LQC BAA Final V8 Amd 1.pdf

U.S. ARMY RESEARCH OFFICE

BROAD AGENCY ANNOUNCEMENT FOR

LPS Qubit Collaboratory (LQC)

W911NF-21-S-0009-1

Issued by:

U.S. Army Contracting Command-Aberdeen Proving Ground

Research Triangle Park Division

P.O. BOX 12211

Research Triangle Park, NC 27709-2211

I. OVERVIEW OF THE FUNDING OPPORTUNITY:

B. Additional Overview Information

II. DETAILED INFORMATION ABOUT THE FUNDING OPPORTUNITY

B. Federal Award Information

G. Agency Contacts, LQC Website:

I. OVERVIEW OF THE FUNDING OPPORTUNITY:

A. Required Overview Content

1. Federal Agency Name(s):

U.S. Army Research Office

Issuing Acquisition Office:

U.S. Army Contracting Command-Aberdeen Proving Ground, Research Triangle Park Division (ACC-APG RTP Division)

2. Funding Opportunity Title: LPS Qubit Collaboratory (LQC)

3. Announcement Type Initial Announcement

4. Research Opportunity Number: W911NF-21-S-0009-1

5. Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number:

12.431 – Basic Scientific Research

6. Response Dates:

This BAA is a continuously open announcement valid throughout the period from the date of issuance through 30 April 2026, unless announced otherwise.

B. Additional Overview Information

This Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) which sets forth research areas of interest to the Army Research Laboratory- Army Research Office (ARL-ARO) and the National Security Agency (NSA) is issued under paragraph 6.102(d)(2) of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), and 10 USC 2358 which provides for the competitive selection of basic research proposals. Proposals submitted in response to this BAA and selected for award are considered to be the result of full and open competition and in full compliance with the provision of Public Law 98-369, "The Competition in Contracting Act of 1984" and subsequent amendments.

The Department of Defense agencies involved in this program reserve the right to select for award; all, some, or none of the proposals submitted in response to this announcement. The participating DoD agencies will provide no funding for direct reimbursement of proposal development costs. Technical and cost proposals (or any other material) submitted in response to this BAA will not be returned. It is the policy of participating DoD agencies to treat all proposals as sensitive, competitive information and to disclose their contents only for the purposes of evaluation.

II. DETAILED INFORMATION ABOUT THE FUNDING OPPORTUNITY

A.1 Funding Opportunity Description The U.S. Army Research Office (ARO) in partnership with NSA’s Laboratory for Physical Science (LPS) is soliciting Incubator, Collaboration, and Fellowship research proposals for participation in the LPS Qubit Collaboratory (LQC). The mission of the LQC can be captured in three broad goals: 1) pursue disruptive fundamental research and enabling technologies with a focus on qubit development for quantum computing and other applications (such as sensing); 2) grow deep, collaborative partnerships to tackle the most difficult and relevant long-term problems in quantum information science and technology; and 3) build a quantum workforce of tomorrow through research experiences in government at LPS and at LQC partners. The LQC will offer a mechanism for collaborative research between LPS and academia, industry, FFRDCs, and Government Laboratories to advance foundational and transformative research on challenging problems that have hindered progress in quantum information processing and associated technologies.

The goal of this BAA is to seek proposals that bring together expertise from the public and private sectors and their respective research infrastructures to advance solutions that may be best approached as a collaborative team. A Collaboratory is “a center without walls, in which the nation’s researchers can perform their research without regard to physical location, interacting with colleagues, accessing instrumentation, sharing data and computational resources, [and] accessing information in digital libraries” 123. This BAA introduces LQC Research Thrusts (A.1.1) which are the technical areas of interest—which will be updated periodically—where partners of the LQC will pursue joint research with LPS through Incubator (A.1.2) and Collaboration (A.1.3) collaborative agreements. The LQC BAA also fulfills the Government’s overarching interest--through the proposed research and on-site research experiences--in creating and training a workforce in quantum science and technology, generating pathways of solutions that feed technology development, establishing partnerships, and creating transition opportunities. In further support of training through research, Section A.1.4 calls for Quantum Computing Research (QuaCR) Graduate and Postdoctoral Fellowships for US citizens working in areas of interest as described below.

