The Federal R&D Investment Ecosystem Under the US Solid-State
- Federal SST research investment spans ARPA-E (CIRCUITS Modular SST program), DOE Office of Electricity, NSF FREEDM ERC
- Georgia Tech ARPA-E project u2192 Resilient Power Systems u2192 Eaton acquisition Aug 2025 (~$86M)
- Eaton DOE $4.9M cooperative agreement Dec 2021 u2192 2024 demonstration at NREL and ITC sites
- NSF FREEDM ERC at NCSU active since 2008; 17 years operational; dozens of PhD alumni now at commercial SST companies
- Inflation Reduction Act 2022 SST-relevant funding flowed via DOE OE and ARPA-E 2023-2026; post-2026 cycle uncertain
The United States solid-state transformer (SST) industry that emerged commercially in 2024 and 2025 is the product of approximately two decades of federal research and development investment across at least three Department of Energy programs and the National Science Foundation. The federal investment ecosystem under the commercial wave is largely invisible to trade-press coverage but is the necessary precondition for the multi-billion-dollar transactions and capital expansions now occurring.
The Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) Modular Solid State Transformers program, embedded in the broader CIRCUITS initiative, has been the single most important targeted federal research investment in US SST technology. The program funded the Georgia Institute of Technology team led by Professor Deepak Divan to develop a 4 kilovolt to 13 kilovolt modular SST using silicon carbide power devices. That program work spun out as Resilient Power Systems, which Eaton acquired in August 2025 for an estimated $86 million.
The Department of Energy Office of Electricity has supported SST research through multiple program lines including the Grid Modernization Initiative, the Smart Grid Investment Grant program (residual), and direct cooperative agreements with industry. Eaton’s $4.9 million December 2021 DOE award to develop fast-charging SST infrastructure is one such cooperative agreement; the program ran through 2024 and produced demonstration hardware at NREL and ITC Holdings sites.
The National Science Foundation Generation-III Engineering Research Center program funded the FREEDM Systems Center at North Carolina State University starting in 2008. FREEDM’s seventeen-year program output includes the Y10 SST core technology, dozens of PhDs whose dissertations developed SST architectures now in commercial production, and a continuing single-stage 99 percent efficiency research line. Federal funding through NSF has been substantially less visible in trade-press coverage than ARPA-E and DOE OE awards but is the longest-running and deepest US academic SST investment.
The 2026 federal budget environment for SST research is uncertain. The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 included substantial DOE manufacturing and grid-modernization funding that has flowed through Office of Electricity and ARPA-E programs over the 2023 to 2026 window. Whether the post-2026 federal budget cycle sustains, expands, or contracts SST-relevant funding lines will be a deciding factor in whether the US-based SST industrial base that has emerged sustains its 2025-2026 momentum into 2028 and beyond.
Why It Matters
The emergence of the US solid-state transformer (SST) industry has significant implications for the broader grid modernization efforts. As US utilities and grid operators, such as ERCOT, PJM, and CAISO, continue to invest in grid infrastructure, the development of SST technology is crucial for improving efficiency and reliability. The federal investment ecosystem, including programs like ARPA-E and DOE OE, has played a vital role in driving innovation in this space.
The commercialization of SST technology also has important implications for data-center demand and battery energy storage systems (BESS) economics. As the demand for renewable energy and energy storage continues to grow, the development of efficient and reliable grid infrastructure will be essential. The SST industry’s growth is also closely tied to broader policy and market trends, including FERC orders and IEEE/NERC standards.
The future of the US SST industry will depend on sustained federal funding and support. As the 2026 federal budget environment remains uncertain, the industry’s momentum will be closely tied to the allocation of funds for SST research and development. The outcome will have significant implications for the US-based SST industrial base and its ability to compete in the global market.
Critical Perspective
Editorial correction: This post is part of MGRID’s Solid-State Transformer industry coverage. As of May 2026, that body of work systematically framed manufacturer announcements, funding rounds, and laboratory demonstrations as commercial deployments. The reality is that field-deployed commercial-class SST in revenue service globally is measured in single digits, and almost every product cited in this series is at “announced” or “funded” stage, not “operational.” Readers should treat the specific claims in this post against the standards documented in our [SST Industry Reality Check](/?p=9044) (the per-claim audit table maps marketing language to verifiable deployment status). The corrective article is the canonical reference for SST industry reality; this post remains published with its original framing so the editorial drift is traceable.
