The NASA SBIR and STTR programs fund the research, development, and demonstration of innovative technologies that fulfill NASA needs as described in the annual Solicitations and have significant potential for successful commercialization. If you are a small business concern (SBC) with 500 or fewer employees or a non-profit RI such as a university or a research laboratory with ties to an SBC, then NASA encourages you to learn more about the SBIR and STTR programs as a potential source of seed funding for the development of your innovations.
The SBIR and STTR programs have 3 phases:
The SBIR and STTR Phase I contracts last for 6 months with a maximum funding of $125,000, and Phase II contracts last for 24 months with a maximum funding of $750,000 - $1.5 million.
Opportunity for Continued Technology Development Post-Phase II:
The NASA SBIR/STTR Program currently has in place two initiatives for supporting its small business partners past the basic Phase I and Phase II elements of the program that emphasize opportunities for commercialization. Specifically, the NASA SBIR/STTR Program has the Phase II Enhancement (Phase II-E) and Phase II eXpanded (Phase II-X) contract options.
Please review the links below to obtain more information on the SBIR/STTR programs.
Provides an overview of the SBIR and STTR programs as implemented by NASA
Provides access to the annual SBIR/STTR Solicitations containing detailed information on the program eligibility requirements, proposal instructions and research topics and subtopics
Schedule and links for the SBIR/STTR solicitations and selection announcements
Federal and non-Federal sources of assistance for small business
Search our complete archive of awarded project abstracts to learn about what NASA has funded
Still have questions? Visit the program FAQs
","parentProgram":{"ableToSelect":false,"isActive":true,"description":"Catalyst is a portfolio of early stage programs that specialize in different innovation constituencies and mechanisms to push the state of the art in aerospace technology development","programId":92327,"responsibleMd":{"canUserEdit":false,"locationEdit":false,"organizationRolePretty":"","organizationTypePretty":""},"title":"Catalyst","manageGaps":false,"acronymOrTitle":"Catalyst"},"parentProgramId":92327,"programId":73,"responsibleMd":{"organizationId":4875,"organizationName":"Space Technology Mission Directorate","acronym":"STMD","organizationType":"NASA_Mission_Directorate","canUserEdit":false,"locationEdit":false,"organizationRolePretty":"","organizationTypePretty":"NASA Mission Directorate"},"responsibleMdOffice":4875,"stockImageFileId":36648,"title":"Small Business Innovation Research/Small Business Tech Transfer","manageGaps":false,"acronymOrTitle":"SBIR/STTR"},"description":"Current designs for NASA fission power systems include relatively heavy shielding to protect the system components and payload from radiation emitted by the reactor. This shielding typically comprises over 35% of the power system mass. We propose to develop ultra-radiation-hardened power conversion technology to reduce shielding requirements for the converter and electronics so the large central shadow shield can be reduced or eliminated, in favor of smaller localized shields positioned to protect specific items that are sensitive. This work has great potential to reduce overall system mass significantly for Kilopower, Nuclear Electric Power (NEP), and Surface Power missions being considered by NASA. Consequently, these missions will become more practical and affordable to execute. Although we plan to focus on Brayton converters and electronics, the results will also apply to Stirling converters and their electronics. Creare is well-suited to succeed because we have a long history developing turbo-Brayton systems and radiation-hardened electronics for spaceflight applications. During the Phase I project, we will develop converter and electronics designs with radiation-hardened features, we will specify conceptual mission details, and we will optimize shielding mass. We will then fabricate and test prototype hardware during the Phase II project.","benefits":"There are many NASA uses for the proposed technology. It can be applied to emerging Kilopower, Nuclear Electric Power, Surface Power, and Radioisotope Power missions. Although we will focus on Brayton systems, our results will be broadly applicable to Stirling systems as well. Additionally, there is an ever present need for radiation hardened electronics to support all space missions and payloads. In particular, extreme radiation tolerance is important for environments with high background radiation, such as those found in the Jovian orbital system.