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Jet Propulsion Laboratory Awarded Contracts

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80NM0018D0004 - THIS CONTRACT IS THE SPONSORING AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION (NASA) AND THE CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY (CONTRACTOR), A PRIVATE NONPROFIT EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION, WHICH ESTABLISHES THE RELATIONSHIP FOR THE OPERATION OF THE FEDERALLY FUNDED RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CENTER (FFRDC) KNOWN AS THE JET PROPULSION LABORATORY (JPL). THIS CONTRACT IS THE ONLY DOCUMENT THAT CONSTITUTES THE SPONSORING AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE PARTIES.
IDC - Operation of the Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC) JPL - 541715 Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences
Contractor
California Institute of Technology (CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY)
Contracting Agency/Office
National Aeronautics and Space Administration»Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Effective date
06/29/2018
Obligated Amount
$17.2B
NNX17ED28P - CP3500 LASER MAINTENANCE SERVICE
Purchase Order - 333249 Other Industrial Machinery Manufacturing
Contractor
PRIMA NORTH AMERICA (PRIMA ELECTRO NORTH AMERICA, LLC)
Contracting Agency/Office
National Aeronautics and Space Administration»Mission Support Directorate»NASA Shared Services Center
Effective date
05/23/2017
Obligated Amount
$8.4k
SJA80014M0770 - - NASA - UC FOR INTERPRETER SERVICE
Purchase Order - 541930 Translation and Interpretation Services
Contractor
Miscellaneous Foreign Contractors (MISCELLANEOUS FOREIGN AWARDEES)
Contracting Agency/Office
State
Effective date
06/02/2014
Obligated Amount
$8k
NNN12AA01C - THIS CONTRACT IS THE SPONSORING AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION (NASA) AND THE CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY (CONTRACTOR), A PRIVATE NONPROFIT EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION, WHICH ESTABLISHES THE RELATIONSHIP FOR THE OPERATION OF THE FEDERALLY FUNDED RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CENTER (FFRDC) KNOWN AS THE JET PROPULSION LABORATORY (JPL).
IDC - JPL FFRDC - 541712 Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
Contractor
California Institute of Technology (CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY)
Contracting Agency/Office
National Aeronautics and Space Administration»Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Effective date
08/16/2012
Obligated Amount
$12.1B
NNX12CE61P - THIS PROJECT PROPOSES TO DEVELOP AN OCCULTER OPTICAL EDGE AND OPTICAL EDGE MEASUREMENT VERIFICATION SYSTEM SUITABLE FOR ASTROPHYSICS MISSIONS INCLUDING JWST AND THE OCCULTING OZONE OBSERVATORY (O3). THE OPTICAL EDGE HAS TIGHT CROSS-SECTION REQUIREMENTS IN ORDER TO PRODUCE THE CORRECT DIFFRACTION AS LIGHT PASSES OVER THE EDGE. IT IS ALSO OF IMPORTANCE IS THE OPTICAL EDGE PROFILE TOLERANCE. THIS REQUIRES PRECISION MACHINING AND THAT THE OPTICAL EDGE BE THERMALLY STABLE. KEY TECHNICAL CHALLENGES LIE IN MANUFACTURING AN OPTICAL EDGE WITH A CROSS-SECTION APPROPRIATE FOR AN OCCULTER AS WELL AS IN MEASURING THAT EDGE TO THE DEGREE OF PRECISION REQUIRED. DUE TO THE THERMAL STABILITY REQUIREMENTS, INNOVATIVE MATERIALS OR COMBINATIONS OF MATERIALS MUST BE USED. THE FOCUS OF THIS RESEARCH WILL BE TO PRODUCE AN OPTICAL EDGE WITH THE REQUIRED CROSS-SECTION AND TO MEASURE THAT EDGE ACCURATELY. ADVANCED MACHINING TECHNIQUES WILL BE INVESTIGATED WHICH MAY INCLUDE MILLING, ELECTRICAL DISCHARGE MACHINING, GRINDING, AND LASER MACHINING. MEASUREMENT TECHNIQUES WILL INCLUDE SCANNING LASER DISPLACEMENT TRANSDUCER AND COMPUTERIZED MEASUREMENT MACHINE. THIS TECHNOLOGY COULD BE EXTENDED TO A FULL SCALE OPTICAL EDGE WITH THE CORRECT PROFILE IN A PHASE II PROGRAM.
