Magnetic Miniaturized and Monolithically-Integrated Components (M3IC) | Apply Online

Opportunity Summary:

The Magnetic Miniaturized and Monolithically-Integrated Components (M3IC) opportunity (DARPA BAA 16-36) is a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Microsystems Technology Office (MTO) solicitation aimed at pushing magnetic component technology beyond incremental advances. The central goal is to develop magnetic components that can be integrated directly onto semiconductor substrates in ways that meaningfully reduce size, weight, and footprint while enabling new or improved electromagnetic (EM) capabilities relevant to U.S. Department of Defense systems. In practical terms, the program is targeting a shift away from bulky, discrete magnetic parts and toward miniaturized, chip-scale or monolithically integrated magnetic functions that can be co-designed with electronics and microwave circuitry.

The technical scope is organized around three main research thrusts, and proposers are expected to focus on one or more of them. The first thrust is the integration of magnetic components on semiconductor substrates. This includes approaches for embedding or fabricating magnetic materials and structures in a way that is compatible with semiconductor processing and packaging constraints, with the intent of achieving high-performance magnetic behavior in a much smaller form factor. Work in this area typically involves materials, fabrication processes, device structures, and integration strategies that allow magnetic functions to live on the same platform as RF/microwave circuits and other electronic components.

The second thrust is modeling the system-level impact of magnetic phenomena that are nonlinear, non-reciprocal, and time-dependent. DARPA is explicitly calling out behaviors that are often critical in real magnetic devices and EM systems but are difficult to capture with simplified or purely linear models. The emphasis on nonlinear and non-reciprocal effects points to interest in components whose response depends on signal level, biasing, direction of propagation, or other conditions, while time-dependent behavior points to dynamics that matter at microwave frequencies or under rapidly changing operating states. The intent is not just to model the magnetic device in isolation, but to understand and predict how these complex magnetic behaviors affect overall circuit and system performance, enabling more accurate design tradeoffs and more reliable integration into DoD-relevant platforms.

The third thrust is optimization of miniaturized microwave magnetic components. This area focuses on improving performance when magnetic components are scaled down for microwave operation, which is where size reduction can dramatically change loss mechanisms, bandwidth, power handling, tunability, thermal behavior, and susceptibility to interference. Optimization here implies design methods, architectures, and parameter trade studies that help achieve the best achievable performance at small scales, potentially including techniques that balance competing requirements such as insertion loss versus bandwidth, isolation versus size, or tunability versus linearity.

A key feature of the solicitation is what it excludes: research that primarily results in evolutionary improvements to the existing state of practice. That exclusion is a clear signal that the program is seeking substantial, non-incremental progress, such as new integration paradigms, new modeling approaches that change how systems are designed, or new miniaturized magnetic component concepts that unlock capabilities not available with conventional discrete magnetics. Proposals that look like straightforward refinements of established designs, modest process tweaks, or small performance gains without a step change in integration or functionality would not align with the stated intent.

From an administrative standpoint, M3IC was posted June 16, 2016, with an original and current closing date of August 1, 2016. The opportunity is categorized as discretionary funding within science and technology and other research and development, with CFDA number 12.910. DARPA indicated multiple possible award instruments, including cooperative agreements, grants, other transaction-like mechanisms, and procurement contracts, reflecting flexibility in how performers might be supported depending on the nature of the work and the relationship needed with the government. Eligibility is listed as unrestricted, meaning a broad range of entity types could apply, subject to any additional eligibility clarifications contained in the full announcement.

Overall, M3IC can be read as a targeted push to bring high-value magnetic functionality into the semiconductor-integrated world, paired with the modeling and design tools needed to confidently use advanced magnetic behaviors at the system level, and the optimization methods required to make miniaturized microwave magnetic components practical for demanding DoD EM applications.

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