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Physics at the Information Frontier (PIF) - Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Physics at the Information Frontier (PIF) program?

Physics at the Information Frontier (PIF) is a National Science Foundation (NSF) Physics Division grant program focused on building and advancing the cyberinfrastructure, computing approaches, and data capabilities that modern physics research increasingly depends on. It is designed to enable new science by supporting data-enabled research, community research networks, major code and tool development, and next-generation computing approaches.

Which NSF unit sponsors PIF?

PIF is associated with the NSF Physics Division (within NSF's Mathematical and Physical Sciences directorate context indicated by CFDA 47.049).

What kinds of activities does PIF support?

The program supports activities that strengthen the computing and data foundations of physics research, including community-scale software and tools, collaborative research networks, data services and workflows for very large datasets, and new computing paradigms including quantum information science and revolutionary computing.

What are the main subareas within PIF?

PIF supports proposals in three main subareas: (1) Computational Physics, (2) Information or Data Intensive Physics, and (3) Quantum Information Science and Revolutionary Computing.

What is meant by "computational physics" in this program?

Within PIF, computational physics targets work that strengthens the computing backbone of physics research. This includes high-performance computing efforts that require sustained, long-term development of software, algorithms, frameworks, and tools, as well as medium to large community research networks and collaborations involving physicists working closely with applied mathematicians and computer scientists.

What is expected of proposals in the Computational Physics subarea?

Proposals are expected to combine strong scientific objectives with a clear computational advance or a genuinely new enabling capability. Examples include new algorithms, use of emerging computing architectures, or substantial improvements to widely used community codes and shared cyberinfrastructure relied on by many researchers.

What is meant by "information or data intensive physics" in this program?

This subarea addresses challenges around storing, moving, accessing, curating, and extracting value from extremely large physics datasets, including data stores at exabyte scale. The emphasis includes rapid, secure, and efficient access to distributed data across heterogeneous computing resources and networks.

What types of data-related capabilities are emphasized?

PIF emphasizes capabilities such as secure and efficient access to distributed data, scalable approaches for sharing common resources across large collaborations, and consistent ways to support globally distributed community research networks and "virtual organizations" that rely on shared datasets and services.

Does PIF support data services for long-term preservation and curation?

Yes. Example activities include building data services for reliable digital preservation, access, integration, and curation for data generated by Physics Division experimental facilities, along with tools and workflows designed to maximize scientific return.

How does PIF prioritize tools and services in the data-intensive area?

Priority is given to tools and services that can benefit a broad physics community, connect to other research communities that also need secure high-speed access to massive data, or deliver dramatic new capabilities for a particular physics subfield.

What is the Quantum Information Science and Revolutionary Computing subarea about?

This subarea supports theoretical and experimental work that uses quantum mechanics to explore new computing paradigms relevant to physics, and work that builds collaborations across physics, mathematics, and computer science to push the boundaries of quantum information.

What topics are included under quantum information science in PIF?

The program is especially interested in research applying modern physics tools to deepen understanding or capability in areas such as quantum computation, quantum cryptography, and quantum communication, including how quantum information can be transmitted, processed, and manipulated.

Can proposals include collaborations and community research networks?

Yes. PIF supports medium to large community research networks, including collaborations where physicists work closely with applied mathematicians and computer scientists, and also emphasizes approaches that help large collaborations and distributed "virtual organizations" share resources effectively.

Does PIF encourage proposals that cross NSF divisional boundaries?

Yes. PIF welcomes proposals that cross NSF divisional boundaries.

How should an applicant handle overlap with another NSF program or division?

When a project overlaps with another NSF program or division, the Physics Division encourages the principal investigator to request a co-review by naming the other relevant program on the proposal cover sheet. This helps ensure coordinated review and participation from the appropriate programs.

Are broader impacts required?

Yes. Like other NSF opportunities, proposals must address broader impacts.

Can proposals include educational components?

Yes. Proposals may include educational components, and applicants are expected to explain how the work benefits society beyond its technical goals, such as through workforce development, training, outreach, or improved community resources.

What is the Funding Opportunity Number for this listing?

The archived listing identifies the opportunity as Funding Opportunity Number PD 05 7553.

What CFDA program is associated with this opportunity?

The archived listing indicates CFDA 47.049 (Mathematical and Physical Sciences).

Is cost sharing required?

No. The archived listing indicates there is no cost-sharing requirement.

Who is eligible to apply?

The archived listing describes eligibility as "unrestricted," subject to any clarifications in the official program text.

When was this opportunity originally posted?

The archived listing states the opportunity was originally posted on March 24, 2009.

What was the original full proposal target date?

The archived listing shows an original full proposal target date of October 28, 2009.

Were proposals due only once or annually?

The archived listing notes that proposals were due annually thereafter, with target dates shifting over time.

Is this opportunity archived?

Yes. The listing shows an archive date of July 18, 2012.

Why does the listing show "Expected Awards" and "Estimated Total Funding" as 0?

The source record shows those fields as 0, which typically indicates the award counts and totals were not populated in that particular database extract rather than implying that the program made no awards.

Where can applicants get help with access issues related to the listing?

For access issues, the listing directs applicants to NSF grants.gov support at grantsgovsupport@nsf.gov.

What kinds of outcomes does PIF aim to enable?

PIF aims to enable new science by advancing cyberinfrastructure and capabilities that physics research depends on, while also emphasizing broader impacts such as spillover benefits to other scientific fields and to general-purpose cyberinfrastructure.