Substantial progress on solving the most difficult and long-term Quantum Information Science & Technology (QIST) research problems that unleash further rapid progress in the field will constitute LQC success. Examples of such research problems include (but are not limited to):

limits of performance due to device design, material selection, and/or control, the exploration of alternative qubit physics (e.g., different approaches to qubit encoding or types of gates) and lowering of barriers to such approaches, advances in materials that improve qubit gate fidelity, 1 Wulf, W. (1989, March). The national collaboratory. In Towards a national collaboratory. Unpublished report of a National Science Foundation invitational workshop, Rockefeller University, New York.

2 Wulf, W. (1993) The collaboratory opportunity. Science, 261, 854-855.

3 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collaboratory reducing the overhead of classical components in quantum information technology and optimizing classical performance, and the exploration of applications of quantum technologies to new domains.

Three categories of proposals are sought for this BAA:

1. Incubator opportunities seek partnership proposals from single investigators and small research groups, including teaching colleges, who may have unique skillsets to contribute toward the pursuit of the research thrusts presented in A.1.1. Incubator proposals may also be the development of concepts into a detailed technical research approach to advance solution of problems of high interest to quantum information science research.

Incubator proposals would avail themselves of the collaboration opportunities with LPS research staff and infrastructure made available at the Laboratory for Physical Sciences (LPS) to lay the groundwork for concepts that may be suitable for a Collaboratory proposal or responses to other DoD quantum information science research opportunities.

2. Collaboratory proposals seek research proposals that bring together a strong significant collaboration--researchers from academia, industry, FFRDCs, and/or Government Laboratories--to pursue long-term projects focused on fundamental problems of interest to qubit development and/or associated science and technology. These collaborative groups will propose to work together in a focused manner for a period of time expected to be one to three years in order to demonstrate a proof-of-concept experiment and/or theory exploration to determine the feasibility of their creative idea.

3. QuaCR Research Fellowship proposals seek to support talented U.S. citizen graduate students and postdoctoral researchers in the field of quantum information processing (primary interest) and quantum sensing (secondary interest). Applicants with a background from either within or outside QIS are encouraged. The proposed research areas are described in this BAA and must enhance active Quantum Information Science research efforts being supported by the Army Research Office and/or LPS. Research fellows are encouraged to complete an LPS Internship during their graduate career or visit during their postdoctoral fellowship (see below).

A.1.1 LPS Qubit Collaboratory Priority Research Thrusts (FY 2021) In this first year of the BAA, proposals are sought from a small number of research groups to collaboratively investigate long-term and outstanding challenges in qubit device physics and associated areas of Quantum Information Science and Technology. A gradual ramp up of the program will allow a continuous evaluation and modification of the program model. The following research areas are a priority and considered ripe for one of the collaborative research avenues described in this section. Other related topic areas of similar scope may also be considered.

1.) Spin qubits, fast.

This research area is interested in democratizing spin qubits. Working spin qubits are hard to fabricate and require significant infrastructure and workforce investments. New materials heterostructures and device fabrication techniques can take decades to master. Viable pathways to address difficult materials science challenges without starting from scratch have great potential to improve access to the field. Another roadblock is software and control engineering.

Dots require many control lines and control signals. Any reduction in control complexity either by simplifying control systems and/or better qubit design would open many research avenues.

Specifically, research proposals are sought that innovatively advance easier methods to characterize and explore the physics of multi-dot systems, ideally in more than one material. The goal is a potential reference system (control hardware, software, and environment) to initialize, control, and readout systems of approximately 10 quantum dots, but with sufficient flexibility to apply to a variety of semiconductor quantum dot qubit and gate approaches. Of particular interest are systems for electrons in silicon and holes in germanium.

Proposers should consider the following questions in formulating their research proposal.

Can the initial evaluation of materials be completed faster before investing heavily in device fabrication? Can a common infrastructure be constructed that would open the field to new researchers interested in qubit measurement and control, but not fabrication and/or growth? Can the control stack be standardized to enable small quantum dot systems to be controlled quickly?

2.) More epitaxy, better qubits?

Materials science for quantum computing has largely focused on a basic assumption: that epitaxial devices are better for quantum computing. Are these assumptions that are valid for conventional devices also valid for quantum information devices? How can the positive or negative implications of various epitaxial (or epitaxial-like) growth paradigms be rapidly determined through device modeling, through device testing, and through material characterization? What are the most promising materials for epitaxial qubits? Which qubit systems can benefit from epitaxial materials and/or does epitaxy enable novel qubit approaches?