Purchase Order - 541712 Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
Contractor
VANGUARD SPACE TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
Contracting Agency/Office
National Aeronautics and Space Administration»Mission Support Directorate»NASA Shared Services Center
Effective date
02/23/2012
Obligated Amount
$125k
NNX12CE59P - NASA FACES DIFFICULTIES IN IMAGING AND CHARACTERIZING FAINT ASTROPHYSICAL OBJECTS WITHIN THE GLARE OF BRIGHTER STELLAR SOURCES. ACHIEVING A VERY LOW BACKGROUND REQUIRES CONTROL OF BOTH SCATTERED AND DIFFRACTED LIGHT. ALIGNED ARRAYS OF CARBON NANOTUBES HAVE RECENTLY BEEN RECOGNIZED AS HAVING WORLD-LEADING OPTICAL ABSORPTION, FAR ABOVE COMPETING STATE OF THE ART MATERIALS. THE GSFC TEAM NOTED THAT NANOTUBE ARRAYS HAVE THE "POTENTIAL TO PROVIDE ORDER-OF-MAGNITUDE IMPROVEMENT OVER CURRENT SURFACE TREATMENTS AND A RESULTING FACTOR OF 10,000 REDUCTION IN STRAY LIGHT WHEN APPLIED TO AN ENTIRE OPTICAL TRAIN." WHILE EXCELLENT PERFORMERS, NANOLAB RECOGNIZES THAT THE NUANCES OF THE ARRAY STRUCTURE, SUCH AS ANGULAR ALIGNMENT, DIAMETER, LENGTH, AND TOP-SURFACE ROUGHNESS OF THE ARRAY PLAY A MAJOR ROLE IN THEIR OPTICAL PROPERTIES, AND THESE NEED TO BE CHARACTERIZED IF WE WISH TO CONTROL AND TAILOR THESE MATERIALS FOR SPECIFIC APPLICATIONS. FURTHER, THE ARRAYS GROWN TO DATE ARE OFTEN POORLY ADHERED TO THEIR SUBSTRATES, WHICH ARE TYPICALLY SILICON. NANOLAB PLANS TO DEVELOP PROCESSES GROW ARRAYS ON FLEXIBLE, TOUGHER SUBSTRATES SUCH AS TI AND STAINLESS STEEL FOILS, SO THEY CAN BE FORMED AND INSERTED INTO OPTICAL SYSTEMS WITHOUT DAMAGE. WE WILL CORRELATE THE VIS-IR OPTICAL PROPERTIES TO THE ARRAY STRUCTURE AND TO THE PROCESS PARAMETERS THAT GENERATE THEM. BALL AEROSPACE WILL ASSIST NANOLAB IN THIS EFFORT WITH BRDF AND OTHER OPTICAL MEASUREMENTS.
Purchase Order - 541712 Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
Contractor
NANOLAB, INC
Contracting Agency/Office
National Aeronautics and Space Administration»Mission Support Directorate»NASA Shared Services Center
Effective date
02/23/2012
Obligated Amount
$124.6k
NNX11CB24C - THE ELECTROMAGNETIC PLASMOID THRUSTER (EMPT) IS A REVOLUTIONARY ELECTRIC PROPULSION THRUSTER AND POWER PROCESSING (PPU) SYSTEM THAT WILL ALLOW A DRAMATIC DECREASE IN SYSTEM MASS AND INCREASE IN THRUST EFFICIENCY OVER TRADITIONAL 500-3000 W PROPULSION SYSTEMS. THE HIGH SPECIFIC POWER (>700 W/KG) AND HIGH EFFICIENCY OF EMPT WILL ENABLE A WIDE RANGE OF DEEP SPACE MISSIONS SUCH AS NEPTUNE, PLUTO AND OORT CLOUD ORBITAL INSERTION. ADDITIONALLY, A SOLAR ELECTRIC EMPT SYSTEM WOULD DRAMATICALLY INCREASE THE CAPABILITY AND REDUCE THE TRAVEL TIME OF AN ASTEROID OR MARTIAN MOON SAMPLE AND RETURN MISSION DUE TO THE VARIABLE-POWER, LOW-MASS PROPULSION SYSTEM. THE EMPT EMPLOYS A ROTATING MAGNETIC FIELD (RMF) TO PRODUCE LARGE PLASMA CURRENTS INSIDE A CONICAL THRUSTER CREATING A PLASMOID THAT IS MAGNETICALLY ISOLATED FROM THE THRUSTER WALLS. THE INTENSIFIED GRADIENT MAGNETIC FIELD FROM THE PLASMOID TOGETHER WITH THE LARGE PLASMA CURRENTS RESULT IN AN ENORMOUS BODY FORCE THAT EXPELS THE PLASMOID AT HIGH VELOCITY. THE EMPT IS A PULSED DEVICE, NOMINALLY OPERATING AT 1 KWE WITH 0.5-1 JOULE DISCHARGES AT 1-2 KHZ. PRESENTED IS A FULL DESCRIPTION OF THE RELEVANT PLASMA PHYSICS AS WELL AS THE THRUSTER AND PPU DESIGN. THE PHASE I EMPT DEMONSTRATED THE MULTI-PULSE FORMATION AND EJECTION OF PLASMOIDS AT 0.1-3 JOULES AND 500-6,000 S ISP ON BOTH XENON AND ARGON. ADDITIONALLY, IT DEMONSTRATED ZERO EROSION OR LIFE LIMITING PHENOMENA. THE FOCUS OF THE PROPOSAL IS THE EXPERIMENTAL VALIDATION OF AN INTEGRATED THRUSTER AND PPU OPERATING IN A STEADY-STATE MODE. THE EMPT WILL BE CHARACTERIZED OVER A RANGE OF PARAMETERS: INPUT POWER FROM 200-3000 WATTS, AND 1,500-4,000 SECONDS SPECIFIC IMPULSE. THE INTEGRATED THRUSTER AND PPU TO BE BUILT AND TESTED WILL HAVE A TOTAL SYSTEM MASS OF LESS THAN 1.5 KG. SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION OF PHASE II WILL BE A FULLY INTEGRATED, STEADY-STATE DEMONSTRATION OF THRUSTER AND INTEGRATED POWER PROCESSING. PHASE II WILL MATURE THE TECHNOLOGY FROM A TRL LEVEL 4 TO 6.
