Sources SoughtPosted Dec 8, 2025·Responses due Dec 22, 2025

Custom Magneto-resistive Sensors

Commerce (all) · DEPT OF COMMERCE NIST

Stage
Early notice (sources sought, presolicitation or special notice)
NAICS
334516
Value
Not stated
Set-aside
None stated
Solicitation
NIST-SS26-CHIPS-35
PSC
Not stated
Place
Gaithersburg, MD, USA
Contact
Cielo Ibarra (cielo.ibarra@nist.gov)
CSV Email

Capture briefs (a one-page, shareable copy of this page) are part of Pro. The CSV here holds the notice, its timeline and past awards.

Where this opportunity stands

Every notice posted under solicitation NIST-SS26-CHIPS-35 in this department, oldest first.

Early notice
  • Dec 8, 2025
    Sources Sought
    Open
  • Dec 8, 2025 · this notice
    Sources Sought
Solicitation
None posted
Award
Not yet. Typical award: Feb 3, 2026 to Apr 14, 2026, middle of the range Feb 26, 2026.
Measured from 19 past early notices at National Institute of Standards and Technology that later posted an award (middle half of cases, counted from Dec 8, 2025).

Next steps for this stage

Standard steps for the notice type; not advice about this buyer.

  • Answer the notice: this is when the requirement can still be shaped.
  • Contact the contracting officer named on the notice.
  • Check who won similar work; they are the likely bidders.

What the notice says

NIST-SS26-CHIPS-35 PLEASE NOTE THIS A SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE ONLY Title:? Custom Magneto-resistive Sensors BACKGROUND The NIST Sensor Science Division is responsible for advancing the measurement science, standards, and applications for sensing optical power, temperature, humidity, pressure, vacuum, flow, and related physical phenomena to support U.S. industry and trade. Our laboratory performs measurements and calibrations using magnetic and infrared optical detectors, and we fabricate our own measurement systems around custom detectors optimized for use with these systems. The custom-designed… (show all)

magneto-resistive sensors to be purchased will be used as part of a scanning magnetic microscope we are developing for acquisition of 3D thermal images in semiconductor packages. NIST requires fabrication of custom magneto-resistive sensors according to a design that meets our specifications. The contract will begin with initial design drawings from the manufacturer, and after review and modifications, the final design will be approved by both parties before fabrication begins. These sensors will be used for magnetic field detection in a scanning magnetic microscope we are developing for the CHIPS Metrology Project 03.12 (3D Thermal Imaging of Advanced Packages). These are the minimum requirements are as follows: Line Item 0001: Custom Magneto-resistive Sensors Detailed Requirements **The sensors delivered must be bare-die detectors, meeting the following specifications: 1) Frequency range a) detectors must operate from DC to 100 kHz b) 1/f knee must be at frequency of 1 kHz or below 2) Field sensitivity a) �1 nT/(Hz)0.5 at 10 kHz b) �1 nT/(Hz)0.5 at 1 kHz c) �10 nT/(Hz)0.5 at 100 Hz 3) Operating conditions a) The sensor must be able to operate in saturation fields up to 100 mT, where the saturating field can be DC or AC b) Magnetometer, gradiometer, and Wheatstone bridge designs are all acceptable if they can meet all the specifications required c) In-plane or perpendicular sensing are acceptable as long as all technical specifications are met d) Operating temperature of at least 10 �C � 85 �C 4) Dimensions a) Sensor size must be � 2 mm x 2mm b) It must be possible for the sensor to be placed within 1 mm of the surface of a device under test 5) Deliverable specifications a) At least one wafer of sensors will be delivered (minimum 100 sensors), preferably diced into individual chips. In the bid, manufacturers have the option to quote the price for a second wafer, undiced. b) Multiple designs can be fabricated on the wafer to test different geometries. Single sensor designs are required, but linear arrays up to 50 devices are also possible c) Sensors must be delivered according to the timeline in the Deliverables section, and the final wafer design must be approved by both parties before fabrication d) Documentation of wafer sensor CAD, measured specifications, operation instructions must be provided. Technical support must be offered for 1 year. HOW TO RESPOND TO THIS NOTICE In responding to this notice, please DO NOT PROVIDE PROPRIETARY INFORMATION. Please include only the following information, readable in either Microsoft Word 365, Microsoft Excel 365, or .pdf format, in the response. Submit the response by email to the Primary Point of Contact and, if specified, to the Secondary Point of Contact listed at the bottom of this notice as soon as possible, and preferably before the closing date and time of this notice. � Provide the complete name of your company, address, name of contact for follow-up questions, their email, their phone number and, if your company has an active registration in https://sam.gov, your company�s Unique Entity ID (UEI). � Details about what your company is capable of providing that meets or exceeds NIST�s minimum requirements and its past experience with design and manufacture of magneto-resistive sensors. Any relevant past performance. � Identify any aspects of the description of the requirements in the BACKGROUND section above that could be viewed as unduly restrictive or create unnecessary barriers that adversely affect your firm�s ability to fully participate in a procurement for such services and explain why. Please offer suggestions for how the requirements could be organized or structured to encourage the participation of small businesses. � For the NAICS code o Indicate whether your company is (a) a small business or (b) other than small business. See the Table of Small Business Size Standards and the associated .pdf download file for small business size standards and additional information. o If you believe the NAICS and/or Product Service Code code listed in this notice is not the best NAICS code for the type of product addressed in this notice, identify an alternative NAICS/PSC code that you believe would be more appropriate for the planned procurement. � If your firm has existing Federal Supply Schedule contract(s) or other contracts for products or services against which the Department may be able to place orders, identify the contract number(s) and other relevant information. � Describe your firm�s experience (as a prime, subcontractor, or consultant) providing the products or services described in Background section. � Provide any other information that you believe would be valuable for the Government to know as part of its market research for this requirement. � Please let us know if you would like to engage to get a better understanding of the requirement or need additional information about the Government�s requirement for the products or services described in the Background section. QUESTIONS REGARDING THIS NOTICE Questions regarding this notice may be submitted via email to the Primary Point of Contact listed in this notice. Questions should be submitted so that they are received by 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on December 12, 2025. Questions will be anonymized and answered via sources sought notice amendment following the question submission deadline. IMPORTANT NOTES The information received in response to this notice will be reviewed and considered so that the NIST may appropriately solicit for its requirements in the near future. This notice should not be construed as a commitment by the NIST to issue a solicitation or ultimately award a contract. This notice is not a request for a quotation. Responses will not be considered as proposals or quotations. No award will be made as a result of this notice. NIST is not responsible for any costs incurred by the respondents to this notice. NIST reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and appropriate. Thank you for taking the time to submit a response to this request.