Improvements in computational methods and understanding of surfaces/interfaces at the microscopic level that will enable these assessments are needed and are of interest to this research area.

3.) Voltage controllable superconducting qubits This research area is interested in exploring compatibility of superconducting devices that are controllable by baseband voltage pulses. Design and qubit quality implications are of particular interest, as well as compatibility with existing wafer growth facilities at LPS and LQC partners.

Further, understanding the fundamental limits of charge noise in superconducting systems is a long-term and presently under-investigated challenge.

4.) Going hot and not looking back Significant improvements in cooling power and complexity can be gained if qubits did not need to be cooled as much as technically possible using dilution refrigerators. This research area would consider designing qubits and multiple qubit experiments to operate in the range of 350 mK to 2 K. For solid-state, gate-based quantum computing, what experimental systems are most promising and empowered by this capability? What physical systems can be employed as qubits that would be promising in this temperature range? What temperature within this range would be desirable and matched for available refrigerators?

5.) Beyond Moore, Before Shor Significant effort has been put into the development of ultra-high-quality or precision-grown materials systems for qubits in the quantum computing research community. Examples include ultra-low-loss silicon-germanium heterostructures, atomistic fabrication techniques, and superconducting circuits for spin and superconducting qubits, respectively. This research area is interested in exploring the potential for these increasingly well-controlled quantum devices and systems for classical computing and enabling device applications such as low-power or ultra-fast computing or electronics and unique approaches to component technology well before the advent of a large-scale quantum computer.

6.) Accelerated Learning of Quantum Information Concepts There is a pressing need in Quantum Information Science & Technology (QIST) for new and broader talent. One innovation may be in developing approaches to teaching QIST concepts at multiple levels of expertise (but especially undergraduate to mid-career) to engineers, computer scientists, and physicists. Research proposals are sought in innovative collaborative learning concepts for quantum information science, to include the methodologies, pedagogy, and essential principles that effectively leverage classroom and laboratory experiences to train a diverse quantum workforce of the future. These projects should focus on methods applicable to higher education for the training and retraining of technical individuals that have a range of experiences and knowledge. Practical implementations coupled with evaluation of efficacy are highly desired. Some examples of research activities may include:

• Comparison of traditional quantum mechanics and emerging QIST laboratory experiments for educational use.

• Implementation and assessment of approaches that promise “hands-on” experience interacting with qubit systems.

• Evaluation of incorporating available cloud-based quantum computing resources and simulators into higher education curriculum.

• Integrated research and assessment of pedagogical variants implemented among student populations with varied training and experiences.

• Support for faculty sabbaticals to conduct research in quantum computing.

• Building an individual’s “quantum intuition” through non-conventional educational opportunities such as games and novel experiences.

A.1.2 Category 1: Incubator

This category of research is an opportunity to (a) develop technical concepts that may be of high interest to quantum information science but have insufficient groundwork in terms of feasibility and relevance, or (b) develop technical concepts that may be of high interest to quantum information science by researchers who may not have access to the research infrastructure necessary to advance their concepts. In either case, incubator proposals are expected to rapidly advance to collaboratory proposals (A.1.3), proposals to other ARO/LPS quantum computing BAAs, or proposals to other DoD BAAs in quantum information science.

Incubator opportunities seek proposals from single investigators and small research groups, including teaching colleges, who may have creative solutions and unique skill sets to contribute toward the research topics in this BAA (A.1.1) but lack the research infrastructure at their institutions to pursue this research. Incubator proposals would avail themselves of the collaboration opportunities and infrastructure made available at the Laboratory for Physical Sciences (LPS). Collaboration with government scientists at LPS is expected. Collaboration areas include joint research with the scientific expertise at LPS, collaboration with the scientific infrastructure expertise at LPS, and collaboration to obtain a deeper understanding of DoD interests in quantum information research. Proposers may plan to spend summer breaks or sabbaticals at LPS.

Incubator opportunities also seek proposals to lay the groundwork to advance very high-risk technical concepts that may be of high interest to quantum information science by their potential game changing success. These concepts may not have the opportunity to advance because of a combination of insufficient groundwork, risk, collaboration, infrastructure, and resources.