Definitive Contract - 541712 Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
Contractor
M S N W LLC
Contracting Agency/Office
National Aeronautics and Space Administration»Mission Support Directorate»NASA Shared Services Center
Effective date
06/01/2011
Obligated Amount
$600k
NNX11CB10C - FOR THIS PROGRAM, WE PROPOSE TO DEVELOP LARGE PIXEL-COUNT SINGLE PHOTON COUNTING DETECTOR ARRAYS SUITABLE FOR DEPLOYMENT IN SPACECRAFT TERMINAL RECEIVERS SUPPORTING LONG-RANGE LASER COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS AT 1.5 UM. TO SURMOUNT THE PRESENT OBSTACLES TO HIGHER PHOTON COUNTING RATE -- AS WELL AS THE COMPLEXITY OF BACK-END CIRCUITRY REQUIRED -- IN USING CONVENTIONAL SINGLE PHOTON AVALANCHE DIODES (SPADS), WE WILL LEVERAGE INITIAL SUCCESS IN MONOLITHICALLY INTEGRATING "NEGATIVE FEEDBACK" ELEMENTS WITH STATE-OF-THE-ART SPADS TO BENEFICIALLY MODIFY THE DEVICE AVALANCHE DYNAMICS. THIS APPROACH CAN ACHIEVE EXTREMELY CONSISTENT PASSIVE QUENCHING, AND APPROPRIATE IMPLEMENTATIONS CAN LEAD TO RATHER SMALL AVALANCHES (E.G., ~10^4 10^5 CARRIERS), FOR WHICH REDUCED CARRIER TRAPPING PROVIDES LOWER AFTERPULSING THAT WILL NO LONGER LIMIT THE PHOTON COUNTING RATE. WHEN CORRECTLY IMPLEMENTED, THIS "NEGATIVE FEEDBACK" AVALANCHE DIODE (NFAD) DESIGN IS ALSO EXTREMELY SIMPLE TO OPERATE: WITH JUST A FIXED DC BIAS VOLTAGE, THE NFAD WILL AUTONOMOUSLY EXECUTE THE ENTIRE ARM, AVALANCHE, QUENCH, AND RE-ARM CYCLE AND GENERATE AN OUTPUT PULSE EVERY TIME AN AVALANCHE EVENT IS INDUCED. DURING PHASE 1 OF THIS PROGRAM, WE CHARACTERIZED 5 DIFFERENT DISCRETE NFAD DESIGNS TO IDENTIFY SPECIFIC PIXEL-LEVEL DESIGN OPPORTUNITIES FOR REDUCING AFTERPULSING AND TIMING JITTER. WE ALSO FABRICATED AND CHARACTERIZED WAFER-LEVEL TEST STRUCTURES THAT SHOW EXCELLENT FEEDBACK ELEMENT YIELD AND UNIFORMITY SUFFICIENT FOR LARGE-FORMAT NFAD ARRAYS. THESE PROOFS-OF-FEASIBILITY FROM PHASE 1 POSITION US TO DEMONSTRATE SPACE-QUALIFIABLE LARGE PIXEL-COUNT 128 X 128 NFAD ARRAYS DURING A PHASE 2 EFFORT. THIS EFFORT WILL ALSO INCLUDE THE DEVELOPMENT OF APPROPRIATE TEST PLATFORMS FOR NFAD ARRAY PACKAGING AND CHARACTERIZATION.
Definitive Contract - 541712 Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
Contractor
PRINCETON LIGHTWAVE INC.
Contracting Agency/Office
National Aeronautics and Space Administration»Mission Support Directorate»NASA Shared Services Center
Effective date
06/01/2011
Obligated Amount
$524.8k
NNX11CB16C - THE MOTIVATION OF THE PROPOSED SBIR IS TO DEVELOP, DEMONSTRATE AND COMMERCIALIZE A COMPACT, LOW-MASS, HIGH OUTPUT POWER (1-10 MILLIWATT), TUNABLE SOURCE OF CW THZ RADIATION OPERATING AT ROOM TEMPERATURE. THE SOURCE WILL BE USEFUL BOTH AS A NARROW BAND FREQUENCY STABLE SOURCES FOR DRIVING HETERODYNE RECEIVERS AT KEY FREQUENCIES BETWEEN 1 AND 5 THZ (1.4, 1.9, 2.7, 4.7 ETC..) OR FOR LABORATORY SOURCES TO CHARACTERIZE THZ COMPONENTS, INCLUDING MMIC'S, OR POSSIBLY FOR ACTIVE SPECTROMETERS IN AN IN-SITU ENVIRONMENT THE PROPOSED SOURCE WOULD ENABLE THE DEVELOPMENT OF THZ ARRAY RECEIVERS FOR USE IN SPACE AND SUBORBITAL MISSIONS, OR FOR ATMOSPHERIC SOUNDERS AND PLANETARY LANDERS. IN PHASE 1 OUR VECSEL THZ SOURCE, BASED ON INTRA-CAVITY DIFFERENCE FREQUENCY GENERATION, DEMONSTRATED 2MW AT 1.9THZ RUNNING ON A FINITE NUMBER OF CAVITY MODES WITH A LINEWIDTH PER MODE OF AROUND 1MHZ. DESERT BEAM TECHNOLOGIES WILL TEAM UP TERAVISION (TUCSON) AND WITH RESEARCHERS AT THE STEWARD OBSERVATORY RADIO ASTRONOMY LABORATORY (SORAL), UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA IN PHASE 2 TO FURTHER CHARACTERIZE A BREADBOARD VECSEL 1.9THZ SYSTEM, MEASURE Y-FACTOR AND I-V CURVES, REDESIGN THE VECSEL CAVITY TO REDUCE IT TO SINGLE MODE OPERATION AND TEST IT AS A LOCAL OSCILLATOR FOR SORAL'S 1.9THZ RECEIVER.
