NOTICE OF INTENT TO NONCOMPETITIVELY ACQUIRE RAPID THERMAL ANNEALING (RTA) SYSTEM

Announcement Type: Special Notice
Classification Code: 6695

Announcement Number: NIST-SS26-118

Subject: Notice of Intent to Noncompetitively Acquire Rapid Thermal Annealing (RTA) system – Annealsys

The National Institute of Standards and Technology located in Boulder, Colorado has a state-of-the-art research laboratory (the Katharine Blodgett Gebbie Building) to support the most sensitive research done at NIST. Included in this building is a Class 100 microelectronics fabrication facility, called the Boulder Micro-Fabrication Facility (BMF).  One of the tools in the BMF is a Rapid Thermal Annealing (RTA) system that is used to anneal films from substrates.  The BMF currently has a system that can anneal substrates with a size of up to 100 mm, but the BMF currently requires a system that can anneal substrates with a size of up to 150 mm.  The BMF requires a similar system to the existing system with some added features such as a vacuum chamber.

NIST intends to award a non-competitive contract to Annealsys for an RTA system to be used at the BMF.

This notice is not a request for a quotation. A solicitation document will not be issued, and quotations will not be requested.

This acquisition is being conducted under the authority of RFO 12.102(a). The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for this acquisition is 334516, Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing.

NIST requires a solution that meets the following minimum requirements:

1. The BMF currently has a system that can anneal substrates with a size of up to 100 mm, but the BMF currently requires a system that can anneal substrates with a size of up to 150 mm.

2. The BMF requires a similar system to the existing system with some added features such as a vacuum chamber. 

3. The BMF requires that this system fit in a space of 1 m x 1 m x 2 m, which is the space allocated to the current system and requires a measure to directly measure the substrate in-situ using an optical pyrometer.

After thorough evaluation, it has been determined that the RTA system from manufacturer, Annealsys, is essential for several reasons:

1. Technical: The Government requires a system that has the specifications of its current RTA system with the addition that it can accept substrates up to 150 mm SEMI spec wafers, has an ability to directly measure the sample temperature in-situ, and is able to fit in the current space.  Based on market research and responses to NIST’s sources sought notice, other manufacturers produced a system that was too large to fit within NIST’s available space. Other manufacturers were not able to provide an optical pyrometer that could directly measure the substrate temperature. None of the other manufacturers identified provided a system that could meet both the space requirements and the optical pyrometer specifications.  Therefore, it was determined that only Annealsys could provide a system that meets the Government’s minimum requirements.
    

NIST conducted market research from August 2025 – May 2026 by conducting online searches and discussions with sources to determine what sources could meet NIST’s minimum requirements.  The results of that market research revealed that only Annealsys, 139 RUE DES WALKYRIES, MONTPELLIER, 34000 FRANCE (UEI: Q1S8DCLLWL43) appears to be capable of meeting NIST’s requirements. The Government intends to issue a Sole Source Award to Annealys, under the authority of FAR 12.102(a). The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for this acquisition is 334516. 

However, any sources that believe they are capable of meeting NIST’s minimum requirements are encouraged to respond to this notice by the response date to provide the following information at a minimum: Company Unique Entity Identifier number in https://sam.gov; details about what your company is capable of providing that meets or exceeds NIST’s minimum requirements; whether your company is an authorized reseller of the product or service being cited and evidence of such authorization; and any other information that can help NIST determine whether this requirement may be competitively satisfied.