The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation is inviting pre-applications for the 2026 Materials Synthesis Investigators and Moore Synthesis Fellows competition as part of its Emergent Phenomena in Quantum Systems (EPiQS) Initiative. Through EPiQS, the foundation seeks to accelerate breakthroughs in quantum materials—solids and engineered structures that exhibit novel quantum phases of matter and emergent electronic phenomena. 

Investigator awards are a central pillar of EPiQS. These awards provide exceptionally creative scientists with substantial, long-term, and flexible support, enabling them to pursue ambitious research agendas of their own design. By fostering intellectual freedom and risk-taking, the EPiQS Investigators program aims to drive transformative advances and expand the frontiers of quantum materials research. EPIQS will conduct open calls for Investigators and Moore Synthesis Fellows in 2026, 2029, and 2032. 

Description of the Awards

The EPiQS Materials Synthesis Investigator and Moore Synthesis Fellow awards support leading and emerging U.S.-based experts in materials synthesis. The program aims to advance new synthesis approaches, facilitate the discovery of new quantum materials, improve the quality of existing materials, and strengthen the status of synthesis experts in U.S. academia. 

The competition features two award categories based on career stage: 

• Materials Synthesis Investigators – Awards for U.S.-based faculty at any career stage. 
• Moore Synthesis Fellows – Awards for U.S.-based faculty who began their first tenure-track appointment in 2024 or later. 

This call for proposals will result in the appointment of up to six Materials Synthesis Investigators and up to two Moore Synthesis Fellows. The awards will provide six years of unconstrained funding, offering recipients full autonomy to define their research directions and allocate their budgets. The anticipated award amounts are $1,800,000–$1,900,000 for Materials Synthesis Investigators and $1,300,000–$1,400,000 for Moore Synthesis Fellows.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for an EPiQS Investigator award, an applicant’s primary appointment must be as tenured, tenure-track, or research faculty at a U.S. academic institution. Individuals holding adjunct or emeritus appointments are not eligible.  

To be eligible for a Moore Synthesis Fellow award, an applicant must be a current U.S.-based faculty member whose first tenure-track appointment began in 2024 or later. Individuals whose first tenure-track appointment will begin after the pre-application deadline of March 27, 2026, are also eligible, provided they have formally accepted the position.  

Applicants are strongly encouraged to review the Moore Foundation’s indirect cost policy prior to applying. Those uncertain whether their institution can meet the policy requirements should consult their institutional administrators.  

Past and current Moore Foundation grantees – both EPiQS and non-EPiQS – are eligible unless they are non-compliant with grant requirements (e.g., currently overdue reports or other violations of their grant agreements).  

In 2026, both the EPiQS and Experimental Physics Investigators (EPI) initiatives will conduct investigator competitions. Applicants eligible for both programs may apply to only one this year. Please review the eligibility criteria and scientific scope of each initiative carefully before deciding which to apply for. Current EPI initiative grantees are welcome to apply and will be evaluated on the same basis as all other applicants. If selected as EPiQS Investigators, the amount of their EPiQS award may be adjusted based on the remaining balance of their EPI grant.   

We welcome applications from all qualified individuals regardless of age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, race, national origin, religion, or disability. 

Scientific and Technical Scope

All materials synthesis techniques will be considered. Strong preference will be given to candidates advancing the fundamental science of quantum materials rather than practical applications.  

The following broad classes of solid materials are of interest to EPiQS:  

• Strongly correlated systems, including but not limited to high-temperature and other unconventional superconductors, Mott insulators, multiferroics, and correlated oxide heterostructures 
• Frustrated magnets and other solids exhibiting novel or exotic magnetic properties 
• Topological materials 
• Two-dimensional crystals and layered systems, including but not limited to graphene, transition metal dichalcogenides, and van der Waals heterostructures 
• Other low-dimensional systems, including but not limited to quantum wells and quantum wires with emergent electronic properties 
• Hybrid quantum materials created by the integration of dissimilar component materials

Organic-based materials exhibiting emergent electronic properties, along with hybrid systems that incorporate organic components, will be considered. 

While this award portfolio emphasizes crystal and film growth methods, we will also consider atomic monolayer exfoliation and stacking, as well as other emerging approaches to the nanofabrication and nano-assembly of quantum materials.  

Many researchers focused on experimental characterization now also routinely perform monolayer exfoliation and stacking in their labs. To determine whether you are a good fit for a Materials Synthesis Investigator or a Moore Synthesis Fellow award, consider the following questions: 

• Are you dedicating more than 50% of your group’s effort to developing novel methods for monolayer exfoliation, stacking, or twisting? 
• Do your synthesis methods and resulting samples outperform those of the majority of research groups in the field?
• Do you provide other research groups with samples of these van der Waals materials? 

Answering “no” to one or more of these questions suggests that your application for a synthesis-focused EPiQS award will be less competitive. 

The new phase of the EPiQS Initiative places significant emphasis on four research thrusts. However, applicants for EPiQS Investigator and Moore Synthesis Fellow awards are entirely free to propose and pursue research directions outside these areas. Alignment with the thrusts will not be considered in the selection process.  

Selection Criteria and Process

Researchers who can demonstrate significant originality and pioneering contributions to the field are encouraged to apply. Candidates should have an outstanding track record in materials discovery and/or improvement of materials quality. Investigators and Fellows will be selected based on the following primary criteria: 

• Significance and impact of recent synthesis research; only work published in 2019 or later will be considered.
• The potential to deliver groundbreaking advances in synthesis over the next six years, as articulated in the research proposal.

Secondary considerations may include: 

• Track record of providing high-quality samples to experimentalists. 
• Mentoring and training contributions. 
• Ensuring diversity across synthesis techniques and classes of materials within the awardee cohort. 

Successful candidates typically demonstrate a combination of the following qualities that set them apart from other highly competent scientists in their field: 

• They are recognized intellectual leaders in the field of quantum materials synthesis, consistently pushing it into new areas of inquiry. 
• They help define major questions in the field. 
• They apply and/or develop advanced synthesis tools and methods that enable novel or superior approaches to creating new quantum materials. 
• They demonstrate outstanding promise of future original and innovative contributions. 
• They are willing to take risks and explore unproven and uncertain research avenues. 

Candidates with dual expertise in materials synthesis and advanced materials characterization will not be at a disadvantage. However, applications should focus primarily on the candidate’s contributions and plans as related to materials synthesis. 

The application process consists of two stages. 

In the pre-application stage, applicants will provide basic personal and employment information, a curriculum vitae, and a brief research statement. Candidates for both the Materials Synthesis Investigator and Moore Synthesis Fellow awards will complete the same pre-application form. Pre-applications will be internally screened for eligibility and programmatic fit, and, with input from external experts, a subset of about 60 highly competitive applicants will be identified. These applicants will then be invited to submit full proposals, including an expanded research statement and additional information. Due to the expected high volume of pre-applications, feedback will not be provided to those not selected for the full-proposal stage. All applicants will receive notifications of their pre-application status. 

Pre-applications are due by 11:59 PM U.S. Pacific Time on March 27, 2026. Applicants should enter the required information themselves; institutional involvement and budget submissions are not required at this stage. Eligible and highly competitive applicants will be invited to submit full proposals in late April. The proposals will undergo rigorous expert review by leading scientists in the field. 

To begin your pre-application, you must register as a user in this application portal if you have not previously done so. When creating your user account, please use an email address that you check regularly, as all communications and status updates regarding your application will be sent to that address. After submitting your pre-application, you may return to review and edit it at any time before the deadline.

Should you have any difficulties using this application portal or have any questions regarding the application, please email us at EPiQS@moore.org.