Capability Pitch Days
09-23 January | Virtual
Find Your Microelectronics Commons Teaming Partners
Register for the ultimate teaming experience featuring 200 organizations with the required technology needed to build a robust offering in support of the Microelectronics Commons project.
The program runs from 1100-1800 ET on the following days, with each day focused on a specific technology requirement:
- 09 JAN – 5G/6G Technology
- 10 JAN – Artificial Intelligence Hardware
- 11 JAN – Commercial Leap-Ahead Technologies
- 12 JAN – Electromagnetic Warfare
- 13 JAN – Quantum Technology
- 17 JAN – Secure Edge/IoT Computing
- 19 JAN – Cores
- 20 JAN – Hubs
- 23 JAN – Infrastructure, Tools & IP
You may participate as a presenter or in listen-only mode, and you will select how you will participate as well as your topic(s) to present during the registration process.
While virtual, presentation slots are limited to 25 per topic and will be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis. Click here to view the presentation schedules for AI Hardware, Commercial Leap-Ahead Technologies, Electromagnetic Warfare and Quantum Technology. Schedules for Secure Edge/IoT Computing, Cores and Hubs will be available by 13 January.
How it Works
The goal of the program is to showcase technology capabilities aligned to the program’s requirements and help the defense industry base find teaming partners in support of Microelectronics Commons. Presenters have 10 minutes to share information about their capabilities, followed by five minutes of questions and answers. To maximize your time, we suggest presenting the following information:
- Short company introduction
- Your capabilities and how they align to the technical requirements
- Past performance results and experiences (non-proprietary only)
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Technical Capability Requirements Guidance
Microelectronics Commons will support prototyping capabilities for six technical areas that are critical to the DoD: 5G/6G Technology, Artificial Intelligence Hardware, Commercial Leap-Ahead Technologies, Electromagnetic Warfare, Quantum Technology, and Secure Edge/IoT Computing. Equally critical to the success of the program are Cores and Hubs.
What is a Hub?
A Hub is a network of regional entities with lab prototyping capabilities and sources of Microelectronics talent for onshore, lab-to-fab transition of semiconductor technologies. Hub composition may include Universities, startups, incubators, Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs), DoD Labs, Department of Energy (DoE) Labs, semiconductor companies, Defense Industrial Base (DIB) companies, and any entity that adds value to the network. It is anticipated that entities outside of a Region may need to be part of the Hub in order for the Regional Hub to be successful. With regards to Hub composition, the technical capabilities of the Hub is the priority. Hubs have the flexibility to bring in members from any region to be successful in their lab-to-fab efforts. The goal of the Commons is to connect regional organizations through the Hub to accelerate lab-to-fab prototyping based on proximity and to strengthen local economies through a workforce that supports those regions. Achieving that goal may require capabilities external to a Region; i.e., it is not expected that Regional Hubs can be fully self-contained.
What is a Core?
Core facilities (Cores) are entities with the capabilities that are required to demonstrate prototypes with the volume and characteristics required to ensure reduced risk for full manufacturing production. They provide Hubs with access to repeatable processes. back-end manufacturing/integration and full flow-fabrication (i.e., Cores have scalable capacity beyond what the regional Hubs will be required to provide). Core facilities will provide access to ≥200-mm tooling for prototyping silicon compatible technologies and/or ≥100-mm tooling for compound semiconductor technologies.
5G/6G Technology
The desired end state of Microelectronics Commons 5G/6G hubs is integrated, resilient, low-latency Command and Control (C2) and communication infrastructure and protocols. Future Generation (5G/6G) radio frequency (RF) technology advancements are critical for the DoD to transition to decentralized, point-of-use, anytime-anywhere RF networks that yield asymmetric DoD warfighting results. The implications of 5G/6G are potentially revolutionary by connecting a wide variety of DoD platforms into a secure network that must remain protected from our adversaries. Future Generation RF connectivity is predicated on secure, efficient and broadband RF microelectronics technology in the RF, microwave, and millimeter-wave (mmW) bands from 0.3-300 GHz. As the complexity and capability of modern warfare grows, facilitated by enablers such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), the amount of data and processing speeds required to support future missions must be bolstered by high bandwidth real-time architecture, highlighted by Joint All Domain Command and Control (JADC2) initiatives.
Artificial Intelligence Hardware
The desired end-state is a fab prototype for eventual deployment in AI-enabled systems for edge applications to enable overmatch performance in operational situation awareness and decision-making in a wide variety of missions. Microelectronics Commons hubs will need to facilitate the lab-to-fab prototyping and testing of these AI hardware platforms. The exponential growth of data demands advanced data analysis capabilities with higher processing performance, lower energy dissipation, and better system scalability. There is a significant gap between current AI computing capabilities and the vast amount of multi-domain sensor and operational data for high-throughput, low-latency and energy-efficient training and executing (inference) of AI models for data analytics, sensor exploitation and fusion, decision support, autonomy, etc., particularly for systems at the tactical edge where there are strict SWaP constraints.
Commercial Leap-Ahead Technologies
Commercial leap ahead technologies are innovative technologies in which the commercial industry has little to no current business interests that warrant their investment. These leap ahead technologies fall under one of two categories: 1) technologies that provide revolutionary capabilities, and 2) designs of systems that allow us to insert new technologies that will yield dramatically new capabilities. The desired end state is the lab-to-fab maturation of materials, devices, architectures, and processes to provide and/or enable revolutionary capabilities.
Electromagnetic Warfare
The future of Electromagnetic Warfare (EW) reflects a paradigm shift from the traditional approach of deploying disparate systems to perform singular functions within a rigid spectrum allocation. Modern EW (Radar, Electronic Support Measurers, Electronic Attack, and Electronic Protection) requires rapid deployment of capabilities to outpace the threat using force-level, multi-function systems with ability to sense presence of targets and threats using all of the Electromagnetic Spectrum (EMS). The desired end-state is lab-to-fab maturation of prototypes to support EW, as well as other EMS activities, existing primarily in the application space consuming digitized data from multi-platform sensors and transmitting via programmable multi-function apertures. Hubs will facilitate lab-to-fab maturation of critical microelectronic technologies and applications for transmit, receive, digitization, transport, and processing of received EMS signals for EW missions.
Quantum Technology
The desired end-state is a commercial foundry-like access with fast turn-around times. Access to these fabrication facilities, which are amenable to developing process design kits (PDKs) for a variety of leading qubit types and support technologies, should be provided to DoD supported university/academic-based collaborators as well as support the U.S. commercial quantum technology industry needs. Subsequently, fast tape-out schedules for academics and industry will both enhance the feedback time for established researchers and open the possibility for new groups or companies to better explore the landscape of qubit chip designs which may be viable for transitions to large scale implementations. The goal is to assist in the development of quantum processor quality and capability as well as quantum sensor and quantum network support. To achieve this end-state, multiple needs must be addressed.
Secure Edge/IoT Computing
The desired end-state of secure edge computing is the prototyping of microelectronics technologies based on lab-to fab transition of novel materials, devices and architectures that enable future mission security and assurance. The rapid proliferation of autonomous systems requires more capable computing technologies to drive the performance, assurance, and resilience needed for the contested threat environments of the future. The integration of these elements into national information systems for edge computing will protect the integrity, confidentiality, and availability of our information systems by preventing the loss of control, exfiltration, or manipulation of our Critical Program Information (CPI), deterring adversaries, and providing a means to react in all circumstances.
