. White papers and proposals will be protected from unauthorized disclosure in accordance with applicable laws and DoD regulations.

Applicants are expected to appropriately mark each page of their submission that contains proprietary information.

For proposals containing data that the Applicant does not want disclosed to the public for any reason, or used by the Government except for evaluation purposes, the Applicant shall mark the title page with the following legend:

“This proposal includes data that shall not be disclosed outside the Government and shall not be duplicated, used, or disclosed--in whole or in part--for any purpose other than to evaluate the proposal or for program coordination. If, however, a grant is awarded to this Applicant as a result of, or in connection with, the submission of this data, the Government shall have the right to duplicate, use, or disclose the data to the extent provided in the resulting award. This restriction does not limit the Government’s right to use information contained in this data if it is obtained from another source without restriction. The data subject to this restriction is contained in (insert numbers or other identification of sheets).”

Also, mark each sheet of data that the Applicant wishes to restrict with the following legend: “Use or disclosure of data contained on this sheet is subject to the restriction on the title page of this proposal.”

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Use of Principal Investigator (PI) Over Multiple Proposals/Topics:

Applicants contemplating the use of an individual as Principal Investigator (PI) for more than one proposal and/or topic are strongly encouraged to contact the Topic Chief(s) prior to white paper submission to determine if the Topic Chief(s) support PI participation in multiple proposals and/or topics. Support of the use of a PI over multiple proposals and/or topics is at the discretion of the Topic Chief(s).

PI participation in multiple proposals and/or topics shall be identified in all white paper submissions where the PI is proposed. The white paper should also document the amount of time the PI is available for the project(s) and how the PI will manage their time given the possibility of multiple awards.

Applicants that do not submit white papers, but wish to submit a proposal, shall document PI participation in multiple proposals and/or topics in all proposals where the PI is proposed. The proposal should also document the amount of time the PI is available for the project(s) and how the PI will manage their time given the possibility of multiple awards.

White papers shall include the following:

• The cover sheet shall include the NOFO number, proposed title, and proposer's technical point of contact, with telephone number, facsimile number, e-mail address, topic number, and topic title. (For ONR submissions please use the specific coversheet that can be downloaded at https://www.nre.navy.mil/work-with-us/how-to-apply/submit-grant-application. FedConnect will not accept a white paper unless the Cover Sheet is included.)

• The white paper shall provide:

• Identification of the research and issues

• Proposed technical approaches

• Potential impact on DoD capabilities

• Potential team and management plan

• Summary of estimated costs

• Curriculum vitae of key investigators (see Use of Principal Investigator (PI) Over Multiple

Proposals/Topics)

• Identification of any Organizational Conflict(s) of Interest (if any) – See Section H.1.d.

The white paper should provide sufficient information on the research being proposed (e.g., hypothesis, theories, concepts, approaches, data measurements and analysis, etc.) to allow for an assessment by a technical expert. It is not necessary for white papers to carry official institutional signatures.

c. Full Proposals

Prospective Applicants must complete the mandatory forms in accordance with the instructions provided on the forms and the additional instructions below. Files that are attached to the forms must be in Adobe Portable Document Format (.PDF); cannot contain macros; and cannot be password protected. If any attachment is not a PDF, contains macros or is password protected, they will

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not pass the automated acceptance check and will need to be resubmitted prior to the submission deadline.

Block 2, “Type of Application” on the SF-424 should be marked “New” on the resubmission.

a) Format for Technical Proposal

• Paper size – 8.5 x 11 inch

• Margins – 1 inch

• Spacing – single-spaced

• Font – Times New Roman, 12-point

• Page Limit – Technical Proposal: 25 pages*

There are no page limitations for the budget.

*INCLUDED IN PAGE COUNT NOT INCLUDED IN PAGE COUNT

Technical Approach/Project Narrative Everything else

Management Approach

Principal Investigator Qualifications

Disclosure of Conflict of Commitment and Conflict of Interest

This announcement requires that all current and pending research support, as defined by Section 223 of the FY21 National Defense Authorization Act must be disclosed at the time of proposal, for all covered individuals. Such disclosure will be updated annually during the performance of any research project selected for funding, and whenever covered individuals are added or identified as performing under this project. Covered individuals are those who are listed as key personnel on proposals including but not restricted to the Principal Investigator or Co-Principal Investigator.

