Award Data

Advancements in optical transport and signal processing for digital and Microwave Photonics (MWP) technology have enabled higher bandwidth, throughput, Dynamic Range (DR), and communication link budgets. Optical transport eliminates heavy shielded twisted pair or coaxial cables, reducing Size, Weight, and Power (SWaP) and provides Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) immunity compared to traditional ...

Mainstream Engineering, in cooperation with the University of Massachusetts Lowell (UML), will develop and demonstrate a process to produce renewable JP-10. The process includes several reaction steps that begin with biomass-derived xylose. Our JP-10 process minimizes the number of reactors and will be continuous by integrating all the steps. To date, only one renewable route to JP-10 has been pro ...

This Phase I proposal will utilize multivariate regression, including cluster and principal component analysis to categorize lots of HTPB R-45M based on their physicochemical properties. Artificial intelligence-driven pattern recognition analysis will be performed on a variety of HTPB characterization data and spectra. Categorized data will be assessed against measured outcomes (pot life, mechanic ...

Lorad Chemical Corporation (“Lorad”) has developed nano-scale high-purity Calcium Lanthanum Sulfide ("CLS") powders suitable for fabrication of near theoretical density infrared ("IR") transparent domes, windows, lenses, and other parts. CLS incorporated into optical components and domes / windows has several applications in IR optical sensing systems and IR lenses for laser applications. ...

Mainstream Engineering will demonstrate continuous, reliable long-term active removal of CO2 without any appreciable heat generation, addressing issues of limited-capacity adsorbent scrubber materials. Breath monitoring micro-sensors incorporated into the rebreather will feedback information to a microcontroller that regulates and balances closed circuit rebreather (CCR) components, providing a sy ...

Current solid rocket motor propellant chemically degrades over time, and the only available in-place testing requires manual placement, excessive labor, and disassembly and reassembly of the solid rocket motor. Mainstream proposes to develop a non-destructive spectroscopic based propellant analyzer that can determine chemical species, including binder, stabilizers, plasticizers, oxidizers, and oth ...

QuNav proposes the development of a prototype of GPS interference direction finding sensor for surface and subsurface vessels to provide situational awareness of jamming and/or spoofing attacks in GPS Interference Direction of Arrival (DOA) Initiative for User Purposes (GIDI-UP). The hardware prototype will consist of five subsystems, namely, (i) an array configuration, (ii) a multi-channel SDR re ...

Microwave photonics (MWP) offers many advantages for analog signal processing: operation across large frequency ranges with wide bandwidths, low-loss signal transport via optical fiber with excellent immunity to electromagnetic interference, low return loss and high isolation with switches and circulators, among many others. But the conversion of an electrical signal to an optical signal has histo ...

Our team proposes the development of a very high-average-brightness quantum cascade laser system emitting at ~4.6µm to be employed in the next generation DIRCM systems and other critical infrared DoD applications. For many detectors and sensors, including those used in infrared heat-seeking missiles, an output signal modulated at MHz frequencies with a high duty cycle (QCW operation) is indisting ...

Recent advancements in inertial sensor technology, pervasive communication signals of opportunity (SOOP), availability of quality databases of Earth’s anomalies as well as non-linear estimation techniques have created an opportunity to enable assured PNT capabilities without reliance on GPS/GNSS. To utilize this opportunity, QuNav proposes to develop an Assured Integrated Mechanization of PN ...