Notice of Intent: Qunnect Automated Polarization Compensation System

NOTICE OF INTENT TO SOLE SOURCE Contracting Opportunities Announcement Type: Special Notice Announcement Number: NIST-NOI-26-01353 Subject: Procurement of Qunnect Automated Polarization Compensation System Introduction This is a notice of intent, not a request for a quotation. A solicitation document will not be issued, and quotations will not be requested. Purpose The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) intends to negotiate a firm-fixed price purchase order on a sole source basis with the Qunnect Inc., located at 141 Flushing Ave. Brooklyn NY 11205-1338 USA. The purchase order will specifically procure the Automated Polarization Compensation System. This system will be utilized by the Information Technology Laboratory (ITL), Applied and Computational Mathematics Division at NIST Gaithersburg MD campus. Authority This acquisition is being conducted using the procedures at FAR Part 12 – Acquisition of Commercial Products and Commercial Services. The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for this acquisition is 334515 – Instrument Manufacturing for Measuring and Testing Electricity and Electrical Signals, with a small business size standard of 750 Employees. Description The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)/Quantum Information Group applies expertise in mathematical subdisciplines such as combinatorics, graph theory, network science, operations research, optimization, discrete nonlinear dynamics, computational geometry, quantum mechanics, and information theory. Researchers apply their knowledge and skills in areas such as the experimental quantum optics, fundamental models of physics, chemistry, biology, and information systems, complex systems analysis, pattern recognition, and quantum computing and communications. In collaboration with NIST and outside scientists, the group develops, analyzes, and applies related mathematical and experimental methods and tools for critical problems of measurement science at NIST, and develops mathematical foundations for the measurement science of information systems. The purpose of this acquisition is to obtain an automated polarization compensation system (APC) that can be used to stabilize the polarization of an aerial fiber in our quantum network testbed, and capable of stabilizing fiber over a length, greater than 60 km. The APC will be used to stabilize our 64 km aerial fiber between NIST and the University of Maryland for the purpose of polarization entanglement distribution and polarization entanglement swapping. Since these protocols rely on transporting single photons, the APC must support time-multiplexing with the quantum signal, as otherwise the quantum signal will be swamped by the APC signal, and quantum protocols cannot be executed. Therefore, classical telecom polarization stabilization systems cannot be used, but a quantum-ready system needs to be used for our purposes. We identified the Qunnect Qu-APC system, consisting of an injector and compensator module, as the best system to suit our needs. Further, NIST has already developed a software library for this system to automate the data acquisition and data analysis. The Qu-APC will further assist with NIST’s research of developing a movable measurement test suite for quantum network component and protocol testing, verification, and characterization. The test suite will be implemented on the NIST and University of Maryland campus along with a fiber network dedicated to quantum optical signal transfer between various quantum network nodes. The system shall meet or exceed the salient characteristics identified below. All items must be new. Used or remanufactured equipment will not be considered for award. Experimental, prototype, or custom items will not be considered. The use of “gray market” components not authorized for sale in the U.S. by the proposer is not acceptable. All line items shall be shipped in the original manufacturer’s packaging and include all origina...