Who won similar work

114 award notices on SAM.gov in the last 24 months. Match: Same office, same NAICS 334516.

WinnerAwardsValueLast
TECHNICAL COMMUNITIES, INC.6$1.5MOct 7, 2026
TOPTICA PHOTONICS INC6$614KOct 7, 2026
Carl Zeiss Microscopy, LLC4$2.7MSep 24, 2026
GOVERNMENT SCIENTIFIC SOURCE INC3$136KSep 22, 2026
BRISTOL INSTRUMENTS INC3$91KSep 24, 2025
Montana Instruments Corporation2$440KSep 8, 2026
STABLE LASER SYSTEMS INC2$277KSep 15, 2026
SPINNER ICT INC2$196KOct 7, 2026
LIQUID INSTRUMENTS INC2$176KSep 15, 2026
NKT PHOTONICS INC.2$48KSep 30, 2025

Value counts single-winner awards. "Shared" awards are multiple-award contracts that list every winner with the same total ceiling; that ceiling is not one company's win, so it is not added in.

Latest awards

Competitive landscape

For the 8 most frequent past winners above. Lobbying is matched by the company's exact name or exact ticker; agencies are as named on the filings.

  • 0 of these past winners lobbied Commerce, Dept of (DOC) since 2024 (0 filings)
  • 0 of their lobbyists list a past Commerce, Dept of (DOC) job
  • No corporate PAC money from them to the overseeing committees since 2024
  • 0 foreign-agent (FARA) registrations
See who and the source records with Pro

Policy around it

Bills the past winners named while lobbying this agency's issues, rules from the department, and executive orders that name the agency, last 12 months.

  • 0 bills named on the past winners' lobbying filings
  • 372 rules from the department in the last 12 months
  • 0 executive orders naming the agency in the last 12 months
See who and the source records with Pro

Market

For past winners matched exactly to a listed company. Insider trades are open-market buys and sells (Form 4) in the last 90 days, shown as facts; our own study found insiders do not reliably buy ahead of awards.

  • 0 of the past winners are listed companies
  • 0 insider buys and 0 insider sells at them in the last 90 days
See who and the source records with Pro

Sources: SAM.gov notices and award notices; Senate LDA lobbying filings; FEC filings; FARA; Federal Register; congress.gov; SEC Form 4. Every row above links to its record.

Companies are matched to tickers by exact name only. A company we could not match shows no market rows; that is a miss, not a finding.