Any decision to accept a proposal for funding under this announcement will include full reliance on the Applicant’s statements. Failure to report fully and completely all sources of project support and outside positions and affiliations may be considered a materials statement within the meaning of the federal False Claims Act and constitutes a violation of law.

The funding agency may conduct a pre-award conflict of interest/conflict of commitment review of any proposal selected for funding as described in the DoD Component Decision Matrix to Inform Fundamental Research Proposal Mitigation Decisions. Offerors are advised that any significant conflict of interest/conflict of commitment identified may be a basis for the rejection of an otherwise awardable proposal.

b) Content

NOTE: The electronic file name for all documents submitted under this NOFO must not exceed 68 characters in length, including the file name extension.

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Mandatory SF-424 Research and Related (R&R) Family Forms

The mandatory forms are found at https://www.grants.gov/forms/forms-repository/

i. SF-424 (R&R) The SF-424 (R&R) form must be used as the cover page for all proposals. Complete all required fields in accordance with the “pop-up” instructions on the form and the following instructions for specific fields. Please complete the SF-424 first, as some fields on the SF-424 are used to auto-populate fields on other forms. Guidance:

https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/forms/r-r-family.html.

The completion of most fields is self-explanatory with the exception of the following special instructions:

• Field 3 - Date Received by State: Leave Blank

• Field 4a - Federal Identifier:

For ONR, enter “N00014” For ARO, enter “W36QYT” For AFOSR, enter “FA9550”

• Field 4b - Agency Routing Number:

For ONR, enter the three (3) digit Research Topic Chief’s Code and the Research Topic Chief’s name (last name first) in brackets (e.g., 331 [Smith, John]). Where the Program Office Code only has two digits, add a “0” directly after the Code (e.g., Code 31 would be entered as 310).

For ARO, enter the name of the Research Topic Chief.

For AFOSR, enter the Research Topic Chief’s Topic Number (#) and Research Topic Chief’s name (last name first) in brackets (e.g., 12 [Smith, John]).

Applicants who fail to provide a Program Officer Code identifier may receive a notice that their proposal is rejected.

• Field 4c - Previous Grants.gov Tracking ID: If this submission is for a Changed/Corrected

Application, enter the Grants.gov tracking number of the previous proposal submission;

otherwise, leave blank.

• Field 5 – Application Information: Email address entered by the grantee on the SF-424 application to create the Electronic Document Access (EDA) notification profile. DoD recommends that organizations provide a global business address.

https://www.grants.gov/forms/forms-repository/ https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/forms/r-r-family.html

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• Field 7 - Type of Applicant. Complete as indicated: If the organization is a Minority-Serving Institution, select “Other” and under “Other (Specify)” note that the institution is a Minority- Serving Institution (MI).

• Field 9 - Name of Federal Agency: List the appropriate agency (i.e., ONR, AFOSR, or ARO) as the reviewing agency. This field is usually pre-populated in Grants.gov.

• Field 11 – Descriptive Title of Applicant’s Project: Include “MURI:” at the beginning of your descriptive title. Include the ONR White Paper Tracking Number provided to the Applicant by ONR.

• Field 14 – Project Director/Principal Investigator: Email address entered by the grantee on the SF-424 application to create the EDA notification profile.

• Field 16 - Is Application Subject to Review by State Executive Order 12372 Process?

Choose “No”. Check “Program is Not Covered by Executive Order 12372.”

• Field 17 – Certification: All awards require some form of certifications of compliance with national policy requirements. By checking “I Agree” on the SF-424 (R&R) block 17 you agree to abide by the following statement: “By signing this application, I certify (1) to the statements contained in the list of certifications and (2) that the statements herein are true, complete and accurate to the best of my knowledge. I also provide the required assurances and agree to comply with any resulting terms if I accept an award. I am aware that any false, fictitious, or fraudulent statements or claims may subject me to criminal, civil, or administrative penalties. (U.S. code, Title 218, Section 1001).

For AFOSR, if you check “I agree” on SF424 block 17 and do NOT upload a completed SF- LLL Disclosure of Lobbying Activities, you are certifying that you do NOT have any lobbying activities to disclose. If you do have lobbying activities to disclose, you MUST check “I agree” on SF424 block 17 AND upload a completed SF-LLL.

