DARPA details High Operational Temperature Sensors program

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) recently outlined plans to develop microelectronic sensor technologies capable of withstanding extreme temperatures through its High Operational Temperature Sensors (HOTS) program.

“Many of the defense and industrial systems that rely on sensors experience harsh environments beyond the capability of today’s high-performance physical sensors,” HOTS Program Manager Benjamin Griffin said.
“That means these systems have to be designed and operated with reduced performance and excessive margins – they’re limited by the uncertainty of their thermal environments.”

HOTS will conduct a Proposers Day on May 31, 2023, with further program details being available in a forthcoming Broad Agency Announcement.

“If we can design, integrate, and demonstrate high-performance physical sensors that can operate in high-temperature environments, we can advance toward systems that perform at the edge of their capability instead of the limits of uncertainty,” Griffin said.

DARPA officials said physical sensors that can overcome limitations and optimally perform in high-temperature environments, without additional thermal management, will enable critical operations that include monitoring stability and functionality in extremely hot system components.

“If you look at the progress of cars alone, we’ve seen sort of a nervous system of sensing evolve, providing visibility and knowledge of what’s happening across the platform,” Griffin said. “Applying the same concept to larger-scale systems in harsh environments will offer tremendous benefits for the future system capabilities.”