Photonics & Advanced Materials grants
Optics, lasers and materials innovation across UK and EU funders
Photonics and materials cut across every funder because they enable everyone else's roadmap. That breadth is an advantage if you sequence funders deliberately, and a trap if you send the same proposal to all of them.
£190m+ won by our team
PhD-level specialists who have won these awards themselves.
Funders funding photonics & advanced materials
- EPSRC
- Dstl
Programmes that fit photonics & advanced materials companies
Innovate UK CR&D competitions
Optical components, integrated photonics and imaging systems.
EIC Transition
Materials and photonics moving from lab-validated results towards market readiness.
ESA open calls
Directed energy, LIDAR, IR sensing and hardened optics for space applications.
What assessors actually score
- Measured optical performance against a named commercial benchmark
- Manufacturability and yield addressed, not deferred to a later stage
- Clear identification of the system-level customer
Where we work in photonics & advanced materials
Photonics & Advanced Materials grants in our directory
Live programmes from the UK grant directory that suit photonics & advanced materials projects. Deadlines move between rounds, so each listing links through to the current detail.
Horizon Europe
[Horizon - Civil Security for Society] Security challenges of the green transition in urban und peri urban areas
Technology Readiness Level: Activities are expected to achieve TRL 5 by the end of the project What the Grant Supports Projects should investigate the integration of sustainable and environmentally friendly technologies into urban and peri-urban areas to identify and explore physical and cyber risks and vulnerabilities associated with their deployment. Research may address: * Green and grid-interactive roofs and walls * Solar power installations * Electric vehicle charging stations * Energy storage systems * Smart sensors and surveillance systems * Green transportation systems * Nature-based…
UKRI
[UKRI] Hydrogen R&D competition
Expected to open. Funding opportunity to target innovations in the hydrogen for storage space, with a focus on technology-agnostic innovations such as compressors, materials, sensors, supporting hydrogen storage scale-up within early 2030s timescales. Part of the Research and Development Missions Accelerator Programme.
Innovate UK
Collaborative R&D (CR&D) competitions
Mission-led competitions under the Innovate UK plans (e.g. Clean Energy Superpower Mission) funding partnerships between businesses and research organisations.
Innovate UK
Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTP)
Three-way partnership between a business, an academic institution and a graduate to deliver a strategic innovation project.
European Innovation Council
[EIC] Stage 1: EIC Accelerator Challenge
- Single SMEs or startups based in EU Member States or Associated Countries (including the UK) under Horizon Europe. -UK companies can only apply for the grant - Other eligible countries eligible for blended finance - Companies must own the intellectual property of the innovation they are developing. - The innovation should be market-ready or close to commercialisation and require significant funding to scale. (TRL6+) - Applicants must be willing to co-finance the remaining 30% of project costs if receiving a grant.
European Innovation Council
[EIC] Stage 2: EIC Accelerator Challenge
Objectives: The EIC Accelerator aims to support high-risk, high-impact innovations to create new markets or disrupt existing industries in Europe and globally. The program helps scale breakthrough technologies and deep tech innovations, particularly in areas where private investors may be reluctant to invest due to high risk. The EIC Accelerator is best suited for innovative companies with disruptive technologies that need funding to expand and enter global markets. Specific challenges: 1. Advanced Materials for Renewable Energy and Energy Storage System: - Supported start-ups and SMEs must d…
Relevant client wins
Grants our team has won for companies solving comparable technical problems.
£452,654
For composite production leap
Mayku
Advanced manufacturing: composites
Read the case study
Phase 3 awarded
Large-scale live trials funded
Butterfly
Clean tech: indoor air quality
Read the case studyFund your photonics & advanced materials R&D
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