Definitive Contract - 541712 Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
Contractor
DESERT BEAM TECHNOLOGIES, L.L.C.
Contracting Agency/Office
National Aeronautics and Space Administration»Mission Support Directorate»NASA Shared Services Center
Effective date
06/01/2011
Obligated Amount
$600k
NNX11CB22C - THIS PROPOSAL DESCRIBES A NEW CONCEPT TO DRIVE MEMS DMS USING LOW-POWER, HIGH-VOLTAGE MULTIPLEXING. COMPARED TO OTHER REPORTED APPROACHES, THE PROPOSED ARCHITECTURE WILL REDUCE POWER CONSUMPTION BY A FACTOR OF ONE HUNDRED, TO A LEVEL OF A FEW HUNDRED MILLIWATTS. THIS ESTIMATE IS SUPPORTED BY DIRECT MEASUREMENTS OBTAINED FROM PROTOTYPE MODULES THAT WERE DEMONSTRATED IN PHASE I RESEARCH. IN THE PHASE II PROJECT WE WILL SCALE UP THIS INNOVATIVE CIRCUIT DMS THAT BOSTON MICROMACHINES CORPORATION (BMC) DEVELOPED FOR NASA IN SUPPORT OF THE TERRESTRIAL PLANET FINDING PROGRAM. AT THE SAME TIME, WE WILL REDUCE THE DRIVER'S SIZE IN TWO SUCCESSIVE STAGES OF INTEGRATION. IN THE FIRST STAGE, WE WILL IMPLEMENT A HYBRID PACKAGING APPROACH IN WHICH A 993-ACTUATOR DM, HV AMPLIFIER, MULTIPLEXER COMPONENTS, AND POWER SUPPLIES WILL ALL BE CO-LOCATED ON A COMMON MULTI-LAYERED CIRCUIT BOARD. WITH THIS DRIVER WE WILL DEMONSTRATE BOTH LOW POWER CONSUMPTION (~300MW) AND HIGH PRECISION (~10PM). IN THE SECOND STAGE OF INTEGRATION, WE WILL DESIGN, FABRICATE, AND TEST A HIGH VOLTAGE APPLICATION-SPECIFIC INTEGRATED CIRCUIT (HV-ASIC) VERSION OF THE MULTIPLEXING ARCHITECTURE USING A COMMERCIAL FOUNDRY. WE WILL COMBINE A NUMBER OF THESE 256 CHANNEL HV-ASIC MODULES INTO A DRIVER FOR A 3063 ACTUATOR DM THAT IS CURRENTLY BEING DEVELOPED BY BMC TO SUPPORT NASA'S CORONOGRAPHY GOALS.
Definitive Contract - 541712 Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
Contractor
BOSTON MICROMACHINES CORPORATION
Contracting Agency/Office
National Aeronautics and Space Administration»Mission Support Directorate»NASA Shared Services Center
Effective date
06/01/2011
Obligated Amount
$599.8k
NNX11CB20C - THE NASA JUPITER EUROPA ORBITER (JEO) CONCEPTUAL PAYLOAD CONTAINS A THERMAL INSTRUMENT WITH SIX DIFFERENT SPECTRAL BANDS RANGING FROM 8 M TO 100 M. THE THERMAL INSTRUMENT IS BASED ON MULTIPLE LINEAR ARRAYS OF THERMOPILE DETECTORS THAT ARE INTRINSICALLY RADIATION HARD; HOWEVER, THE THERMOPILE CMOS READOUT NEEDS TO BE HARDENED TO TOLERATE THE RADIATION SOURCES OF THE JEO MISSION. BLACK FOREST ENGINEERING (BFE) IS DEVELOPING A THERMOPILE READOUT TO TOLERATE THE JEO MISSION RADIATION SOURCES. ON PHASE II, BFE WILL TEST NEW CIRCUITRY FOR RADIATION HARDNESS, COMPLETE THE DESIGN OF A 1X128 THERMOPILE READOUT INTEGRATED CIRCUIT (ROIC) AND FABRICATE THE ROIC USING 180 NM CMOS TECHNOLOGY. THE PHASE II ROIC ALSO INCLUDES ON-CHIP 16-BIT ANALOG-TO-DIGITAL CONVERSION AND SERIAL DIGITAL OUTPUT FOR SYSTEM NOISE IMMUNITY. THE PHASE II ROIC WILL BE CHARACTERIZED TO MEET THE JEO THERMAL INSTRUMENT REQUIREMENT.