A successful Incubator Period would quickly identify a technical problem of joint interest, identify technical criteria that would justify further research investment (for example; funding of a Collaboratory Phase), and deliver a technical proposal from 1-3 years which includes technical motivation (e.g., answering the Collaboratory proposal questions), technical and programmatic milestones, team roles and responsibilities, and rough order of magnitude costs for labor, equipment, and materials.

Incubator proposals are expected to be 1-3 years in duration and not exceed $500K/year. Longer proposals may be considered due to scheduling requirements of fabrication and experiments.

A.1.3 Category 2: Collaboratory Collaboratory opportunities seek research proposals that bring together, in strong significant collaboration, researchers from academia, industry, FFRDCs, and/or Government Laboratories with LPS at the LQC to pursue disruptive research toward a technical area from the LQC Research Thrusts. These collaborative groups will propose to work together in a focused manner to demonstrate success or failure of their creative idea. Proposals must clearly answer the following questions:

• What is the problem you are trying to solve or understand?

• Why is the problem you are addressing important to the progress in the field?

• Why is the proposed collaboration uniquely suited to address this problem?

• What is new in your collaborative approach and why do you think it will be successful?

• What is new about your scientific or engineering approach?

• What are the yearly metrics/milestones to check for success?

• What are the “Phase 0” questions (if not already answered in the Incubator phase) that justify further years of research funding?

• What are the natural decision points to continue or discontinue research for the proposed idea and/or collaboration?

Experimental projects may require collocation during critical phases of the proposed research.

Proposals that involve industry are encouraged but not required to identify partially matching contributions in infrastructure or people. Extended visits and sabbaticals to LPS are strongly encouraged and can be included in the cost of the proposal. Proposals are expected to be two-three years and request less than $800K per year.

A.1.4 LQC Quantum Computing Research (LQC QuaCR) Graduate and Postdoctoral Fellowships LQC QuaCR proposals seek to support the research of talented U.S. citizen graduate students and postdoctoral candidates, and furthermore attract them to the field of quantum information science and technology. While, the emphasis is on quantum computing, proposals for quantum sensing will also be considered. The goal of the LQC QuaCR is to stimulate U.S. graduate student and postdoctoral candidate participation in research related to quantum computing and to assist in the training of graduate students and postdocs to prepare them for careers in quantum information science, by pursuing research in areas described in this BAA. A requirement of the LQC QuaCR Fellowships is to spend at least one summer (no less than 10 weeks for graduate students and 1 month for postdoctoral fellows) at LPS working with an LPS Research or Technical Program Manager. A further goal of the fellowship is to recognize outstanding graduate students and postdocs and foster their impact on quantum information science research.

Eligible recipients of research support are U.S. citizen graduate students or postdocs who either will work or are working on quantum computing related research with investigators funded through existing ARO and/or LPS grants and contracts. The duration of the graduate research fellowship is three years and two years for a postdoctoral candidate. Proposals selected for support will be added on to the primary grant and/or contract supporting the research. The principal investigator of the primary grant and/or contract and their associated institution will be responsible for oversight and management of the research performed under this support. The number of funded fellowships will be limited by the quality of proposals received and by the availability of funds.

The proposal must outline the research activities that the candidate will undertake during the three-year length of the fellowship and be written by the candidate. The proposal must specify how the QuaCR fellow will augment the existing research grant of the investigator or expand the group’s activities in a new direction.

B. Federal Award Information

Anticipated awards will be made in the form of procurement contracts, grants, or cooperative agreements, and are subject to the availability of appropriations. Given the collaborative nature of anticipated successful proposals and the participation of Government scientists, cooperative agreements are likely to be the most likely award mechanism.

Funding for the second year and beyond will be contingent upon satisfactory performance and the availability of funds.

The ACC-APG RTP Division has the authority to award a variety of instruments on behalf of ARL-ARO. The ACC-APG RTP Division reserves the right to use the type of instrument most appropriate for the effort proposed. Applicants should familiarize themselves with these instrument types and the applicable regulations before submitting a proposal. Following are brief descriptions of the possible award instruments.

1. Procurement Contract. A legal instrument, consistent with 31 U.S.C. 6303, which reflects a relationship between the Federal Government and a State Government, a local government, or other entity/contractor when the principal purpose of the instrument is to acquire property or services for the direct benefit or use of the Federal Government.

