Special Program Announcement for 2013 Office of Naval Research Research Opportunity Free Space Optical Quantum Key Distribution | Apply Online

Opportunity Summary:

This funding opportunity is a Special Program Announcement from the Office of Naval Research (ONR) focused on Free Space Optical Quantum Key Distribution (QKD), released as Funding Opportunity Number 13 SN 0004. It supports science and technology research and development aimed at strengthening the theoretical and analytical foundations needed to make quantum communications systems practical in real-world operational settings. The core objective is to develop the mathematical framework and supporting analysis that can underpin physically implementable quantum communication (QC) schemes capable of high bandwidth, long-range operation, and provable security. In other words, ONR is looking for rigorous theory and modeling that can demonstrate security guarantees and performance expectations for quantum key distribution over free-space optical links, rather than primarily building hardware prototypes.

A key feature of the announcement is its emphasis on free-space optical communications as the operating environment. That implies attention to issues unique to atmospheric or line-of-sight optical links, such as turbulence effects, beam spread and wandering, pointing and tracking limits, background light, weather-related attenuation, and other channel impairments that can impact both reliability and the security assumptions of QKD. The research is expected to concentrate on developing and validating the mathematical tools, proofs, and analytical performance models that would allow these kinds of channels to be used for secure, long-distance key exchange with strong security claims. While limited experimental verification is allowed, it is explicitly not the main thrust; the primary deliverable is the theoretical framework and associated analysis, with experiments serving only as supporting evidence when necessary.

The funding instrument types listed include grants and procurement contracts, and ONR anticipated making about six awards. The opportunity falls under CFDA 12.300 (Basic and Applied Scientific Research). No cost sharing or matching is required. The posting date and creation date were both December 4, 2012, and the original and current closing date for submissions was January 22, 2013, with an archive date of February 21, 2013. Submissions received after the due date could be considered only if there was sufficient agency time and funding remaining, which is a typical discretionary provision but not something applicants should rely on.

An important procedural detail is that applicants were instructed not to apply directly under the Special Notice itself. Instead, full proposals had to be submitted under the broader ONR Broad Agency Announcement package identified as ONRBAA13-001, using the application instructions and package associated with that BAA. Eligibility was not spelled out in detail in this notice and applicants were directed to consult ONRBAA13-001 for the definitive eligibility rules and proposal requirements, meaning that the Special Notice functioned mainly as a topic call within the larger BAA mechanism.

For access and administrative help, the notice points to an additional information link that aggregates ONR Special Notices, and provides a point of contact for issues accessing the full announcement electronically: Jennifer Brown, Contract Specialist, at 703-588-2432, along with a note referencing Grants.gov questions. Overall, the opportunity is best understood as a targeted ONR research call seeking mathematically rigorous, security-focused work on QKD over free-space optical channels, intended to move the field toward secure, high-throughput, long-range quantum communications that can be justified with provable security arguments rather than solely empirical demonstrations.

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