Notice of Intent to Sole Source - Narrowband Mid-IR laser with tunable wavelength and tunable repetition rate

Notice of Intent to Noncompetitively acquire a narrowband mid-IR laser with tunable wavelength and tunable repetition rate.

This notice is not a request for a quotation. A solicitation document will not be issued, and quotations will not be requested.

This acquisition is being conducted under the authority of FAR 12.102(a). The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for this acquisition is 334516, Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing which has a small business size standard of 1,000 employees.

The CHIPS Metrology Program at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) advances metrology for accelerating R&D and for developing breakthroughs that support the development of the next-generation microelectronics and ensure the competitiveness and leadership of the United States. The development and advancement of new measurement methods and infrastructure to characterize nanoscale engineered materials and heterogeneously integrated devices is a critical part of the CHIPS metrology and NDCD mission.

In support of the CHIPS Metrology program, the NIST Nanoscale Device Characterization Division (NDCD) within the Physical Measurement Laboratory (PML) has a requirement for a narrowband, mid-IR laser with tunable wavelength and tunable repetition rate to enhance advanced AFM metrology for measuring thermal properties of materials at the nanoscale which are being developed NDCD, e.g., Nano Lett. 2022, 22, 11, 4325–4332.

The NDCD requires a quantity of one (1) narrowband, mid-IR laser with tunable wavelength and tunable repetition rate that meet all technical specifications identified below.

1. The laser source shall consist of a single laser or of an array of lasers housed in a single enclosure emitting collinear light from a single port for all the emitted wavelengths.
2. The laser source shall emit light pulses with at a wavelength tunable between ≈ 2.5 μm to 10.0 μm without gaps or wider range.
3. The laser source shall emit light pulses with pulse length between 0.1 ns and 10 ns.
4. The laser shall emit light pulses with linewidths < 8 cm-1. Light pulses with linewidths < 4 cm-1 are preferred.
5. The laser system shall enable continuous or stepped tuning of the emitted wavelength with 1 cm‑1 steps at average rate of 9 cm-1/s or faster. Faster tuning (≥ 50 cm-1/s average rate) of the wavelength (continuous or stepped) is preferred.
6. The laser shall emit light pulses with a repetition rate tunable at least between 100 kHz to 200 kHz or wider range with a 1 kHz resolution or better.
     - At 200 kHz repetition rate the laser source shall emit light pulses with at an average power > 5 mW. Tuning curves (average power vs wavelength) will be useful for the evaluation.
7. The laser shall emit light with linear polarization. The vendor shall specify the light polarization for each laser stage.
8. The laser system shall include a reference visible alignment laser (< 4 mW) with output collinear with the output of the main mid-IR laser to facilitate alignment operation. When the alignment laser is in use, no other light shall be emitted by the laser.  

NIST conducted market research in December 2025 to February 2026 to determine what sources could potentially meet NIST’s minimum requirements. This included searches on GSA; SAM; surveying vendor websites; consulting laser buyer's guide; attending trade shows; and issuance of a Sources Sought Notice NIST-SS26-CHIPS66 on SAM.gov. The results of market research revealed that only once source, Laserspec (UEI: QC7FMKKHANW9), appears to be capable of meeting NIST’s requirements.

However, any sources that believe they are capable of meeting NIST’s minimum requirements are encouraged to respond to this notice by the response date to provide the following information at a minimum: Company Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) number in https://sam.gov; details about what your company is capable of providing that meets or exceeds NIST’s minimum requirements; whether your company is an authorized reseller of the product or service being cited and evidence of such authorization; and any other information that can help NIST determine whether this requirement may be competitively satisfied. 

A determination by the Government not to compete the proposed acquisition based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. Information received will be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement. Only responses received by the offers due date and time of this notice will be considered by the government. Responses shall be submitted via email to nina.lin@nist.gov.