Contracts are primary governed by the following regulations:

a. Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) FAR Website

b. Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) DFARS Link

c. Army Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (AFARS) AFARS Link

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

a. 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 DoD's direct benefit or use.

b. In which substantial involvement is not expected between the DoD and the recipient when carrying out the activity contemplated by the grant.

c. No fee or profit is allowed.

3. 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 (see definition "grant"), except that substantial involvement is expected between the DoD and the recipient when carrying out the activity contemplated by the cooperative agreement. The term does not include "cooperative research and development agreements" as defined in 15 U.S.C. 3710a. No fee or profit is allowed.

4. Grants and cooperative agreements for Institutions of Higher Education and nonprofit organizations are primary governed by the following:

A. Federal statutes B. Federal regulations C. 2 CFR part 200, as modified and supplemented by DoD's interim Implementation found in

2 CFR part 1103 D. 32 CFR Parts 21, 22, 26, and 28.

E. DoD R&D General Terms and Conditions dated January 2021 F. ACC-APG-RTP Division Assistance, Research General Terms and Conditions dated

August 2016, hereinafter referred to as “Agency Specific Requirements” G. Award-specific terms and conditions

5. Grants and cooperative agreements for for-profit and nonprofit organizations exempted from

Subpart E—cost principles of part 200, are primary governed by the following:

a. Federal statutes

b. Federal regulations

c. 32 CFR Parts 21, 22, 26, and 28.

d. DOD 3210.6-R, Part 34 - Administrative Requirements for Grants and Agreements with

For-Profit Organizations

Copies of OMB regulations may be obtained from:

Executive Office of the President Telephone: (202) 395-7332 Publications Service FAX Requests: (202) 395-9068 New Executive Office Building https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/information-for-agencies/circulars/ 725 17th Street, N.W., Room 2200 Washington, DC 20503

An electronic copy of the DoDGARs may be found at ECFR Link (Title 32: National Defense,Subchapter C – DoD Grant and Agreement Regulations

C. Eligibility Information

1. Eligible Applicants:

Eligible applicants under this BAA include Institutions of higher education (foreign and domestic), nonprofit organizations, and for-profit concerns (large and small businesses).

Proposals are encouraged from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (as determined by the Secretary of Education to meet requirements of Title III of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (20 U.S.C. §1061)) and from Minority Institutions defined as institutions “whose enrollment of a single minority or a combination of minorities exceeds 50 percent of the total enrollment.” [20 U.S.C. § 1067k(3) and 10 U.S.C. § 2362]. However, no funds are specifically allocated for HBCU/MI participation.

1.1 Eligibility for Quantum Computing Research (QuaCR) Fellowships U.S. citizen graduate students or postdoctoral candidates who either will work or are currently working with a principal investigator or co-investigator of ARO quantum information science research awards are eligible to apply for the fellowship. The proposal must name the candidate QuaCR Fellow and indicate that the candidate will be working in the investigator’s group on quantum information science research for the next three years.

The investigator need not be a U.S. citizen, and the sponsoring university need not be a U.S.

university. A QuaCR Fellow who either changes advisors or leaves quantum information science research will void the fellowship and all remaining unspent funds will be returned to the government.

2. Cost Sharing or Matching:

There is no requirement for cost sharing, matching, or cost participation to be eligible for award under this BAA and cost sharing and matching is not an evaluation factor used under this BAA.

3. Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs):

Federally Funded Research & Development Centers (FFRDCs), including Department of Energy National Laboratories, are not eligible to receive awards under this BAA. However, teaming arrangements between FFRDCs and eligible principal offerors are allowed so long as such arrangements are permitted under the sponsoring agreement between the Government and the specific FFRDC, and no funds from the award flow to the FFRDC.

D. Application and Submission Information

1. Address to View Broad Agency Announcement

This BAA may be accessed from the following:

1) Grants.gov

2) Beta SAM

3) ARL website (BAA List)

Amendments, if any, to this BAA will be posted to these websites when they occur.

Interested parties are encouraged to periodically check these websites for updates and amendments.

The following information is for those wishing to respond to the BAA:

2. Content and Form of Application Submission

a. General Information

A proposal submitted under this BAA must address unclassified fundamental research.

