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Small Business Technology Transfer Program Phase I Solicitation FY-2014 (STTR)

Status: Archived

Archived funding opportunity

This document has been archived. See NSF 14-540 for the latest version.

Important information about NSF’s implementation of the revised 2 CFR

NSF Financial Assistance awards (grants and cooperative agreements) made on or after October 1, 2024, will be subject to the applicable set of award conditions, dated October 1, 2024, available on the NSF website. These terms and conditions are consistent with the revised guidance specified in the OMB Guidance for Federal Financial Assistance published in the Federal Register on April 22, 2024.

Important information for proposers

All proposals must be submitted in accordance with the requirements specified in this funding opportunity and in the NSF Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (PAPPG) that is in effect for the relevant due date to which the proposal is being submitted. It is the responsibility of the proposer to ensure that the proposal meets these requirements. Submitting a proposal prior to a specified deadline does not negate this requirement.

Synopsis

The Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program stimulates technological innovation in the private sector by strengthening the role of small business concerns in meeting Federal research and development needs, increasing the commercial application of federally supported research results, and fostering and encouraging participation by socially and economically disadvantaged and women-owned small businesses.

The STTR Program requires researchers at universities and other non-profit research institutions to play a significant intellectual role in the conduct of each STTR project. These researchers, by joining forces with a small company, can spin-off their commercially promising ideas while they remain primarily employed at the research institution. The program is governed by Public Law 112-81 (SBIR/STTR Reauthorization Act of 2011).

This STTR Phase I solicitation aims at encouraging the commercialization of previously NSF-funded fundamental research (NSF funding lineage).  It is highly desirable that the core innovation described in the submitted proposals can in some manner be linked to fundamental research funded by the NSF. This lineage must be documented in the Project Description section of the proposal. (See Proposal Preparation Instructions for more information.)

Please note: It is NOT required that investigators of the original NSF-funded fundamental research be directly affiliated with the proposed STTR project or personnel.

The proposals submitted should fall into one the nine broad topic areas, which are detailed on the SBIR/STTR topics homepage:

  • Educational Technologies and Applications (EA)
  • Information and Communication Technologies (IC)
  • Semiconductors (S) and Photonic (PH) Devices and Materials
  • Electronic Hardware, Robotics and Wireless Technologies (EW)
  • Advanced Manufacturing and Nanotechnology (MN)
  • Advanced Materials and Instrumentation (MI)
  • Chemical and Environmental Technologies (CT)
  • Biological Technologies (BT)
  • Smart Health (SH) and Biomedical (BM) Technologies
  • Certain innovative technologies with high commercial potential may not appear to fit under any of the nine current solicitation topics or their associated subtopics. In this case, you may seek advice from the relevant Program Director (as detailed on the topic pages), or you may submit the proposal under the topic and subtopic that is the closest match. The SBIR/STTR Program Directors ensure that proposals are appropriately grouped into panels for review by experts in the field, and the review process is facilitated by a Program Director. The topics and subtopics guide the merit review process but are not used as a consideration in making award decisions.

    Please Note: The submission of the same project idea to both this STTR Phase I solicitation and the concurrent SBIR Phase I solicitation is strongly discouraged. More information about the NSF STTR Program can be found on the Program Homepage.

    Program contacts

    Peter Atherton
    SBIR/STTR Program Director, Information and Communication Technologies (IC)
    patherto@nsf.gov (703) 292-8772 TIP/TI
    Prakash Balan
    SBIR/STTR Program Director, Chemical and Environmental Technologies (CT)
    pbalan@nsf.gov (703) 292-5341 ENG/EEC
    Steven Konsek
    SBIR/STTR Program Director, Semiconductors (S) and Photonic (PH) Devices and Materials
    skonsek@nsf.gov (703) 292-7021
    Glenn H. Larsen
    SBIR/STTR Program Director, Education Applications (EA)
    glarsen@nsf.gov (703) 292-4607
    Rajesh Mehta
    SBIR/STTR Program Director, Advanced Manufacturing and Nanotechnology (MN)
    rmehta@nsf.gov (703) 292-2174 TIP/TI
    Muralidharan S. Nair
    SBIR/STTR Program Director, Electronic Hardware, Robotics and Wireless Technologies
    mnair@nsf.gov (703) 292-7059
    Benaiah Schrag
    SBIR/STTR Program Director, Advanced Materials and Instrumentation (MI)
    bschrag@nsf.gov (703) 292-8323 TIP/TI
    Ruth M. Shuman
    SBIR/STTR Program Director, Biological Technologies (BT)
    rshuman@nsf.gov (703) 292-2160 TIP/TI
    Jesus V. Soriano
    SBIR/STTR Program Director, Smart Health (SH) and Biomedical (BM) Technologies
    jsoriano@nsf.gov (703) 292-7795 ENG/EEC

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