Website National Science Foundation
Program Summary
DMREF seeks to foster the design, discovery, and development of materials to accelerate their path to deployment by harnessing the power of data and computational tools in concert with experiment and theory. DMREF emphasizes a deep integration of experiments, computation, and theory; the use of accessible digital data across the materials development continuum; and strengthening connections among theorists, computational scientists, data scientists, mathematicians, statisticians, and experimentalists as well as those from academia, industry, and government. DMREF is committed to the education and training of a next-generation materials research and development (R&D) workforce; well-equipped for successful careers as educators and innovators; and able to take full advantage of the materials development continuum and innovation infrastructures that NSF is creating through partnership with other federal and international agencies.
DMREF will support activities that significantly accelerate the materials discovery-to-use timeline by building the fundamental knowledge base needed to advance the design, development, or manufacturability of materials with desirable properties or functionality. The 2021 MGI Strategic Plan re-envisioned the linear Materials Development Continuum to promote integration and iteration of knowledge across the entire path to deployment. DMREF will undertake this challenge through building a vibrant research community, forming interdisciplinary teams to conduct research in a “closed-loop” fashion, leveraging data science and machine learning, providing ready access to materials data, and educating the future MGI workforce.
Proposal Requirement
Proposals submitted to this solicitation must be directed by a team of at least two Senior/Key Personnel with complementary expertise. The proposed research must involve a collaborative and iterative “closed-loop” process wherein theory guides computational simulation, computational simulation guides experiments, and experimental observation further guides theory.
Funding Level
Awards are expected to range from $1,500,000 – $2,000,000 over a duration of four years.
Internal Competition Guidelines
UCI may submit up to 5 preliminary proposals as lead institution in response to this call. Interested applicants are asked to submit an internal preliminary proposal to the Office of Research (via the UCI Review application portal) by December 2nd at 11:59pm. The internal application should include the following:
- 2-page project summary that outlines the proposed materials research project and how it utilizes the power of data and computational tools.
- 1-2 page “team description” that outlines participating faculty and their expected contributions toward the goals of the project.
- 2-page NSF biosketches for the 2 Co-PIs/Senior/Key Personnel, and for any other key contributor to the project.
If necessary, an ad hoc committee will convene to review the preliminary proposals and the selected PIs will be notified in time to develop their application to meet the February 4, 2025 NSF deadline applications.
For the complete DMREF solicitation, please visit: NSF 25-508: Designing Materials to Revolutionize and Engineer our Future (DMREF) | NSF – National Science Foundation.
Contact Information
Questions about our internal campus review process may be directed to Dr. Mike Gallo in the Office of Research at magallo@uci.edu.