The Biden administration has released a funding opportunity for small businesses to receive up to $54 million under the CHIPS and Science Act.
The funds will support multiple projects associated with various components of U.S. semiconductor initiatives, including measurement, manufacturing and research and development, the Department of Commerce said on Tuesday.
Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo noted the department’s recognition of “high costs associated with innovation in the semiconductor industry,” an acknowledgment that drove the organization to offer the “maximum amount possible” for this initiative under the Small Business Innovation Research Program.
A major objective of this new opportunity is to improve metrology, or the science of measurement, in semiconductor manufacturing. With the funding, awardees will target the “seven grand challenges” of metrology listed in a 2022 National Institute of Standards and Technology report on opportunities for semiconductor production in the U.S.
Laurie Locascio, under secretary of commerce for standards and technology and NIST director, said the metrology-focused funding opportunity “will help give small businesses the opportunity to take innovative ideas, scale them for the commercial marketplace, and boost the U.S. economy.”
Specific initiatives to be financed may include compact fieldable cryogenic technologies, compact extreme ultraviolet sources and elements of the seven grand challenges.