SAM #NIST-SS26-104

Market Research for High-Speed Swept Laser for NIST Photonic Thermometry

NIST's Sensor Science Division is seeking market information for a high-speed swept laser to advance the Standard Photonic Thermometer (SPoT) project. - Government Buyer: - Department of Commerce, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) - Acquisition Management Division, Gaithersburg, MD - OEMs and Vendors: - No specific OEMs or vendors are named in the notice - Products/Services Requested: - One high-speed swept laser - Modulation output light centered at 1550 nm - Sweep frequency of 150 Hz or greater - Tunable sweep range: 15 nm to 70 nm - Coherence length: 100 m or more - Continuous wave (CW) single longitudinal mode oscillation - Mode-hop free operation - Average output optical power: at least 10 mW - Pre-aligned 9/125 μm single-mode fiber with FC/APC connector - Trigger single output LVTTL with SMA interface - USB control interface - Benchtop format - Software: Labview drivers and Python scripts for operation - Unique or Notable Requirements: - Instrument must be mission-critical for Air Force-funded SPoT project - Enables next-generation chip-scale photonic temperature metrology - Respondents must provide technical capability, past performance, and suggestions for requirement improvements - No specific contract vehicle or administrative requirements are included

Description

NIST-SS26-104

PLEASE NOTE THIS A SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE ONLY

Title: Wavelength Swept Light Source for Photonic Thermometry

BACKGROUND

The Fundamental Thermodynamics group at the Sensor Science Division is conducting Standard Photonic Thermometer (SPoT) project. The main focus of the project is to develop the next-generation chip-scale photonic temperature metrology that can replace Standard Platinum Resistance Thermometers (SPRTs), reduce the temperature calibration chain and sensor ownership cost.

The SPoT project, pursued by The Fundamental Thermodynamics group, is a multi-year/multi-million effort funded by both NIST-on-a-Chip (NOAC) and the United States Air Force. The timely achieving project’s milestones is NIST-mission-critical task and is one of the priorities of the Physical Measurement Laboratory (PML).

One of the essential milestones of Standard Photonic Thermometer is to develop cost-efficient and deployable photonic readout systems. To achieve these essential for the project milestones, the Fundamental Thermodynamics group has a critical need for one (1) high-speed swept laser. This instrument is essential for enabling scalable and practical solutions for next-generation temperature metrology.

The swept laser is mission-critical component in developing photonic readout for SPoT project. Delaying or not approving this procurement would directly hinder progress toward key milestones of the Air Force–funded project Photonic Thermometry for SPRT Replacement. Without the requested instrumentation, we risk catastrophic disruptions to ongoing work on the project, potential funding setbacks, and compromised deliverables. To ensure uninterrupted workflow and mitigate these risks, the procurement of high-speed swept laser is an absolute necessity.

Minimum requirements:

NIST requires one (1) high-speed swept laser.  The laser provide modulation output light centered at 1550 nm, with sweep frequency 150 Hz or more, tunable sweep range from 15 nm to 70 nm, and coherence length of 100 m or more. The contractor shall provide an instrument in accordance with the minimum specifications outlined below.

High-speed swept laser:

 The laser output should be CW, single, longitudinal mode oscillation with mode-hop free. The laser output light should can be swept around a centered wavelength of 1550 nm ± 5nm.  The swept range around the center wavelength should be tunable from 15 nm (or less) to 70 nm (or more). Wavelength change method – sinusoidal.  Laser coherence length should be more than 100 m or more (Δλ=25 nm)  Sweep frequency should be (150 ± 20) Hz or more.  Average output optical power should be no less than 10 mW The laser should have pre-aligned 9/125 μm single-mode fiber with FC/APC optical fiber output connector.  The laser output should have trigger single output LVTTL, SMA interface The laser should have USB control interface The laser should have benchtop format.  The software, Labview drivers, and Python scripts, necessary to operate the laser must be included.

HOW TO RESPOND TO THIS NOTICE

In responding to this notice, please DO NOT PROVIDE PROPRIETARY INFORMATION. Please include only the following information, readable in either Microsoft Word 365, Microsoft Excel 365, or .pdf format, in the response.  Submit the response by email to the Primary Point of Contact and, if specified, to the Secondary Point of Contact listed at the bottom of this notice as soon as possible, and preferably before the closing date and time of this notice.

•           Provide the complete name of your company, address, name of contact for follow-up questions, their email, their phone number and, if your company has an active registration in https://sam.gov, your company’s Unique Entity ID (UEI).

•           Details about what your company is capable of providing that meets or exceeds NIST’s minimum requirements and its past experience. Any relevant past performance.

•           Identify any aspects of the description of the requirements in the BACKGROUND section above that could be viewed as unduly restrictive or create unnecessary barriers that adversely affect your firm’s ability to fully participate in a procurement for such services and explain why.  Please offer suggestions for how the requirements could be organized or structured to encourage the participation of small businesses.

•           For the NAICS code

o          Indicate whether your company is (a) a small business or (b) other than small business.  See the Table of Small Business Size Standards and the associated .pdf download file for small business size standards and additional information.

o          If you believe the NAICS and/or Product Service Code code listed in this notice is not the best NAICS code for the type of product addressed in this notice, identify an alternative NAICS/PSC code that you believe would be more appropriate for the planned procurement.

•           If your firm has existing Federal Supply Schedule contract(s) or other contracts for products or services against which the Department may be able to place orders, identify the contract number(s) and other relevant information.

•           Describe your firm’s experience (as a prime, subcontractor, or consultant) providing the products or services described in Background section.

•           Provide any other information that you believe would be valuable for the Government to know as part of its market research for this requirement.

•           Please let us know if you would like to engage to get a better understanding of the requirement or need additional information about the Government’s requirement for the products or services described in the Background section.

QUESTIONS REGARDING THIS NOTICE

Questions regarding this notice may be submitted via email to the Primary Point of Contact listed in this notice. Questions should be submitted so that they are received by 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on  April 13, 2026.  Questions will be anonymized and answered via sources sought notice amendment following the question submission deadline.

IMPORTANT NOTES

The information received in response to this notice will be reviewed and considered so that the NIST may appropriately solicit for its requirements in the near future. 

This notice should not be construed as a commitment by the NIST to issue a solicitation or ultimately award a contract. 

This notice is not a request for a quotation. Responses will not be considered as proposals or quotations.

No award will be made as a result of this notice. 

NIST is not responsible for any costs incurred by the respondents to this notice.

NIST reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and appropriate.

Thank you for taking the time to submit a response to this request.

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