Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory Breaks Ground on New Innovation Center
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Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory Breaks Ground on New Innovation Center

The Department of Energy’s Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory has broken ground at the site of a new office and laboratory building to accommodate PPPL’s research efforts in microelectronics, quantum sensors and devices and sustainability sciences.

The laboratory said Monday it will invest $109.7 million in the construction of the 68,000-square-foot Princeton Plasma Innovation Center that will replace the Theory Wing and Administration Wing.

Steve Cowley, director of PPPL, said the new facility will contribute research to support the Biden administration’s goal to develop a decadal vision to achieve commercial fusion energy by 2035 or 2040.

“We’re strengthening our commitment to deliver fusion energy,” Cowley said. “We’re also using our expertise to help other parts of the economy, particularly in microelectronics and sustainable manufacturing. We’re going to need the labs and offices in PPIC in order to drive that vision forward.”

PPIC will have a virtual reality cube and a remote collaboration space to enable PPPL scientists to communicate with research and experimentation partners worldwide.

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Terran Orbital to Supply Buses for Lockheed’s Tranche 2 Tracking Layer Satellites
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Terran Orbital to Supply Buses for Lockheed’s Tranche 2 Tracking Layer Satellites

Terran Orbital will deliver satellite buses to Lockheed Martin for use on the latter’s development of missile warning/tracking spacecraft under the Tranche 2 Tracking Layer contract with the Space Development Agency.

The Boca Raton, Florida-based small satellite builder was awarded a subcontract for 18 buses that will be incorporated into Lockheed’s wide field-of-view satellites with infrared sensors and/or missile defense infrared sensors, Terran Orbital said Monday.

The award builds on Terran Orbital’s previous work of manufacturing 36 Beta satellite buses for Lockheed for the second tranche of the SDA’s data communications transport layer.

“This continued partnership signifies the confidence Lockheed Martin places in Terran Orbital’s capabilities. We are excited to leverage our expertise and deliver these advanced space vehicles to support the SDA’s mission objectives,” said Marc Bell, co-founder, chairman and CEO of Terran Orbital.

SDA launched the T2 Tracking Layer initiative to have a preliminary missile defense capability in addition to having global, persistent indications, detection, warning and tracking of conventional and advanced missile threats.

Terran Orbital will manufacture the satellite buses for the layer at its advanced robotic space vehicle production facilities located in California.

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Commerce Department Announces $120M in Proposed CHIPS Funding to Polar Semiconductor; Gina Raimondo Quoted
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Commerce Department Announces $120M in Proposed CHIPS Funding to Polar Semiconductor; Gina Raimondo Quoted

Polar Semiconductor could secure up to $120 million in potential CHIPS and Science Act funding through a non-binding preliminary memorandum of terms it signed with the Department of Commerce.

The Commerce Department said Monday Polar will use the proposed funding to launch new technology capabilities and expand its manufacturing facility to double its production of power chips and sensors within two years.

“This proposed investment in Polar will crowd in private capital, which will help make Polar a U.S.-based, independent foundry. They will be able to expand their customer base and create a stable domestic supply of critical chips, made in America’s heartland,” said Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.

The proposed funding is expected to help generate over 160 jobs in Minnesota and will support more than $525 million in investments from Polar, private investors and state and local entities in support of the company’s chip production capacity expansion efforts.

Polar will back its construction workforce through a project labor agreement with its construction partner Mortenson.

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David Salvagnini Takes on Chief AI Officer Role at NASA
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David Salvagnini Takes on Chief AI Officer Role at NASA

David Salvagnini, chief data officer at NASA, has assumed responsibility as the agency’s first chief artificial intelligence officer tasked with supporting the development and risk management of AI tools and training throughout the enterprise.

In this role, Salvagnini will align strategic planning for the adoption and use of AI tools across NASA and help strengthen AI-focused collaboration with industry, academia and government partners, NASA said Monday.

“It’s important that we remain at the forefront of advancement and responsible use. In this new role, David will lead NASA’s efforts to guide our agency’s responsible use of AI in the cosmos and on Earth to benefit all humanity,” said Bill Nelson, administrator of NASA and a 2024 Wash100 awardee.

Salvagnini joined NASA in June 2023 after serving as director of the architecture integration group and chief enterprise architect at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

His government career includes roles such as deputy chief of enterprise information technology operations and cyber services, chief data officer and technical director at the Department of Defense.

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HHS to Fund AI, Behavioral Health IT Projects in FY 2024
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HHS to Fund AI, Behavioral Health IT Projects in FY 2024

The Department of Health and Human Services Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology has unveiled new funding opportunities for improving health data quality used by artificial intelligence tools and accelerating the adoption of health information technology in behavioral health.

ONC released a special emphasis notice under the Leading Edge Acceleration Projects in Health IT funding opportunity for fiscal year 2024 to seek project proposals for the two areas of interest, HHS said Monday.

Under area 1, ONC is looking to develop technologies designed to evaluate and improve the quality of electronic health record data used by AI tools.

For area 2, the office aims to invest in projects to design, develop and pilot health IT platforms in behavioral health settings.

“These two areas of interest are a natural extension of ONC’s work,” said Steve Posnack, deputy national coordinator for health IT. “We look forward to receiving innovative applications and seeing the impacts generated by selected awardees.”