• Field 19 – Authorized Representative (AOR): Email address entered by the grantee on the

SF-424 application to create the EDA notification profile. Note: If the name in the signature field of Block 19 does not match the name listed as the AOR, you must provide signature delegation authority in the form of written approval from the named AOR or an institutional memo granting delegated signature authority.

ii. PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT

The project summary/abstract must identify the research problem and objectives, technical approaches, anticipated outcome of the research, if successful, and impact on DoD capabilities.

Use only characters available on a standard QWERTY keyboard. Spell out all Greek letters, other non-English letters, and symbols. Graphics are not allowed and there is a one page or 4,000-character limit, including spaces, whichever is less.

Do not include proprietary or confidential information. The project summary/abstract must be marked by the Applicant as “Approved for Public Release”. Abstracts of all funded research

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projects will be posted on the public Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC) website:

https://dodgrantawards.dtic.mil/grants.

iii. RESEARCH AND RELATED OTHER PROJECT INFORMATION

• Fields 1 and 1a – Human Subject Use: Each proposal must address human subject involvement in the research by completing Fields 1 and 1a of the R&R Other Project Information form. For proposals containing activities that include or may include “research involving human subject” as defined in DoDI 3216.02, prior to award, the Applicant must submit the required documentation under “Use of Human Subjects in Research” (Section H.1.).

• Fields 2 and 2a – Vertebrate Animal Use: Each proposal must address animal use protocols by addressing Fields 2 and 2a of the R&R Other Project Information form. If animals are to be utilized in the research effort proposed, the Applicant must submit the documents described under “Use of Animals” (Section H.1.).

• Fields 4a through 4d – Environmental Compliance: Address these fields and briefly indicate whether the intended research will result in environmental impacts outside the laboratory, and how the Applicant will ensure compliance with environmental statutes and regulations.

Federal agencies making grant or cooperative agreement awards and recipients of such awards must comply with all applicable environmental planning and regulatory compliance requirements. The National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), 42 U.S.C. § 4321 et seq., for example, requires that agencies consider the environmental impact of “major Federal actions” prior to any final agency decision. With respect to those awards which constitute “major Federal actions,” as defined in 40 CFR 1508.18, federal agencies may be required to comply with NEPA and prepare environmental planning documentation such as an environmental impact statement (EIS), even if the agency does no more than provide grant funds to the recipient. Most field research funded by DoD, however, constitute activities covered by a NEPA categorical exclusion that do not require preparation of further environmental planning documentation. This is particularly true with regard to basic and applied scientific research conducted entirely within the confines of a laboratory, if the research complies with all other applicable safety, environmental, and natural resource conservation laws. Questions regarding NEPA or other environmental planning or regulatory compliance issues should be referred to the technical point of contact.

• Field 7 – Project Summary/Abstract: Leave Field 7 blank; complete Form SF-424 Project Abstract.

If an error message occurs when leaving Block 7 blank, upload the Project Abstract.

• Field 8 – Project Narrative: Clearly describe the research, including the objective and approach to be performed, keeping in mind the evaluation criteria. Attach the entire proposal narrative to R&R Other Project Information form in Field 8. To attach a Project Narrative to Field 8, click on “Add attachment” and attach the technical proposal as a single PDF file. Save the file as “Technical Proposal” as typing in the box is prohibited.

The technical proposal must describe the research in sections as described below:

https://dodgrantawards.dtic.mil/grants

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o Cover Page (not included in page count): This must include the words “Technical Proposal” and the following:

ONR: NOFO Number: N0001425SF002; or ARO: W911NF25S0004; or

AFOSR: NOFOAFRLAFOSR2025002

Title of proposal;

Identity of prime Applicant and complete list of subawardees, if applicable;

Technical contact (name, address, phone/fax, email address);

Administrative/business contact (name, address, phone/fax, email address); and Proposed period of performance (identify both the base period and options, if included).

o Table of Contents (not included in page count): An alphabetical/numerical listing of the sections within the proposal, including corresponding page numbers.

o Technical Approach (included in page count): Describe in detail the objectives and scientific or technical concepts that will be investigated, explaining the complete research plan, and how the data will be analyzed. Describe what is innovative about the proposed approach. Discuss the relationship of the proposed research to the state-of-the-art knowledge in the field and to related efforts in programs elsewhere and discuss potential scientific breakthroughs. Include appropriate literature citations/references. Given the successful completion, describe the results, new knowledge, or insights. The Technical Approach section should include:

Future DoD Relevance: A description of potential DoD relevance and contributions of the effort to the agency’s specific mission.

