Air Force Fiscal Year 2023 Young Investigator Program (YIP)

The Fiscal Year 2023 Air Force Young Investigator Research Program (YIP) intends to support early in career scientists and engineers who have received Ph.D. or equivalent degrees by 1 April 2015 or later showing exceptional ability and promise for conducting basic research. The program objective is to foster creative basic research in science and engineering; enhance early career development of outstanding young investigators; and increase opportunities for the young investigator to recognize the Air Force and Space Force mission and related challenges in science and engineering.

Individual awards are made to U.S. institutions of higher education, industrial laboratories, for-profit, or non-profit research organizations where the principal investigator (PI) is employed on a full-time basis and holds a regular, non-contractor position. YIP PIs must be a U.S. citizen, national, or permanent resident. Researchers working at a Federally Funded Research and Development Center or a Department of Defense (DoD) Laboratory are not eligible for this competition.

Most YIP awards are funded up to $150,000 per year for three years, for a total of $450,000. Each three year budget must not exceed $150,000; regardless if the total budget is $450,000. Exceptional proposals will be considered individually for higher funding levels and/or longer duration.

We anticipate at least thirty-seven (37) traditionally funded YIPs under this competition if funds are available. There may be up to an additional two YIPs funded in partnership with the Laboratory for Physical Sciences (LPS) in Quantum Information Sciences research discipline area.