RFI/Notice of Intent to Sole Source

The Naval Research Laboratory within the Department of the Navy Office of Naval Research is conducting market research for a sophisticated hemispherical electron analyzer system for Angle-resolved Photoelectron Spectroscopy (ARPES) applications. The procurement encompasses three main components: a hemispherical electron analyzer with minimum 135mm mean radius and 0.5-1500 eV energy range, a 5-axis motorized sample manipulator capable of handling 90mm diameter sample holders, and an ultrahigh vacuum chamber with mu-metal shielding bakeable to 150°C. The government currently intends to award this requirement as a sole source to ScientaOmicron but is seeking capability statements from potential alternative sources who believe they can meet the technical specifications. Interested parties must submit responses not exceeding seven pages that include technical capabilities, commerciality information, rough order of magnitude cost estimates, and demonstration of compliance with the detailed specifications. The response deadline is August 20, 2025, at 11:00 AM Eastern, with submissions directed to Graham Fisher at the Naval Research Laboratory.

This procurement does not utilize any set-aside designations and is currently planned as a sole source award to ScientaOmicron, which appears to be the incumbent or preferred vendor for this specialized scientific equipment. The system must deliver high-performance specifications including 850 energy channels, over 650 angular channels, 3 meV FWHM energy resolution, and a minimum 40mm multichannel plate detector with digital camera capabilities exceeding 120 fps readout speed. The electron analyzer must operate in both transmission and angular lens modes with specific acceptance angles of 15 and 10 degrees respectively, while the sample manipulator requires precise motorized control across five axes for accommodating 75mm wafers. No specific contract value or budget range has been disclosed in this pre-solicitation notice, and the government emphasizes this is purely an informational market research effort with no guarantee of future competition or contract award. The system must operate as a standalone unit due to NRL firewall restrictions that prevent remote access capabilities.