Project Schedule and Milestones: A summary of the schedule of events and milestones.

o Management Approach (included in page count): Describe how and how often the Principal Investigator will communicate with the Co-Investigators, how data will be made available within the team, and how differences of opinion might be resolved.

Describe the research and management responsibilities of the team members. Describe plans for the research training of students. Include the number of time equivalent graduate students and undergraduates, if any, to be supported each year. Discuss the involvement of other students, if any.

o Principal Investigator Qualifications (included in page count): A discussion of the qualifications of the proposed Principal Investigator and any other key personnel.

o Data Management Plan (not included in page count): A data management plan is a document that describes which data generated through the course of the proposed research will be shared and preserved and how this will be done, explains why data sharing or preservation is not possible or scientifically appropriate, or why the costs of sharing or preservation are incommensurate with the value of doing so. See also: DoD Instruction 3200.12.

https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/issuances/dodi/320012p.pdf?ver=2019-04-30-073122-220 https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/issuances/dodi/320012p.pdf?ver=2019-04-30-073122-220

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In no more than 2 pages, discuss the following:

o The types of data, software, and other materials to be produced.

o How the data will be acquired.

o Time and location of data acquisition, if scientifically pertinent.

o How the data will be processed.

o The file formats and the naming conventions that will be used.

o A description of the quality assurance and quality control measures during collection, analysis, and processing.

o A description of dataset origin when existing data resources are used.

o A description of the standards to be used for data and metadata format and content.

o Appropriate timeframe for preservation.

o The plan may consider the balance between the relative value of data preservation and other factors such as the associated cost and administrative burden. The plan will provide a justification for such decisions.

o A statement that the data cannot be made available to the public when there are national security or controlled unclassified information concerns (e.g., “This data cannot be cleared for public release in accordance with the requirements in DoD Directive 5230.09.”)

• Field 9 – Bibliography & References Cited: Upload your Bibliography/References Cited as a single PDF.

• Field 10 – Facilities & Other Resources: Describe facilities available for performing the proposed research and any additional facilities the Applicant proposes to acquire at their own expense.

Indicate government-owned facilities already possessed that will be used. (Additional equipment will not be provided unless the research cannot be completed by any other practical means.)

• Field 11 – Equipment: Describe any equipment available or any additional equipment the applicant proposes to acquire at their own expense. Indicate government owned equipment that will be used. Justify the need for each equipment item. (Additional equipment will not be provided unless the research cannot be completed by any other practical means.)

• Field 12 – Other Attachments: Optional, as necessary.

Grants do not include the delivery of software, prototypes, or other hardware deliverables.

iv. RESEARCH AND RELATED BUDGET

The Applicant must use the Grants.gov forms (including the Standard Form (SF) Research and Related (R&R) Budget Form) from the application package template associated with the NOFO on the Grants.gov website located at http://www.grants.gov/. If options are proposed, the cost proposal must provide the pricing information for the option periods; failure to include the proposed costs for the option periods will result in the options not being included in the award.

The Applicant shall provide a detailed cost breakdown of all costs, by cost category.

http://www.grants.gov/

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There should be a detailed breakdown of all costs, by cost category, and by the calendar periods stated below. For budget purposes, use an award start date of 01 May 2024. Note that the budget for each of the calendar periods below should include only those costs to be expended during that calendar period. The budget should also include an option for two additional years.

For proposals to ONR topics, the Recommended Funding Profile is:

(1) FY26: Six months (01 May 26 to 31 Oct 26): $750,000

(2) FY27: Twelve months (01 Nov 26 to 31 Oct 27): $1,500,000

(3) FY28: Twelve months (01 Nov 27 to 31 Oct 28): $1,500,000

(4) FY29: Six months (01 Nov 28 to 30 Apr 29): $750,000

Three-year base subtotal: $4,500,000

(4) FY29: Six months (01 May 29 to 30 Oct 29): $750,000

(5) FY30: Twelve months (01 Nov 29 to 30 Oct 30): $1,500,000

(6) FY31: Six months (01 Nov 30 to 30 Apr 31): $750,000

Two-year option subtotal: $3,000,000 Five-year total: $7,500,000

For proposals to ARO topics, the…