This Pre-Solicitation opportunity from Department Of Defense was posted on June 25, 2026. The submission period has ended. Browse the details below for market research, or find similar active opportunities.
Optical Stabilizer and Laser
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The U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory is proposing a sole-source contract award to Ki3 Photonics Technologies for the procurement of an Optical Link Stabilizer 2nd Gen and an accompanying External Reference Laser, with the intent to fulfill a specialized requirement that cannot be met by any other commercial provider. The requested equipment must meet stringent technical specifications including a maximum link length exceeding 2 km, operation at 1550 nm wavelength, timing delay compensation of at least 1 nanosecond with a resolution of 10 picoseconds or better, fiber-coupled FC/APC interfaces, and full software control via a Python API over Ethernet. The reference laser must have a linewidth of 1 kHz and output power of 20 mW or more, and the entire system must support active stabilization for real-world quantum fiber links up to 3 kilometers. The government has determined that Ki3 Photonics Technologies is the sole manufacturer of these integrated components, with no viable alternatives or resellers available, and that no other products can be modified to satisfy the technical and operational demands of the mission involving phase-stabilized radio frequency sensing with entangled photons. Although this notice is not a solicitation and no contract will be awarded based on responses to it, the government invites all responsible sources to submit capability statements by July 10, 2026, to demonstrate potential competition advantages. Submissions must provide clear and convincing evidence that open competition would benefit future procurements, but the agency retains full discretion to proceed without competition regardless of any responses received. The contracting office, located in Rome, New York, will evaluate all submissions, though a sole-source determination remains unchanged unless compelling new information emerges. A formal justification for the sole-source award will be included with the eventual Notice of Award. The anticipated award date is on or before July 30, 2026, under NAICS code 334516 with a small business size standard of 1,000 employees, and all inquiries must be directed to Brooke McDonald at the provided email address.
General Info
Agency
NAICS
Place of Performance
Rome, NY, 13441, USASet-Aside
Documents
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Timeline
Submission Closed
Organization & Contact Information
Full Description
This is a Notice of Proposed Contract Action under RFO Part 12 Acquisition of Commercial Products and Commercial Services. This notice is for information only; a solicitation will not be issued. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR QUOTATION. No contract will be awarded on the basis of offers received in response to this notice. The associated North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code is 334516 with a small business size standard of 1,000 employees.
The Government requires the procurement of an Optical Stabilizer and Laser, and intends to negotiate a sole-source award for this requirement with Ki3 Photonics Technologies, 2547 Rue Sicard, #301 Montreal QC, Canada. Relevant Ki3 Photonics Technologies part numbers and product descriptions are as follows:
Item 1, qty. 1 each – Part #: Ki3 LINQ.SYNQ, Optical Link Stablizer 2nd Gen
Item 1, qty. 1 each- External Reference Laser
Minimum required specifications:
- Maximum link length: greated than 2 km
- wavelength of operation: 1550nm
- maximum timing delay compensation: 1 ns (1000ps) or greater
- timing delay resolution: 10 ps or lesser
- software incl: Yes, Python API
- rack mountable units
- fiber coupled inputs/outputs, FC/APC
- reference/ experimental signal isolation: temporal and wavelength multiplexing
- Hardware supports active stabilization via external reference laser
- laser linewidth: 1 kHz
- laser power: 20 mW or greater
- Software control with Python API via Ethernet
The Government has determined that other companies' products and services do not meet or cannot be modified to meet the Government's needs. With regard to the LINQ.SYNQ and related accessories (i.e. external reference laser), the item provides active link phase and timing stabilization across real-world quantum fiber links up to 3 kilometers length. The LINQ.SYNQ can correct for up to 1 nanosecond of timing drift, which is necessary for phase-stabilized radio frequency sensing with entangled photon signals. The reference laser is specially tailored to be compatible with the LINQ.SYNQ. Interchanges with Ki3 Photonics Technologies have yielded that they are the sole manufacturer of the required systems and do not maintain a network of resellers for their products. Accordingly, the Government has determined Ki3 Photonics Technologies to be the sole-source provider of the required optical stabilizer and laser as detailed above.
This is a notice of proposed contract action and not a request for competitive proposals; however, all responsible sources may submit a capability statement or proposal, which shall be considered by the agency. All inquiries should be sent by email to brooke.mcdonald@us.af.mil. Responses must be submitted by the date/time listed on the notice. Any response to this notice must show clear and convincing evidence that competition would be advantageous to the Government in future procurements.
Responses received will be evaluated; however, a determination by the Government not to compete the proposed procurement based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. The Government anticipates an award date on or before 30 July 2026.
A Sole Source Justification will be attached to the subsequent Notice of Award in accordance with applicable regulation.
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