Definitive Contract - 541712 Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
Contractor
BLACK FOREST ENGINEERING LLC
Contracting Agency/Office
National Aeronautics and Space Administration»Mission Support Directorate»NASA Shared Services Center
Effective date
06/01/2011
Obligated Amount
$599.9k
NNX11CB09C - AMPLIFICATION TECHNOLOGIES INC ("ATI") PROPOSES TO DEVELOP THE ENABLING MATERIAL AND DEVICE TECHNOLOGY FOR THE DESIGN OF ULTRA LOW NOISE, HIGH GAIN AND HIGH SPEED NEAR-INFRARED SINGLE PHOTON COUNTING PHOTODETECTORS AND ARRAYS SENSITIVE IN THE 1000 NM TO 1600 NM SPECTRAL REGION FOR LONG RANGE SPACE COMMUNICATION APPLICATIONS, BASED ON THE ALREADY PROVEN MECHANISM OF INTERNAL DISCRETE AMPLIFICATION TECHNOLOGY IN INGAAS/INP MATERIAL SYSTEM. WE PLAN TO ACHIEVE THIS BY USING THE CONCEPT OF INTERNAL DISCRETE AMPLIFICATION MECHANISM IN THE INP MATERIAL SYSTEM THAT GAVE STATE OF THE ART PERFORMANCE PARAMETERS IN THE 1000 TO 1600NM WAVELENGTH RANGE AND THE DEVELOPED DEVICE DESIGN AS PART OF THE PHASE I PROGRAM THAT SHOWS HIGHER DETECTION EFFICIENCY AND LOWER JITTER PERFORMANCE. THE PRIMARY ACCOMPLISHMENTS FROM THE PHASE II EFFORT WOULD BE THE DEVELOPMENT OF ULTRA LOW NOISE (LOW JITTER), HIGH DETECTION EFFICIENCY, VERY HIGH GAIN AND HIGH SPEED NEAR-INFRARED PHOTODETECTORS AND ARRAYS SENSITIVE IN THE 1000 NM TO1600 NM SPECTRAL REGION. THE TECHNOLOGY OF INTERNAL DISCRETE AMPLIFICATION ENABLES THE COMBINATION OF HIGH SPEED, VERY HIGH GAIN AND ULTRA LOW NOISE BECAUSE THE INTERNAL DISCRETE AMPLIFICATION NULLIFIES THE EFFECT OF IMPACT IONIZATION COEFFICIENTS AND PREVENTS THE EDGE BREAK DOWN, WITH HIGH DETECTION EFFICIENCY AND HIGH SPEED OF OPERATION. THESE PHOTODETECTORS MIGHT ALSO BE USED IN MISSILE SEEKERS, BATTLEFIELD TARGET IDENTIFICATION AND RECOGNITION SYSTEMS, AND EYE-SAFE LADAR. POTENTIAL CIVILIAN APPLICATIONS INCLUDE FIBER-OPTIC TELECOMMUNICATIONS, REMOTE SENSING AND LASER SPECTROSCOPY.
Definitive Contract - 541712 Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
Contractor
AMPLIFICATION TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
Contracting Agency/Office
National Aeronautics and Space Administration»Mission Support Directorate»NASA Shared Services Center
Effective date
06/01/2011
Obligated Amount
$599.9k
NNX11CB07C - THE DEVELOPMENT OF MULTI-METER DIAMETER RADIOFREQUENCY (RF) ANTENNAS FOR NASA AND DOD WILL HAVE A SIGNIFICANT IMPACT OF FUTURE SPACE PROGRAMS. POLYMER MEMBRANE TECHNOLOGIES ARE WELL SUITED FOR LARGE AREA DEPLOYABLE SPACE ANTENNAS BY SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCING THE MASS AND VOLUME OF THE LAUNCH VEHICLE. LOW CTE POLYMER PIEZOELECTRIC MEMBRANE TECHNOLOGY IS NOW AT A MATURITY LEVEL TO ENABLE THE DEVELOPMENT OF HIGH PERFORMANCE LARGE AREA ELECTRICALLY FORMAL MEMBRANE REFLECTORS. ADVANCED COATING TECHNOLOGY IS CRUCIAL TO ENABLING TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTAL OF HIGH PERFORMANCE RF ANTENNAS. THE PRODUCTION OF A CONDUCTIVE AND HIGHLY REFLECTIVE THERMAL CONTROL COATING THAT MATCHES THE CTE OF THE POLYMER MEMBRANE IS AT THE CENTER OF THIS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM. IN ADDITION, IN PHASE I, THE PIEZOELECTRIC POLYMERIC MEMBRANE HAD A SIGNIFICANT DEFORMATION AT THE APPLICATION OF THE ELECTRICAL POTENTIAL - THIS MANIFESTED THE NEED FOR STRESS BALANCING THE COATING. SPECIFICALLY, THE OBJECTIVE IS TO DEVELOP THE THIN-FILM STRESS-BALANCED COATING THAT WILL PRECISELY MATCH THE CTE OF THE POLYMER TO THE COATING MATERIAL ITSELF, RESULTING IN A ZERO CTE MEMBRANE/COATING COMPOSITE STRUCTURE. IN ADDITION, THE COATED MEMBRANE WILL EXHIBIT THE REQUIRED RF PERFORMANCE, THERMAL CHARACTERISTICS, AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENDURANCE, SUCH AS: ATOMIC OXYGEN (AO) RESISTANCE; VISIBLE AND ULTRA-VIOLET (VUV) RADIATION REJECTION; AND SPACE TEMPERATURE EXTREMES. SURFACE OPTICS CORPORATION (SOC) HAS CONSIDERABLE EXPERIENCE IN PRODUCING RF/THERMAL COATINGS AND PRECISELY CONTROLLED INTRINSIC STRESS THIN-FILMS; BOTH ARE NECESSARY TO THE SUCCESS OF THIS PROGRAM. NEXOLVE IS THE PARTNERING ORGANIZATION WITH SOC, PROVIDING THE POLYMER MEMBRANES THAT HAVE THE APPROPRIATE PIEZOELECTRIC FORMULATION, SURFACE PROPERTIES, AND ZERO CTE.
Definitive Contract - 541712 Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
Contractor
SURFACE OPTICS CORP.
