Notice2024-02026
CHIPS National Advanced Packaging Manufacturing Program (NAPMP) Materials and Substrates Research and Development
Primary source
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Published
February 1, 2024
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Institute of Standards and Technology
Abstract
The CHIPS Research and Development Office (CHIPS R&D) intends to announce, via a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), an open competition for new research and development (R&D) activities to establish and accelerate domestic capacity for advanced packaging substrates and substrate materials, a key technology for manufacturing semiconductors. CHIPS R&D anticipates making available up to approximately $300,000,000 for multiple awards in amounts up to approximately $100,000,000 per award, not including voluntary co- investment, over up to 5 years and made through cooperative agreements or other transactions. The purpose of this NOI is to offer preliminary information to potential applicants, facilitating the development of meaningful partnerships and strong, responsive proposals.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 22 (Thursday, February 1, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 22 (Thursday, February 1, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6508-6509]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-02026]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Institute of Standards and Technology
CHIPS National Advanced Packaging Manufacturing Program (NAPMP)
Materials and Substrates Research and Development
AGENCY: National Institute of Standards and Technology, Department of
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of Intent (NOI).
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SUMMARY: The CHIPS Research and Development Office (CHIPS R&D) intends
to announce, via a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), an open
competition for new research and development (R&D) activities to
establish and accelerate domestic capacity for advanced packaging
substrates and substrate materials, a key technology for manufacturing
semiconductors. CHIPS R&D anticipates making available up to
approximately $300,000,000 for multiple awards in amounts up to
approximately $100,000,000 per award, not including voluntary co-
investment, over up to 5 years and made through cooperative agreements
or other transactions. The purpose of this NOI is to offer preliminary
information to potential applicants, facilitating the development of
meaningful partnerships and strong, responsive proposals.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: All inquiries may be directed to Chris
Greer (301-975-2000) via email to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#dfadbaacbabeadbcb79fbcb7b6afacf1b8b0a9"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="e2908791878390818aa2818a8b9291cc858d94">[email protected]</span></a>, with a subject
line stating: `2024-NIST-CHIPS-NAPMP-01 Questions.' All answers, which
will be provided at the sole discretion of CHIPS R&D, will be posted on
the NIST competition website at <a href="https://www.nist.gov/chips/chips-RD-funding-opportunities">https://www.nist.gov/chips/chips-RD-funding-opportunities</a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Purpose. The CHIPS Research and Development Office (CHIPS R&D)
intends to announce, via a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), an
open competition for new research and development (R&D) activities to
establish and accelerate domestic capacity for advanced packaging
substrates and substrate materials, a key technology for manufacturing
semiconductors. CHIPS R&D anticipates making available up to
approximately $300,000,000 for multiple awards in amounts up to
approximately $100,000,000 per award, not including voluntary co-
investment, over up to 5 years and made through cooperative agreements
or other transactions. Co-investment (cost share) is not required in
this program. CHIPS R&D will, however, give preference to applications
that demonstrate committed co-investment in their application.
The purpose of this NOI is to offer preliminary information to
potential applicants, facilitating the development of meaningful
partnerships and strong, responsive proposals. CHIPS R&D intends to
announce the competition no later than March 2024 by posting the NOFO
on <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> at <a href="https://www.grants.gov">https://www.grants.gov</a>. More information about the
expected CHIPS R&D NAPMP Materials and Substrates competition will then
be available at the CHIPS for America website at <a href="https://www.nist.gov/chips/chips-RD-funding-opportunities">https://www.nist.gov/chips/chips-RD-funding-opportunities</a>.
Background. Emerging technologies like artificial intelligence,
advanced telecommunications, biomedical devices, and autonomous
vehicles require leap-ahead advances in microelectronics capabilities.
Improving all aspects of system performance to support the breadth of
new semiconductor applications will require advanced packaging and
related capabilities, such as heterogeneous integration, to address the
need to integrate multi-component-assemblies with large numbers of
interconnects to achieve a degree of integration that blurs the line
between chip and package.
