Chemistries And Monolayers For Anti-aging Kinematics (CLOAK)

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Defense Sciences Office (DSO) is issuing a Disruption Opportunity (DO) under the Program Announcement for Disruptioneering, DARPA-PA-24-04 Amendment 1. This funding opportunity, titled "Chemistries and monoLayers for Anti-aging Kinematics (CLOAK)," seeks innovative research concepts for developing novel micromechanical oscillators to enhance the longevity of precision positioning and navigation systems. The CLOAK program is part of DARPA’s broader Highly Accelerated Learning of Vibratory Systems (HALOVS) initiative, which aims to improve the performance and stability of vibratory sensors over their operational lifetimes. The primary objective of CLOAK is to explore materials and techniques that mitigate sensor drift and degradation over time, which are common challenges in microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) sensors. While MEMS sensors are widely used in defense applications, they suffer from gradual changes due to built-in stress, charge trapping, and microcrack formation, leading to performance deterioration. CLOAK will investigate coatings, surface treatments, and encapsulation methods to preserve sensor integrity over extended periods. Research may involve atomic layer deposition techniques, self-assembled monolayers (SAMs), or alternative methods for eliminating stresses and charge traps. CLOAK will be conducted in two phases: Phase 1 will focus on demonstrating a MEMS microsystem with accelerated aging and less than 10% performance degradation compared to a non-CLOAKed reference system. Phase 2 will scale the technology, aiming to demonstrate more than 10 years of operation under accelerated conditions with less than 1% performance degradation. The total award value for both phases is capped at $1,200,000, with Phase 1 funding limited to $500,000 and Phase 2 funding limited to $700,000. The total performance period is 24 months, with each phase lasting 12 months. Awards will be issued under the Other Transaction (OT) for Prototype project authority. Proposers must justify their approaches through theoretical analysis, modeling, and experimental validation. CLOAK performers will use silicon as the mechanical material and focus on microsystems operating below 50 kHz. They must document calculations, simulations, and short-loop surface chemistry experiments to evaluate their approaches. Performance will be measured based on compliance with international standards for environmental testing, such as IEC 60068-2 and IEC 60749-6. Proposals must include milestones such as theoretical analysis, modeling, experimental setup validation, and comprehensive performance assessments. The submission deadline for full proposals is April 14, 2025, at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time. The anticipated start date for the program is June 16, 2025. Proposals must be submitted electronically via the DARPA Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) Portal. Questions regarding submission should be directed to CLOAK@darpa.mil. Additional resources and FAQs are available through the DARPAConnect platform.