Contracting Agency/Office
National Aeronautics and Space Administration»Mission Support Directorate»NASA Shared Services Center
Effective date
06/01/2011
Obligated Amount
$579.8k
NNX11CB06C - WITH MORE MISSIONS AT HIGH DATA RATES DEMANDING USE OF LIMITED SPECTRAL RESOURCES, NASA'S SCAN OFFICE RECENTLY COORDINATED A STUDY TO IDENTIFY A SPACE COMMUNICATIONS ARCHITECTURE TO SUPPORT FUTURE MISSIONS. THE STUDY RECOMMENDS PRECODED GMSK AND AR4JA LDPC CODES AS PREFERRED OPTIONS IN MOST SPACE NETWORK AND GROUND NETWORK FORWARD AND RETURN LINKS AND DEEP SPACE NETWORK RETURN LINKS. THIS MODULATION AND CODING PAIR PROVIDES EXCELLENT BANDWIDTH-EFFICIENCY AND GREATLY REDUCED TRANSMITTER SWAP. UNFORTUNATELY, THERE ARE NO HIGH-DATA-RATE AR4JA LDPC DEVICES CURRENTLY AVAILABLE AND EXISTING GMSK RECEIVERS OPERATE FAR FROM THE PERFORMANCE PREDICTED BY THEORY, ESPECIALLY IN THE PRESENCE OF SEVERE CHANNEL AND EQUIPMENT IMPAIRMENTS. PHASE I PROVIDED A DESIGN OF A SOFT-DECISION GENERATING GMSK DEMODULATOR INTEGRATED WITH AN AR4JA LDPC DECODER AND WITH ESTIMATION AND COMPENSATION OF A COMPREHENSIVE SET OF SEVERE IMPAIRMENTS. FIXED-POINT SIMULATIONS SHOW PERFORMANCE WITHIN A SMALL FRACTION OF A DB OF THE PERFORMANCE WITH FAR LESS BANDWIDTH-EFFICIENT MODULATIONS SUCH AS BPSK. THE RESULTS OF THIS EFFORT SHOW THE TECHNICAL AND COMMERCIAL VIABILITY OF AN INTEGRATED GMSK/AR4JA LDPC DESIGN. THE PROPOSED PHASE 2 EFFORT INVOLVES THE DEVELOPMENT AND DELIVERY OF A PROTOTYPE TRANSMITTER AND RECEIVER TO DEMONSTRATE THE SUPERIOR CAPABILITIES OFFERED BY THIS INNOVATION AND ENABLE SUBSEQUENT COMMERCIALIZATION. A SIMPLE AND HIGHLY FLEXIBLE GUI SYSTEM FOR PROTOTYPE CONFIGURATION AND CONTROL AND MODULAR API DESIGN WILL ALLOW PHASE II REFINEMENT OF THE DESIGN AND FACILITATE INTEGRATION IN FUTURE COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS.
Definitive Contract - 541712 Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
Contractor
ORB ANALYTICS
Contracting Agency/Office
National Aeronautics and Space Administration»Mission Support Directorate»NASA Shared Services Center
Effective date
06/01/2011
Obligated Amount
$600k
NNX11CB13C - NUVOTRONICS HAS DEVELOPED AND OPTIMIZED THE POLYSTRATATM PROCESS FOR THE FABRICATION OF INTRICATE MICROWAVE AND MILLIMETER-WAVE DEVICES. THESE DEVICES HAVE PRIMARILY BEEN RECTANGULAR COAXIAL TRANSMISSION LINES, ALTHOUGH RECTANGULAR WAVEGUIDE AND OTHER STRUCTURES HAVE ALSO BEEN DEMONSTRATED. INTRICATE DEVICES HAVE BEEN DEMONSTRATED WITH INSERTION LOSS 5 TO 10 TIMES LOWER THAN TRADITIONAL PLANAR CIRCUITS; ISOLATION BETTER THAN 60DB FOR LINES THAT SHARE SEPARATING WALLS; MULTIPLE LEVELS OF DENSELY-PACKED COAXIAL CIRCUITS; AND LOW-PARASITIC ATTACHMENT TO ACTIVE DEVICES AND TRADITIONAL CIRCUIT BOARDS. IN THIS PHASE II PROJECT, NUVOTRONICS WILL OPTIMIZE AND FABRICATE HIGH DENSITY LOW-LOSS MILLIMETER BACKPLANE CIRCUITS TO PACKAGE AND INTERCONNECT COMPONENTS OF FUTURE NASA MILLIMETER WAVE (MMW) RADARS. THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE INNOVATION PRIMARILY LIES IN THREE AREAS: REDUCTION OF SYSTEM SIZE, WEIGHT AND LOSS IN MMW RADARS. THE POLYSTRATA TECHNOLOGY IS A BATCH MANUFACTURING PROCESS, PROVIDING ECONOMIES OF SCALE AND COST REDUCTION FOR HIGHER VOLUMES, IN ADDITION TO FLEXIBILITY IN DESIGN FOR VARIOUS FREQUENCIES OF INTEREST.
