Extended Solids

DARPA is soliciting innovative multidisciplinary research proposals to develop and demonstrate synthesis methods of materials with superior properties (>1.5X over SOA) that currently can only be made using ultrahigh pressure techniques, such that processing under conditions amenable to production scales (<2000 K and 0.5 GPa) and stability under ambient conditions is achieved. Extended solids are polymorphs/phases of simple molecules that are currently formed under ultrahigh pressure conditions where strong intermolecular bonding and tight crystal packing can be induced, leading to dramatic changes in physical, mechanical, and functional properties. See attached DARPA-BAA-12-20.