Proposal submissions 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. The participating DoD agencies will provide no funding for direct reimbursement of proposal development costs. Technical and cost proposals (or any other material) submitted in response to this BAA will not be returned. It is the policy of participating DoD agencies to treat all proposals as sensitive, competitive information and to disclose their contents only for the purposes of evaluation.

Post-Employment Conflict of Interest: There are certain post-employment restrictions on former federal officers and employees, including special government employees (Section 207 of Title 18, U.S.C.). If an applicant believes a conflict of interest may exist, the situation should be discussed with Point of Contact listed in Section G:

Agency Contacts, who will then coordinate with appropriate ARO/ARL legal personnel prior to having applicant expend time and effort in preparing a white paper or proposal.

Statement of Disclosure Preference: Please complete ARO Form 52 or 52A stating your preference for release of information contained in your white paper or proposal.

Copies of these forms are available at BAA Forms NOTE: A white paper or proposal may be handled for administrative purposes by support contractors. These support contractors are prohibited from competing on BAA proposals and are bound by appropriate non-disclosure requirements.

Equipment: Normally, title to equipment or other tangible property purchased with Government funds vests with nonprofit institutions of higher education or with nonprofit research organizations if vesting will facilitate scientific research performed for the Government. For profit organizations are expected to possess the necessary plant and equipment to conduct the proposed research. Deviations may be made on a case-by-case basis to allow commercial organizations to purchase equipment, but disposition instructions must be followed.

b. Submission of a QuaCR Proposal b.1 Proposal Submission

The proposal must be sponsored and submitted by the principal investigator who will advise the student over the course of the three-year duration of the fellowship. In the case of co-investigators affiliated with a sub-award, the principal investigator’s university must submit the fellowship proposal. The co-investigator may be the primary advisor of the student. Proposals must contain all information specified in the “Proposal Content” section below and should be emailed as a PDF attachment to the Army Research Office: QuaCR Proposal Email .

b.2 Proposal Content

(1) Cover Page: To be eligible for review, proposals must have ARO Form 51 as a cover page.

(2) Cost: The financial portion of the proposal should contain cost estimates sufficiently detailed for meaningful evaluation. Please use ARO Form 99, Summary Proposal Budget, to submit the budget data. In most cases, the QuaCR Fellowship will cover the costs of a student stipend/salary, travel, and tuition support. An additional $8000/year may be included with the stipend/salary for student allowances.

QuaCR Fellow participation in program reviews of the primary grant is strongly encouraged and sufficient travel costs should be included in the proposed budget. In addition to attendance at the program reviews, travel costs for a one to two day visit to the Washington, DC region each year of the fellowship should be included in the proposed budget. The QuaCR Fellowship award may continue even if the parent grant ends before the three-year term of the fellowship.

(3) Research Description: This section of the proposal shall be written by the candidate. The proposal must outline the research activities that the candidate will undertake during the three-year length of the fellowship. The proposal must specify how the QuaCR fellow will augment the existing research grant of the investigator or expand the group’s activities in a new direction. Proposals that entail new research tasks rather than just providing additional resources to complete the research tasks already in the existing grant or proposal are preferred, but the primary criteria for selection are the qualifications of the candidate.

(4) Candidate Description: The proposal must also provide detailed information about the student’s undergraduate and graduate academic career to date and specifically highlight the candidate’s undergraduate and graduate research record.

Recommendation letters (no more than three) are strongly encouraged. Transcripts may be submitted but are not necessary as long as the proposal provides the following information with respect to the candidate: an up-to-date CV, academic institutions attended, a summary of any prior independent research projects undertaken by the candidate, all available indications of the candidate’s performance and stature in his/her graduate class, and a statement of commitment by the candidate to work with the investigator on quantum computing related research if awarded the QuaCR Fellowship.