Definitive Contract - 541712 Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
Contractor
Cubic Corporation (NUVOTRONICS, LLC)
Contracting Agency/Office
National Aeronautics and Space Administration»Mission Support Directorate»NASA Shared Services Center
Effective date
06/01/2011
Obligated Amount
$685.5k
NNX11CB23C - WE PROPOSE TO DESIGN AND FABRICATE A MEMS MICROMIRROR ARRAY CONSISTING OF 1021 ULTRA-FLAT, CLOSE-PACKED HEXAGONAL MIRROR ELEMENTS, EACH CAPABLE OF 6MRAD OF TIP AND TILT, AND 1.7UM OF PISTON (TTP) MOTION WITH SUB-NANOMETER PRECISION AS REQUIRED FOR A SPACE-BASED TELESCOPE USING A HYPER-CONTRAST CORONAGRAPH FOR TERRESTRIAL PLANET FINDING. FABRICATION PROCESS ENHANCEMENTS DEVELOPED IN THE PHASE I EFFORT TO INCREASE DEVICE YIELD BY SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCING THE DEFECT DENSITY IN POLYSILICON FILMS AND REDUCE WAFER BOW BY MODIFYING THIN FILM DEPOSITION PROCESSES, WILL BE INTEGRATED IN TO THE DM FABRICATION PROCESS TO PRODUCE A DEVICE WITH 100% ACTUATOR YIELD AND AN UNPOWERED PEAK-TO-VALLEY SURFACE FIGURE ERROR OF<500NM - WELL WITHIN THE DYNAMIC RANGE OF THE DM ACTUATORS. THIS LARGE ARRAY OF MIRROR SEGMENTS WITH TIP-TILT-PISTON DEGREES OF FREEDOM AND /100 OPTICAL QUALITY WOULD CONSTITUTE A SIGNIFICANT TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCE AND WOULD BECOME AN ENABLING COMPONENT FOR THE HIGH CONTRAST VISIBLE NULLING CORONAGRAPH INSTRUMENTS PLANNED FOR EXOPLANET IMAGING MISSIONS.
Definitive Contract - 541712 Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
Contractor
BOSTON MICROMACHINES CORPORATION
Contracting Agency/Office
National Aeronautics and Space Administration»Mission Support Directorate»NASA Shared Services Center
Effective date
06/01/2011
Obligated Amount
$599.6k
NNX11CB28C - BEAR ENGINEERING PROPOSES TO ADVANCE THE DEVELOPMENT OF AN INNOVATIVE HIGH TORQUE, LOW SPEED, DIRECT DRIVE MOTOR IN ORDER TO MEET NASA'S REQUIREMENTS FOR SUCH DEVICES. FUNDAMENTALLY, ALL ELECTRIC MOTORS BASICALLY WORK ON THE SAME ELECTROMAGNETIC PRINCIPLE: A TANGENTIAL ELECTROMAGNETIC FORCE ATTRACTS THE ROTOR TO THE STATOR. JUST WHEN THE ROTOR FIELD IS CLOSEST TO THE STATOR FIELD AND THE ELECTROMAGNETIC ATTRACTION IS GREATEST, THE POWER IS INTERRUPTED AND ANOTHER SET OF MAGNETIC POLES REPEATS THE CYCLE. FURTHERMORE, THE TWO MAGNETICALLY ATTRACTED ELEMENTS NEVER MAKE CONTACT, WHICH WOULD OTHERWISE OFFER THE HIGHEST FORCE OF ATTRACTION. THE PROPOSED NOVEL MOTOR DESIGN, SUCCESSFULLY DEMONSTRATED AT TRL 4 IN PHASE 1, OPERATES AND BEHAVES ENTIRELY DIFFERENTLY FROM ALL OTHER KNOWN ELECTRIC MOTOR DESIGNS AND IS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING INCREDIBLY HIGH, DIRECT DRIVE TORQUES AT LOW ROTATIONAL SPEEDS. ITS OPERATIONAL PERFORMANCE IS SIMILAR TO THAT OF A STEPPER MOTOR WITH A 1000:1 GEARHEAD ATTACHED, BUT THE SIMILARITY ENDS THERE. THE MOTOR IS CONFIGURED SUCH THAT ITS LENGTH TO DIAMETER ASPECT RATIO IS OPPOSITE THAT OF TRADITIONAL MOTORS AS IT HAS A RELATIVELY LARGE DIAMETER AND SHORT AXIAL LENGTH; THIS OFFERS ALL NEW PACKAGING OPPORTUNITIES. THE DESIGN ALSO ALLOWS FOR A SINGLE, LARGE DIAMETER BEARING PAIR TO BE USED FOR THE MOTOR'S OUTPUT SHAFT WHICH RENDERS IT STIFF ENOUGH TO DIRECTLY MOUNT THE DRIVEN ELEMENTS. THE NEED FOR ADDITIONAL BEARING SUPPORTS AND BEARING MOUNTING STRUCTURE IS THUS ELIMINATED. BY THE END OF PHASE 2, THE SYSTEM WILL BE DESIGNED, DEVELOPED AND TESTED AT TRL 6 WITH MARS ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS.
Definitive Contract - 541712 Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
Contractor
BEAR TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
Contracting Agency/Office
National Aeronautics and Space Administration»Mission Support Directorate»NASA Shared Services Center
Effective date
06/01/2011
Obligated Amount
$597.4k
NNX11CB26C - IN RESPONSE TO THE NEED FOR ACTUATORS THAT CAN OPERATE IN THE HARSH VENUSIAN ENVIRONMENT FOR EXTENDED PERIODS OF TIME, WE CONDUCTED EXTENSIVE RESEARCH AND TESTING TO RESOLVE THE TALL POLES IN DEVELOPING AN EXTREME TEMPERATURE GEAR. DURING THE PHASE I EFFORT, MULTIPLE GEAR MATERIAL AND LUBRICATION CANDIDATES WERE TESTED UNDER LOAD IN VENUS-LIKE CONDITIONS (486OC TEMPERATURE AND MOSTLY CO2 GAS ENVIRONMENT). TEST RESULTS VERIFIED THE FEASIBILITY OF A DESIGN AND CONFIRMED THAT, WITH PROPER MATERIAL AND LUBRICATION SELECTION, THE GEAR HEAD COULD OPERATE AT 486OC FOR AN EXTENDED PERIOD OF TIME. IN A POTENTIAL PHASE II EFFORT, MATERIAL AND LUBRICATION STUDY WILL CONTINUE AS WELL AS A HIGH TEMPERATURE BEARING STUDY. AT THE END OF THE PHASE II, AN EXTREME ENVIRONMENT ACTUATOR, INCLUDING A HT MOTOR, HT SENSOR FOR COMMUTATION AND MULTI-STAGE HT GEAR HEAD, WILL BE DEVELOPED AND TESTED TO TRL 6.
