Trusted & Assured Microelectronics

Mission— Defense Microelectronics CFT

Microelectronics components are the foundation of modern military systems. The Department of Defense (DoD) is exposed to various vulnerabilities that threaten the ability to source microelectronics needed to sustain programs of record. To prepare the Department for Great Power Competition, the DoD must take action to ensure access to the microelectronic components needed to sustain our defense programs and systems effectively and affordably. The Department also needs a better strategy to transition leading edge technology developed by both government and industry to DoD programs of record, to ensure the Department maintains a competitive edge.

Mission— Trusted and Assured Microelectronics

This program supports microelectronics modernization activities that enable defense systems to keep pace with commercial microelectronics technological advances, reduce reliance on obsolete microelectronics, and mitigate the Department’s reliance on sole source foundries for assured state-of-the-art (SOTA) microelectronics. It addresses the challenges of 1) having enduring access to a multiplicity of modern manufacturing processes that require commercial volumes to maintain long term viability and 2) protecting the intellectual property (IP) of the microelectronic parts that are manufactured. Microelectronics technology is a critical enabler for the development of new systems and sustainment of fielded systems. In addition, this program directly supports the priority of building a resilient Joint Force and defense ecosystem through modernization of key capabilities and fostering pathways to adapt SOTA commercial and dual-use technologies to Defense needs. This program also supports the objective of Making the Right Technology Investments by supporting the domestic microelectronics innovation ecosystem and partnering with industry to quickly incorporate market-driven commercial advances with military-relevant capabilities. This program supports the OUSD(R&E) Microelectronics Modernization Roadmap. The primary areas of focus of this roadmap include the following: access to state-of-the-art microelectronics technology, access to advanced packaging and test; access to the best commercial design technology; evidence-based assurance and secure design; foundry access; policies, standards, and Joint Federated Assurance Center (JFAC) governing body; access to radiation hardened microelectronics; access to non-complementary metal oxide semiconductor state-of-the-art (SOTA) microelectronics for radio frequency and optoelectronic applications; education and workforce development; and supply chain awareness and security. Recognizing that an assured supply of microelectronics is a U.S. Government (USG)-wide concern, this activity will interface with interagency partners and stakeholders to capture interagency requirements, opportunities for collaboration, and strategic decisions that can be made to limit the overall cost of these requirements to the USG, limit unneeded duplication, and enable technology transition and adoption. This activity is being led by the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering.

Mission— ME U.S. ME Dominance-Dev

This project will promote microelectronics innovation and create an evidence-based assured microelectronics pipeline including maintaining Joint Federated Assurance Center (JFAC) strategic partnerships, assuring field programmable gate array (FPGA) devices, supply chain awareness and security, and workforce development. It will slow and, in the long-term, reverse offshoring trends by fostering commercial and Government alliances to preserve the U.S. ecosystem, lower barriers to innovation and adoption, strengthen workforce expertise, and ensure DoD has access to the next generation of advanced technology by utilizing an evidence-based assurance approach. This approach enables management of microelectronics security that is commensurate with program risk throughout the product pipeline and maintain the United States as the global source for high- end, secure, and reliable microelectronics components. In addition, this project will develop a new data driven risk-based assurance paradigm for supply chain protection. This paradigm will strengthen security while improving access, without exposing sensitive intellectual property (IP) to the foundry and requiring post-manufacture validation of foundry products. The enhancement will develop evidence-based assured design concepts in manufactured systems, enabling a formal risk-based approach to protection techniques. Manufactured microelectronics will be tested to ensure that IP protections meet or exceed current National Security Agency standards for IP protection, and to develop DoD’s ability to detect certain malicious supply chain attacks on DoD microelectronics.

Mission— DOD Unique Needs RADHARD

This project addresses Government needs for microelectronics that represent only a small market share while spanning a wide range of devices, from legacy components to state-of-the-art (SOTA) technologies. The Government must sustain specialty suppliers and maintain access to a diverse microelectronics ecosystem to develop and acquire the application specific integrated circuits (ASICs) and specialized or modified commercial off the shelf (COTS) components required to satisfy military needs for radiation hardened, radio frequency (RF) and optoelectronic (OE) microelectronics. By partnering in the maturation of state-of-the-art material sources, foundries, and packaging facilities, the DoD is able to develop the ability to align commercial practices with DoD needs for unique functionality and encourage open access design to stimulate innovation and drive affordability. Subject matter expertise, technology, and manufacturing capability and capacity, including fabrication, packaging and test, are all needed. Moreover, domestic supply chains must be made more stable for both RF Gallium Nitride (GaN) and integrated photonics availability, integrity and security for the Department and the Defense Industrial Base.

Mission— Access to Advanced Packaging and Testing - Development

The DoD needs modern microelectronics capabilities. Advanced packaging provides necessary performance improvements, size weight power and cost (SWAP-C) benefits, and unique opportunities to disaggregate DoD requirements into smaller and lower cost chiplets while maximally leveraging state-of-the-art (SOTA) commercial technologies. However domestic advanced packaging capabilities are limited and the heterogeneous integrated (HI) chiplet ecosystem is nascent. This project collaborates with DoD, the Defense Industrial Base (DIB), and domestic commercial industry to leverage and enhance existing capabilities to develop self-sustaining advanced packaging and test solutions that meet DoD needs.

Mission— Access to State-of-the-Art (SOTA) Microelectronics - Development

Microelectronics are critical technologies that drive the modern economy and enable the defense systems that allow warfighters to accomplish their missions. Other nations recognize the need to control the microelectronics supply chain and indigenous state-of-the-art (SOTA) manufacturing. Aggressive investments and licit and illicit actions by peer nations threaten U.S. leadership. China alone purports investment of $150 billion and a national strategy to achieve dominance in all major areas of microelectronics by 2030. Russia and China have publicly stated that advanced microelectronics, AI, and machine learning (ML) are the keys to economic and military dominance. This project funds the operation of microelectronics software assurance (SwA) support to DoD programs and organizations of the Joint Federated Assurance Center (JFAC), codified in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2025, Sec 922, to support the assurance needs of the Department of Defense by ensuring, pursuant to policies related to hardware and software assurance and supply chain risk management, that the software and hardware developed, acquired, maintained, and used by the Department are free from intentional and unintentional vulnerability during the life-cycle of development and deployment of assured, trustworthy defense systems. The collaboration between the JFAC and program offices will help mitigate existing and emerging critical threats and vulnerabilities in microelectronics to all DoD programs. The project supports the implementation of Executive Order 14028 Improving the Nation’s Cybersecurity for software assurance for critical software such as software bill of materials, and information communications technology supply chain risk management, and the PD, Cyber Roadmap for mitigation of software vulnerabilities that are cyber related. This project includes establishment of new strategic partnerships with existing commercial SOTA domestic foundries to develop a data-driven, risk- based approach to supply chain protection and develop the assured access, secure design, and manufacture of advanced microelectronics technology and electronic components. Successful implementation will transition these technologies to use in DoD programs, obtain access to multiple commercial microelectronics facilities, establish secure design capabilities, and solidify a data-driven approach to supply chain protection. It also includes keeping pace with the rapid advancements in microelectronics technology and the globalization of this industry sector. It will provide the basics for updating and strengthening DoD assurance policy and includes collaborating with industry to develop data driven evidence-based practices.

Accomplishments & Planned Programs (6)