All required forms can be found here: BAA Forms b.3 Length and Format of Proposals The Research Description section of the QuaCR proposal may not exceed three pages. The Candidate Description section of the QuaCR proposal may not exceed two pages. The two-page Candidate Description limit does not include the statement of commitment by the candidate, but the statement of commitment is not to exceed 50 words. Recommendation letters may be attached with the proposal or emailed separately to the Technical POC. The page limits do not include the requisite cover page, any attached recommendation letters, and budget pages. As stated above, transcripts are not necessary, but if they are submitted, they will not count against the page length restrictions.

c. Submission of a White Paper for Incubator and Collaboratory Proposals:

Stage 1 White Papers – Prospective applicants must submit White Papers for Incubator and Collaboratory proposals. The purpose of requesting a White Paper is to minimize the labor and cost associated with the production of a detailed proposal that has very little chance of being selected for funding. Based on assessment of the White Papers, feedback will be provided to an applicant to enable that applicant to make a determination as to whether they should submit a proposal. If offerors have not submitted White Papers under Stage I of the BAA, offerors may not submit full proposals for consideration for funding.

Recommended White Paper Format and Content:

• White Papers must be submitted electronically to WP Email in the following format:

• Single PDF file as an email attachment

• Page Size: 8 ½ x 11 inches

• Margins – 1 inch

• Font – No smaller than Times New Roman, 12 point

• Number of Pages – no more than ten (10) single-sided pages. Any pages exceeding the ten-page limit will not be evaluated.

White Papers must contain the following:

• Title page. The title page should be labeled “LQC BAA White Paper” and should include the BAA number, proposed title, program goal being addressed, Principal

Investigator (PI) with telephone number and email address, and an executive summary. (Not to exceed one page.)

• Expected expenditures and justifications. (Not to exceed one page.)

• Curriculum vitae sketches. (Not to exceed one page.)

• Technical portion including all references and figures. Introduce the problem to be addressed, briefly survey related work, identify key obstacles, outline the proposed solution and well-defined objective, outline the yearly research plan with milestones, and state the impact if successful. (Not to exceed seven pages.)

d. Preparing an Incubator or Collaboratory Application

Stage 2 Proposal - After Stage 1 reviews are completed, interested offerors should submit proposals in accordance with the requirements set forth in this BAA.

This format applies to all proposals submitted via email and via Grants.gov. Offerors' proposals should show the location of each section of the proposal, as well as major subdivisions of the project description.

COVER PAGE ARO FORM 51: for Contract proposals submitted by email. The Form SF 424 (R&R) is for all proposals submitted through Grants.gov (Assistance Instruments must submit through Grants.gov):

1. A Cover Page is required. Proposals will not be processed without either: (1) a signed Cover Page, ARO Form 51, or (2) an SF 424 R & R Form.

2. Should the project be carried out at a branch campus or other component of the submitting organization, that branch campus or component should be identified in the space provided (Block 11 on the ARO Form 51 and Block 12 on the SF424 R&R).

3. The title of the proposed project should be brief, scientifically representative, intelligible to a scientifically literate reader, and suitable for use in the public domain.

4. The proposed duration for which support is requested should be consistent with the program duration of forty-eight months.

5. Specification of a desired starting date for the project is important and helpful however, requested effective dates cannot be guaranteed.

6. To evaluate compliance with Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 {20 U.S.C. A§ 1681 Et. Seq.), the Department of Defense is collecting certain demographic and career information to be able to assess the success rates of women who are proposed for key roles in applications in STEM disciplines. To enable this assessment, each application must include the following forms completed as indicated.

Research and Related Senior/Key Person Profile (Expanded) form:

The Degree Type and Degree Year fields on the Research and Related Senior/Key Person Profile {Expanded) form will be used by DoD as the source for career information. In addition to the required fields on the form, applicants must complete these two fields for all individuals that are identified as having the project role of PD/Pl or Co-PD/Pl on the form. Additional senior/key persons can be added by selecting the "Next Person" button.

Research and Related Personal Data form:

This form will be used by DoD as the source of demographic information, such as gender, race, ethnicity, and disability information for the Project Director/Principal Investigator and all other persons identified as Co-Project Director{s)/Co-Principal Investigator(s). Each application must include this form with the name fields of the Project Director/Principal Investigator and any Co-Project Director(s)/Co-Principal Investigator(s) completed; however, provision of the demographic information in the form is voluntary. If completing the form for multiple individuals, each Co-Project Director/Co-Principal Investigator can be added by selecting the "Next Person" button.

The demographic information, if provided, will be used for statistical purposes only and will not be made available to merit reviewers. Applicants who do not wish to provide some or all of the information should check or select the "Do not wish to provide" option.