Definitive Contract - 541712 Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
Contractor
HONEYBEE ROBOTICS, LTD. (HONEYBEE ROBOTICS LTD)
Contracting Agency/Office
National Aeronautics and Space Administration»Mission Support Directorate»NASA Shared Services Center
Effective date
06/01/2011
Obligated Amount
$749.2k
NNX11CB08C - CRITICAL TO THE SUCCESS OF DELIVERING ON THE PROMISE OF DEEP SPACE OPTICAL COMMUNICATIONS IS THE CREATION OF A STABLE AND RELIABLE HIGH POWER MULTICHANNEL OPTICAL UPLINK/BEACON. OPTICAL ENGINES PROPOSES TO DELIVER IN PHASE 2 2 COMPACT AND LOW COST FIBER AMPLIFIERS SUITED TO THE UPLINK APPLICATION. THIS WILL BE ACCOMPLISHED THROUGH THE USE OF OPTICAL ENGINES PROPRIETARY MULTI-FIBER COUPLED 2.5KW LASER DIODE STACKS, ITS ETCHED TAPER ALL FIBER COMBINER TECHNOLOGY AND A CUSTOM DESIGNED PHOTONIC CRYSTAL FIBER. ONE OF THESE AMPLIFIERS WILL BE OF THE COILED PCF TYPE AND ONE OF THE ROD TYPE AND WILL BE INTEGRATED INTO EXISTING NASA DEEP SPACE COMMUNICATIONS UP LINK INFRASTRUCTURE.
Definitive Contract - 541712 Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
Contractor
OPTICAL ENGINES, INC
Contracting Agency/Office
National Aeronautics and Space Administration»Mission Support Directorate»NASA Shared Services Center
Effective date
06/01/2011
Obligated Amount
$600k
NNX11CB14C - IN PHASE 1, RIDGETOP GROUP DESIGNED A HIGH-SPEED, YET LOW-POWER SILICON GERMANIUM (SIGE)-BASED, ANALOG-TO-DIGITAL CONVERTER (ADC) TO BE A KEY ELEMENT FOR DIGITAL BEAM FORMING (DBF) SYSTEMS THAT WILL BE USED IN NASA'S FUTURE RADAR APPLICATIONS. THE ADC WILL EMPLOY A NOVEL COMBINATION OF TIME INTERLEAVING, HIGH-SPEED SILICON-GERMANIUM BICMOS TECHNOLOGY AND LOW-POWER TECHNIQUES, SUCH AS THE DOUBLE-SAMPLING TECHNIQUE, PROVIDING EXCEPTIONAL SAMPLING SPEED OF 500 MSPS, 1.5 GHZ ANALOG BANDWIDTH,12 BITS OF RESOLUTION, AND BELOW 500 MW POWER DISSIPATION, EXCEEDING NASA'S REQUIREMENTS. ORDINARILY, ADC DESIGN REQUIRES LARGE TRADE-OFFS IN SPEED, RESOLUTION, AND POWER CONSUMPTION. THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THIS INNOVATION IS THAT IT SIMULTANEOUSLY PROVIDES A HIGH-SPEED, HIGH-RESOLUTION, AND LOW-POWER ADC THAT IS WELL AHEAD OF THE STATE OF THE ART. THESE THREE CHARACTERISTICS ARE NEEDED FOR DBF SYSTEMS THAT CONTAIN LARGE ADC ARRAYS. THE POWER CONSUMPTION OF EXISTING ADC CHIPS PROHIBITS IMPLEMENTATION OF LARGE DBF ARRAYS IN SPACE. RIDGETOP'S INNOVATIVE DESIGN LEVERAGES NEWER SEMICONDUCTOR PROCESS TECHNOLOGIES THAT COMBINE SILICON AND GERMANIUM INTO A COMPOUND SEMICONDUCTOR. RIDGETOP HAS IDENTIFIED TWO PHASE 2 OBJECTIVES, WHICH ARE: 1. DESIGN, FABRICATE AND CHARACTERIZE TEST CHIP 1 THAT CONTAINS CRITICAL ADC SUBCIRCUITS. 2. DESIGN, FABRICATE AND CHARACTERIZE TEST CHIP 2 THAT CONTAINS THE COMPLETE RADIATION TOLERANT, DIGITALLY CALIBRATED, TIME-INTERLEAVED ADC DESIGN. DURING PHASE 1 RIDGETOP IDENTIFIED THE TOPOLOGIES FOR ALL OF THE CIRCUIT BLOCKS THAT WILL BE INCLUDED ON TEST CHIP 1 AND TEST CHIP 2. RIDGETOP HAS ALSO COMPLETED TRANSISTOR-LEVEL DESIGNS FOR THE KEY COMPONENTS ON THESE CHIPS. ESTIMATED TRL AT BEGINNING AND END OF PHASE 2 CONTRACT: BEGIN 4; END 8.
Definitive Contract - 541712 Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
Contractor
RIDGETOP GROUP, INC.
Contracting Agency/Office
National Aeronautics and Space Administration»Mission Support Directorate»NASA Shared Services Center
Effective date
06/01/2011
Obligated Amount
$599.9k

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