In particular, the ability to ``scale-down and scale-out'' will be
critical, where ``scale-down'' refers to shrinking the size of the
features on the package and ``scale-out'' refers to increasing the
number of chips assembled on the substrate.
Materials and substrates are foundational to achieving the
necessary advancements. Moreover, materials and substrates R&D,
particularly applied R&D, is critical to expanding the U.S. packaging
ecosystem.
CHIPS R&D Mission and Goals: The CHIPS and Science Act appropriated
approximately $50 billion to the Department of Commerce--$39 billion in
incentives to onshore semiconductor manufacturing and $11 billion to
advance U.S. leadership in semiconductor R&D. Within CHIPS for America,
the mission of CHIPS R&D is to accelerate the development and
commercial deployment of foundational semiconductor technologies by
establishing, connecting, and providing access to domestic research
efforts, tools, resources, workers, and facilities. NAPMP, one of
multiple CHIPS R&D initiatives, seeks to drive U.S. leadership in
advanced packaging and provide the technology and skilled workforce
needed for packaging manufacturing in the United States.
Within a decade, NAPMP-funded activities, coupled with CHIPS
manufacturing incentives, will establish a vibrant, self-sustaining,
profitable, onshore packaging industry where advanced node chips
manufactured in the United States and abroad can be packaged in
appropriate volumes within the United States and innovative designs and
architectures are enabled through leading-edge packaging capabilities.
In combination with other CHIPS for America education and workforce
efforts, NAPMP-funded activities produce the diverse and capable
workforce needed for the success of the domestic packaging sector.
Materials and Substrates NOFO Objectives: Three major R&D areas
have the potential to make a significant impact on domestic advanced
packaging capabilities: organic materials and substrates (including
fan-out); glass materials and substrates; and semiconductor-based
substrates. Within these areas, CHIPS R&D intends to fund R&D
activities that establish and promote relevant domestic capability and
capacity, with the following objectives:
1. Accelerate domestic R&D and innovation in advanced packaging
materials and substrates;
2. Transition domestic materials and substrate innovation into U.S.
manufacturing, such that these technologies are available to U.S.
manufacturers and customers, including to significantly benefit U.S.
economic and national security;
[[Page 6509]]
3. Support the establishment of a robust, sustainable, domestic
capacity for advanced packaging materials and substrate R&D,
prototyping, commercialization, and manufacturing; and
4. Promote a skilled and diverse pipeline of workers for a
sustainable domestic advanced packaging industry.
Funded activities are expected to include, but not necessarily be
limited to, basic and applied research, substrate and demonstration
device development and production, commercial viability and domestic
manufacturing preparation, integrated workforce education and training,
and pilot-level substrate production.
To ensure that funded R&D meets the above objectives, CHIPS R&D
expects to define aggressive technical targets (e.g., substrate wiring,
via pitches, and number of levels on both sides of the substrate) for
applicants to achieve. CHIPS R&D will also encourage proposals for
advanced substrates that incorporate one or more passive or active
components embedded in the substrate for enhanced functionality.
Whereas traditional boards, silicon or glass interposers and small area
substrates are not expected to be in scope for this NOFO, composite
substrates using fan-out wafer-level packaging, including flexible and
biocompatible substrates, are expected to be entertained. CHIPS R&D
will further expect that substrates be compatible with direct attach at
fine pitch of advanced node CMOS, legacy nodes, and non-silicon
dielets. Substrate proposals will be strongly encouraged to incorporate
embedded substrate features and active and passive devices and through
substrate vias. CHIPS R&D will further expect applicants to define non-
technical targets related to advanced packaging education and workforce
development and to demonstrating both the commercial viability and the
potential for the domestic production of innovations funded under the
NOFO.
Eligibility: CHIPS R&D expects eligible applicants and
subrecipients will include for-profit organizations; non-profit
organizations; accredited institutions of higher education including
community and technical colleges; state, local, territorial, and Indian
tribal governments.