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DOD Seeks to Address FOCI Risks for Covered Contractors, Subcontractors With New Directive
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DOD Seeks to Address FOCI Risks for Covered Contractors, Subcontractors With New Directive

The Department of Defense has issued a directive to establish policy and assign responsibilities to evaluate and determine whether the ownership of a covered contractor or subcontractor requires the implementation of foreign ownership, control or influence — a.k.a. FOCI — mitigation measures.

Milancy Harris, acting undersecretary of defense for intelligence and security, approved the directive, which took effect Monday, May 13.

The document outlines the responsibilities of the undersecretaries of defense for intelligence and security and acquisition and sustainment and the directors of the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency and the Defense Intelligence Agency, among others.

For instance, the DSCA director should complete case reviews of beneficial ownership and FOCI, inform the contracting officer, designated principal staff assistants and officials at DOD components of the FOCI assessment and recommend whether FOCI mitigation measures should be implemented to address the identified risks.

The directive offers procedures to mitigate FOCI risks for a covered vendor or subcontractor.

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DHS Issues Plan to Streamline R&D Investments and Maximize Impact on Mission
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DHS Issues Plan to Streamline R&D Investments and Maximize Impact on Mission

The Department of Homeland Security has released a strategic plan to optimize its research investments with the ultimate goal of reducing U.S. exposure to various security risks by fiscal year 2030.

The DHS said Monday that its Innovation, Research and Development Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years 2024-2030 offers options for how IRD investments could be coordinated in order to maximize their impacts on the agency’s missions.

DHS Undersecretary for Science and Technology Dimitri Kusnezov noted how IRD investments bring about technologies that ensure “our front-line operators have the tools they need to stay ahead of our adversaries and better prepare for and respond to natural hazards.”

A key element of the strategy is the introduction of strategic priority research areas, which are described as “a cross-cutting assembly of enduring scientific efforts which provide a means for addressing priority needs across multiple HSE mission areas.”

The plan lists eight SPRAs — advanced sensing; artificial intelligence and autonomous systems; biotechnology; climate change; communications and networking; cybersecurity; data integration, analytics, modeling and simulation; and digital identity and trust — and shows how they align with the DHS’ six homeland security enterprise missions.

The SPRAs are expected to not only facilitate intra-agency collaboration but help with the development of the resource allocation plan for fiscal years 2026 through 2030 and beyond.

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BAE Systems to Address Challenges With RF Electronics Under New DARPA Award; Caprice Gray Quoted
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BAE Systems to Address Challenges With RF Electronics Under New DARPA Award; Caprice Gray Quoted

BAE Systems’ FAST Labs research and development organization has received a contract from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency to tackle thermal challenges associated with electronic warfare systems.

Under the award, BAE Systems will support the agency’s Technologies for Heat Removal in Electronics at the Device Scale initiative, or THREADS, which intends to address temperature limits at the transistor scale, the company announced from Merrimack, New Hampshire on Tuesday.

Caprice Gray, director of device materials and manufacturing research at BAE Systems’ FAST Labs, noted the “longstanding challenge” of excessive heat in electronics for the aerospace and defense industry.

Temperature issues have historically prevented military systems that use radio frequency electronics from operating at their full theoretical limits. Fixing this problem could nearly triple the range of RF-based systems.

The THREADS program specifically aims to explore new materials and methods of diffusing heat that diminishes performance and mission life for monolithic microwave integrated circuits. Gallium nitride devices are THREADS’ main focus.

“With material and process enhancements, we are on the verge of overcoming this challenge and doing so will unleash the hidden potential in mission critical electronic warfare and other RF-based systems,” said Gray.

The new contract is valued at $12 million. While carrying out its responsibilities, BAE Systems will lean on past experience in microelectronics development and work alongside Modern Microsystems and four universities.

BAE Systems recently received $35 million in funding for another microelectronics project under the CHIPS & Science Act. With this investment, BAE Systems will optimize its Microelectronics Center in Nashua, New Hampshire.

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CDAO Directorate Seeks Industry Input on Budget Tracking Software for Program Manager-Level Users
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CDAO Directorate Seeks Industry Input on Budget Tracking Software for Program Manager-Level Users

The Assessment & Assurance Directorate within the Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office is conducting market research to determine the availability of financial planning and analysis — or FP&A — software products that support budget proposing, planning and tracking.

The requirement stems from A2’s need to coordinate with various Department of Defense stakeholders as it carries out programs that seek to test and evaluate artificial intelligence models, according to a request for information posted on the Tradewinds website.

A2 is specifically looking into FP&A software that is usable at the program manager and portfolio manager level.

Interested parties have until June 11 to respond.

Responses may be used in the future in the awarding of contracts.

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House Panel Proposes $850B Defense Policy Bill for FY 2025
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House Panel Proposes $850B Defense Policy Bill for FY 2025

The House Armed Services Committee’s draft of the potential $849.8 billion National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2025 includes $1 billion for the procurement of another Virginia-class submarine for the U.S. Navy, Breaking Defense reported Monday.

The draft NDAA would cut 10 F-35 fighter jets from the Department of Defense’s request of 68 fighter aircraft and allow the U.S. Air Force to continue divesting its A-10 planes.

The House panel’s defense policy bill would support multiyear procurement of the CH-53K helicopter for the U.S. Marine Corps, preclude the retirement of USS Lake Erie and USS Shilo guided-missile destroyers and require the department’s chief digital and artificial intelligence officer to submit a report on its efforts to scale the Combined Joint All-Domain Command and Control capability.

HASC is set to mark up the defense policy bill on May 22.

According to the report, the Senate Armed Services Committee is scheduled to mark up its NDAA version from June 11 to 14.

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