Funder: National Institutes of Health
Due Dates: November 5, 2026 (Renewal/resubmission/revision) | February 5, 2027 (New) | March 5, 2027 (Renewal/resubmission/revision) | June 5, 2027 (New) | July 5, 2027 (Renewal/resubmission/revision) | October 5, 2027 (New) | November 5, 2027 (Renewal/resubmission/revision) | January 7, 2028 (Closing)
Funding Amounts: No budget cap; requests must reflect project needs; up to 5 years; no cost sharing required
Summary: Supports engineering development and validation of next-generation brain stimulation devices for treating mental health disorders.
Key Information: Clinical trials are not allowed, and applicants must assemble a multidisciplinary investigative team.
Description
The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), part of NIH, supports longer-term R01 projects developing novel brain stimulation devices or significantly improving FDA-approved or cleared devices through hardware or software advances. Projects should emphasize engineering development, bench testing, and validation rather than hypothesis-driven studies that simply use devices. Animal testing and limited human testing that does not constitute a clinical trial are allowable when necessary for initial proof of concept.
The program seeks substantial improvements in spatial and temporal precision, stimulation depth, multifocal delivery, and closed-loop control. Areas of interest include ultrasound neuromodulation, multifocal electrode interfaces, focused ECT, portable stimulation systems, patient-specific modeling, biomarker-driven targeting, and improved sham conditions. Both invasive and noninvasive technologies are eligible, but proposed tools must be designed for eventual human use.
