Notice of Intent - SRM 2241a Glass Units

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Acquisition Management Division intends to negotiate with Starna Cells, Inc., located in Atascadero, CA, on a sole source basis under the authority of FAR Subpart 13.106-1(b), soliciting from a single source, for SRM 2241a Glass Units.

Specific Requirements are as follows:

The Contractor shall deliver two hundred (200) glass substrates that meet the following minimum specifications:

Glass making specifications

• The glass must have the following composition:
• The glass must be made at a high temperature of approximately but no lower than 1415 °C.
• The glass must be annealed to eliminate stress and strain as observed using polarized light
   

Oxide          weight %

SiO2           67.35

Na2O          6.95

B2O3          25.65

Cr2 O3          0.05

Cutting, polishing and finishing

• Each glass unit must have Dimensions 10.0 mm +/- 0.1 mm by 10.0 mm +/- 0.1 mm by 1.65 mm +/- 0.05 mm.
• Each glass unit must have one of the 10 mm x 10 mm faces polished and the opposite face frosted.
• The polished face must be finished with a scratch-dig tolerance of 20-10.
• The polished face must be flat to 4 fringes at 633 nm.
• The frosted surface must be frosted to give 1 micron to 3-micron rms surface roughness (400 grit alumina sanding).

Glass optical specifications

• Measurement Conditions
  All emission specifications listed below must be evaluated using a Raman spectrometer system equipped with a continuous-wave 785 nm excitation laser. The system must be capable of measuring Raman/luminescence spectra down to at least 200 cm-1 from the excitation line with minimal background contribution (<5% of the absolute emission intensity of the glass units across the 200 cm-1 to 3500 cm-1 Raman shift range). Conventional fluorescence spectrometers are not suitable for these measurements. 
• Absolute Emission Intensity
  The absolute emission intensity values must match that of the original SRM 2241 units within 10% from 200 cm-1 to 3500 cm-1 Raman shift relative to 785 nm (797.5 nm to 1082.4 nm).
• Emission Spectrum
  The normalized emission spectrum of the glass units must match that of the original SRM 2241 units within 5% from 200 cm-1 to 3500 cm-1 Raman shift relative to 785 nm (797.5 nm to 1082.4 nm).
• Spatial Homogeneity
  Each unit must be spatially homogeneous with respect to the following emission characteristics when excited by a 785 nm laser focused to a spot size ≤10 µm on the polished surface.
  • Absolute emission intensities must be uniform within 5% across each unit.
  • A two-dimensional spectral mapping of the polished surface, with data acquired at step sizes of <50 µm in each dimension, must yield a normalized emission dataset exhibiting a ≤2% RSD across the 200 cm-1 to 3500 cm-1 Raman shift range.
• Between-Unit Homogeneity
  Across the lot of 200 glass units, the dataset of normalized emission spectra must exhibit a ≤2% RSD over the 200 cm⁻¹ to 3500 cm⁻¹ Raman shift range. A single representative spectrum per unit (e.g., the average spectrum from the spatial homogeneity mapping) should be used for this determination.
• Optical Quality
  Each unit must be of high optical quality such that it is free of bubbles and stria.

NAICS Code is 327215 Glass Product Manufacturing Made of Purchased Glass, with a Size Standard of 1,000 employees. NIST anticipates negotiating and awarding a firm-fixed-price purchase order to Starna Cells, Inc. for this requirement.

Interested parties that can demonstrate they could satisfy the requirement listed above for NIST must clearly and unambiguously identify their capability to do so in writing on or before the response date for this notice. This notice of intent is not a solicitation. Information submitted in response to this notice will be used solely to determine whether competitive procedures could be used for this acquisition. If competitive procedures are not used it is estimated that an award will be issued by 8/12/2025. Any questions regarding this notice must be submitted in writing via email to julie.morris@nist.gov. All responses to this notice of intent must be submitted to julie.morris@nist.gov no later than the date and time provided herein this posting.

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AN OPEN COMPETITION:

The Organic Chemical Metrology Group (OCMG) within the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) requires the acquisition of 200 units of a specialized glass artifact for the production of a new lot of Standard Reference Material (SRM) 2241 — Relative Intensity Correction Standard for Raman Spectroscopy: 785 nm Excitation. SRM 2241 supports critical calibration, and standardization needs for Raman spectroscopy instrumentation across industry and research sectors.

This SRM was originally developed and manufactured in-house by the NIST glassmaking shop. However, the internal glass production capability has since been discontinued. As a result, NIST must now outsource the production of this specialized material to maintain continuity of this important SRM.

Comprehensive market research has been conducted to identify potential commercial sources capable of meeting the stringent requirements for SRM 2241. The findings indicate that Starna Cells, Inc. is the only vendor currently identified that meets all the technical and production requirements for this procurement. 

Due to the unique material composition, quality requirements, and the dual capability of glass production and Raman-based optical characterization, Starna Cells, Inc. is the sole known source that can fulfill all technical and quality requirements to produce SRM 2241.