SuperCables BAA
W911NF-18-S-0009
Grants.gov  https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=305910

The U.S. Army Research Office (ARO) in partnership with the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA) seeks research and development of technology and techniques for energy-efficient, high data rate transmission of digital signals between computing systems operating at room and cryogenic temperatures. The focus in the SuperCables program is research and demonstration of components to convert from low level electrical signals in circuits operating at a temperature of approximately 4 kelvins to conventional optical signals at room temperature and to move the information therein from one environment to the other. Pending results of this program, IARPA may support a follow-on program to develop the complete system for bidirectional data transmission between room temperature and 4 kelvins.

The National Strategic Computing Initiative (NSCI) assigns IARPA the role of foundational research for future computing paradigms offering an alternative to standard semiconductor computing technology. The Army is similarly interested in these paradigms for its C3I missions. Candidate paradigms include various methods of computing at cryogenic temperatures (e.g., digital, analog, reversible, neuromorphic, or quantum). Specific examples include digital computation as being developed by IARPA’s C3 program, software defined radio, and quantum annealing processors. Computing at cryogenic temperatures may use digital or analog electrical signals, but ultimately must communicate with optical fiber networks operating at room temperature. A key consideration for the data transfer system connecting the two environments is that the cost in terms of total electrical power, including power required for cooling at 4 kelvins, not dominate the total computing system power.