7. Pursuant to 31 U.S.C. 7701, as amended by the Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996 [Section 31001(I)(1), Public Law 104-134], federal agencies shall obtain each awardees’ Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN). This number may be the Employer Identification Number for a business or non-profit entity or the Social Security Number for an individual. The TIN is being obtained for purposes of collecting and reporting on any delinquent amounts that may arise out of an awardees’ relationship with the Government.

8. Offerors shall provide their organization's Unique Entity Identifier (formerly DUNS).

This number is a nine-digit number assigned by Dun and Bradstreet Information Services. See Section II.D.3 of this BAA for requirements pertaining to the Unique Entity Identifier.

9. Offerors shall provide their assigned Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) Code. The CAGE Code is a 5-character code assigned and maintained by the Defense Logistics Service Center (DLSC) to identify a commercial plant or establishment.

TABLE OF CONTENTS: Use the following Format for the Proposal Table of Contents, Forms are available at BAA Forms

SECTION PAGE NUMBER

Table of Contents A-1 Statement of Disclosure Preference (Form 52 or 52A) B-1 Research & Related Other Project Information B-2 Project Abstract C-1 Project Description (Technical Proposal) D-1 - D-� Biographical Sketch E-1 - E-� Bibliography F-1 - F-� Current and Pending Support G-1 - G-� Facilities, Equipment, and Other Resources H-1 - H-� Proposal Budget I-1 - I-� Contract Facilities Capital Cost of Money (DD Form 1861) J-1 Appendices K-� List Appendix Items:

This format applies to proposals submitted via email and via Grants.gov. Offerors' proposals should show the location of each section of the proposal, as well as major subdivisions of the project description.

STATEMENT OF DISCLOSURE PREFERENCE (FORM 52 OR 52A): Complete and sign ARO Form 52 (Industrial Contractors) or ARO Form 52A (Educational and Nonprofit Organizations), form can be found at the following website: BAA Forms .

RESEARCH AND RELATED Other Project Information: The form entitled “Research and Related Other Project Information” found at the following website: BAA Forms ,shall be completed and signed by all organizations.

PROJECT ABSTRACT:

1. The Project Abstract shall be completed on the form entitled “Publicly Releasable Abstract” found at the following website: BAA Forms.

2. Unless otherwise instructed in this BAA, the Project Abstract shall include a concise statement of work and basic approaches to be used in the proposed effort. The abstract should include a statement of scientific objectives, methods to be employed, and the significance of the proposed effort to the advancement of knowledge.

3. The abstract should be no longer than one (1) page (maximum 4,000 characters).

4. The project abstract shall be marked by the applicant as publicly releasable. By submission of the project abstract, the applicant confirms that the abstract is releasable to the public. For a proposal that results in a grant award, the project abstract will be posted to a searchable website available to the general public to meet the requirements of Title VII (General Provisions), Section 8123, of the Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2015. (Division C of the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, Public Law 113-235) The website address is https://dodgrantawards.dtic.mil/grants

TECHNICAL PROPOSAL (PROJECT DESCRIPTION): The technical portion of the proposal shall be no longer than 20 pages including tables and figures, single spaced text, size 12 Times New Roman font with one inch page margins, and shall contain the following:

1. Technical Approach: Introduce the problem to be addressed, survey related work, identify key obstacles, and outline the proposed solution and well-defined objective.

Proposals should describe an approach to all technical areas with unambiguous and quantitative milestones. Proposers must justify the utility of the proposed work and highlight its benefits over the current state-of-the-art. Proposals should clearly address the expected key challenges and proposed methods to overcome these difficulties taking into consideration the current state of field. Proposers should set aggressive yearly quantitative milestones that define a path toward the end-of-the-program goals and analyze the impact if successful.

2. Project Schedule, Milestones, and Deliverables: A summary of the schedule of events, milestones, and a detailed description of the results and products to be delivered.

3. Management Approach: A discussion of the overall approach to the management of this effort, including brief discussions of: required facilities; relationships with any subawardees and with other organizations; availability of personnel; and planning, scheduling, and control procedures. A brief description of your organization, including if the offeror has extensive government contracting experience. If this information has been previously provided to the ARL/ARO, the information need not be provided again. A statement setting forth this condition should be made.

4. The names of other federal, state, local agencies, or other parties receiving the proposal and/or funding the proposed effort. If none, so state.