Applicants must be incorporated in the United States (including
U.S. territories). Eligible applicants may only submit one concept
paper and one full application under this NOFO. Full applications will
only be accepted from applicants invited after the concept paper stage.
Entities may not be included as subrecipients on more than two
applications.
Entities that operate Federally Funded Research and Development
Centers (FFRDCs) may be eligible to receive this funding as sub-
subrecipients to an eligible applicant to the extent allowed by law,
based on the unique and specific needs of the project.
Foreign organizations may participate as members of a project team,
as sub-subrecipients or contractors, subject to CHIPS R&D approval
based on a written justification that the foreign partner's involvement
is essential to advancing program objectives, among other
considerations.
R&D Collaboration: CHIPS R&D expects that applicants assembling
teams comprising one or more subrecipients may be best suited to
collectively provide the full range of expertise and capabilities
needed to achieve the program objectives and to successfully strengthen
U.S. materials and substrates innovation. Equally important, these
types of partnerships can promote inventiveness, clarify future demand,
improve transparency and security, solidify business and domestic
manufacturing plans (including plans for technology adoption by defense
and commercial partners), help educate the future workforce, mitigate
the risk of future chip shortages or oversupply, and support a more
productive, efficient, and self-sustaining semiconductor ecosystem.
CHIPS R&D therefore encourages applications that demonstrate
collaboration across the innovation, manufacturing, supply chain, and
customer landscape.
Application Process and Award Information: The envisioned
application process consists of a mandatory concept paper and a
required full application. CHIPS R&D anticipates a due date for concept
papers of approximately 35 days after the date of NOFO publication.
Full applications will only be accepted from applicants invited to
apply after the concept paper stage. Submissions from entities other
than those specifically invited to submit a full application will not
be reviewed or considered in any way.
To provide the public with an opportunity to learn more about the
NOFO before the concept paper deadline, CHIPS R&D expects to host a
Proposers Day after NOFO release to familiarize potential applicants
with the NOFO objectives and program structure. CHIPS R&D will announce
details regarding the date and location of the Proposers Day via the
CHIPS R&D website at <a href="https://www.nist.gov/chips/chips-RD-funding-opportunities">https://www.nist.gov/chips/chips-RD-funding-opportunities</a>. This event will be for informational purposes only.
Attendance is not a prerequisite for submitting a concept paper or
application.
Competition Information: Once the open competition has been
announced, further information may be found at <a href="https://www.nist.gov/chips/chips-RD-funding-opportunities">https://www.nist.gov/chips/chips-RD-funding-opportunities</a>.
System for Award Management: In anticipation of the NOFO, CHIPS R&D
encourages potential applicants to complete the following steps, which
are required to submit applications for Federal assistance:
<bullet> Register with the System for Award Management (SAM) at
<a href="https://www.sam.gov">https://www.sam.gov</a>. CHIPS R&D strongly encourages applicants to
register for <a href="http://SAM.gov">SAM.gov</a> as early as possible. While this process
ordinarily takes between three days and two weeks, in some
circumstances it can take six or more months to complete due to
information verification requirements. Recipients will be required to
maintain an active registration in SAM and re-validate registration
annually.
<bullet> Register for a <a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> (<a href="https://www.grants.gov/">https://www.grants.gov/</a>)
account. It is advisable also to go to ``manage subscriptions'' on
<a href="http://Grants.gov">Grants.gov</a> and sign up to receive automatic updates when amendments to
a funding opportunity are posted.
Disclaimer. This NOI does not constitute a solicitation. No
applications may be submitted in response to this NOI. Any
inconsistency between information within this NOI and the eventual NOFO
announcing the CHIPS NAPMP Materials and Substrates award competition
shall be resolved in favor of the NOFO.
Authority. DOC CHIPS activities were authorized by Title XCIX--
Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors for America of
the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for
Fiscal Year 2021 (Pub. L. 116-283, often referred to as the CHIPS Act).
Tamiko Ford,
NIST Executive Secretariat.
[FR Doc. 2024-02026 Filed 1-31-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-13-P
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