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DOE Energy Frontier Research Centers (EFRC)

EFRC Portal

All applications for this internal competition must be submitted via InfoReady. You can sign in using your Net-ID and your @stonybrook.edu email address. Please allow sufficient time to familiarize yourself with the portal prior to submitting your pre-application. Pre-application requirements are listed in the announcement below.

The Office for Research and Innovation invites applications to the DOE Energy Frontier Research Centers (EFRC). The EFRC program brings together world-class teams of scientists from universities, DOE national laboratories, and other institutions to perform energy-relevant basic research with a scope and complexity beyond what is possible in single-investigator or small-group awards. These multi-investigator, multi-disciplinary centers accelerate transformative scientific advances for the most challenging topics in materials sciences, chemical sciences, geosciences, and biosciences. Stony Brook University may submit THREE applications as the lead institution. 

Please see below for details. If you are interested in applying, you must submit a pre-application via the EFRC Portal in InfoReady by March 12, 2026 at 9 am. Pre-applications for internal review and selection must be uploaded to the portal as a single PDF document. 

DISCIPLINES: Energy research, materials sciences, chemical sciences, geosciences, biosciences, AI/ML

WHAT DOES IT FUND: The focus of the EFRC program is on fundamental scientific research, therefore applications to this FOA must not propose applied research and technology development activities. BES is soliciting applications in two general categories: BES Report Topics (including Foundational Science to Accelerate Nuclear Energy Innovation; Controlling Subsurface Fractures and Fluid Flow; Basic Research Needs for Next Generation Electrical Energy Storage; Basic Research Needs for Transformative Manufacturing; Basic Research Needs for Microelectronics; BES Roundtable on Opportunities for Quantum Computing in Chemical and Materials Sciences; and BES Roundtable on Opportunities for Basic Research for Next-Generation Quantum Systems) and Special Topics (including a) Controlling Quantum Phenomena to Enable Unconventional Computing Paradigms; b) Development and Workflow Integration of AI/ML Models for Materials and Chemistry Discovery Science; c) Emergent Phenomena of Complex Chemical Systems and; d) Fundamental Science for Critical Minerals and Materials (CMM)). Applications may respond to topics in both categories.

APPLICANT REQUIREMENTS: 

  • Individuals with the skills, knowledge, and resources necessary to carry out the proposed research as a Principal Investigator (PI) are invited to apply.
  • The PI (EFRC Director) on a pre-application or application may also be listed as a senior or key personnel on an unlimited number of separate submissions.
  • EFRC Directors on university led applications must be in a tenured position. Individuals in part-time permanent positions are eligible to be proposed as an EFRC Director.

AWARD:  $3M to $4.5M per year for four years

SPONSOR DEADLINE: Pre-application (required) due April 1, 2026; Application due July 1, 2026

A complete pre-application should comprise of the following:

  • Cover Page: 
    • Title of Pre-application (EFRC Name) 
    • PI/EFRC Director’s name, academic title, telephone number, and email address
    • List of partner institutions 
    • List of key personnel 
    • The science topics(s) specified in Section III, primarily addressed by the proposed work
  • Project Description (2 pages maximum, 11 pt. font minimum, with 1-inch margins) that includes the following:
    • A statement of the scientific mission of the proposed EFRC;
    • A brief description of the research goals, and research methods and approaches that will be used to achieve the goals of the EFRC;
    • An explanation of how the proposed team, capabilities, and/or approach distinguishes the proposed EFRC from the rest of the community;
    • A brief explanation of the potential scientific impact of the proposed research and the need for an integrated, multi-disciplinary research team; 
    • A brief discussion of how the proposed research is responsive to the objectives outlined in Section III of the NOFO. 
  • Biographical sketch (3 pages maximum) of the PI/EFRC Director