Our expertise and multidisciplinary research contributes to national, regional and global security to help make Australia and the world a safer place to live.
Our 2032 Strategy channels our sense of responsibility to contribute to a better world, building on a decade of significant change and challenges. Our expertise and multidisciplinary research play a crucial role in developing cutting-edge technologies and innovations that have the potential to make Australia a safer and healthier place to live.
We have a long and strong history of collaboration with the defence and national security sector, including pioneering camouflage for the Australian environment. Our alumni invented the black box flight recorder and Wi-Fi, and today, we are developing quantum computer technology. These pioneering technologies exemplify the critical role university research plays in solving contemporary challenges.
Our research is conducted with the highest regard for compliance with national laws, values, and the University mission. We adhere to Australia's obligations under international treaties and comply with applicable laws, including those related to human rights, sanctions, and defence trade control regulations. Our researchers adhere to the Australian Code for the Responsible Conduct of Research and support the principles of academic freedom.
As we look to the next decade, we aim for our work to be more impactful and important to society than ever before. Under our 2032 Strategy, we will pursue aspirations focused on delivering sustained and consistent excellence and developing the flexibility and resilience to keep pace with – or stay ahead of – the changes we will inevitably experience in an increasingly fluid and unpredictable world.
To support our research mission, we partner on a range of research topics with the Australian Department of Defence, the United States Department of Defense, and the Defence Industry.
Many of our research projects linked to the Defence sector are government-funded. Our research with the Commonwealth Department of Defence encompasses a wide range of areas, including innovative technologies, healthcare, and communication services.
We have received funding from the United States Department of Defense for projects focusing on issues such as cancer and quantum computing.
Funder |
Project |
Australian Army History Unit |
Bcon: The British Commonwealth Occupation News in Japan: 1946-1950 |
Department of Defence |
Large-Area Detection of Improvised Explosive Devices by Portable Artificial Intelligence-Powered Electronic Noses |
Department of Defence |
Predicting the effectiveness of state-sponsored influence operations: A case study of the Solomon Islands and Melanesia |
Department of Defence |
Project Jericho 2021-2026 Smart Sensing Laboratory Program |
Department of Industry, Science and Resources |
3D Bio-Nanomaterial Displays with Designer Architectures and Functions |
NSW Department of Industry/Defence Innovation Network |
Project Denial of service exploration and prevention for Generative Pretrained Transformer models |
NSW Department of Industry/Defence Innovation Network |
Real-time Neuromorphic Acoustic Sensing System for Autonomous System |
NSW Department of Industry/Defence Innovation Network |
Silicone-based slippery covalently attached liquid coatings for CBRN protective garments |
Australian Research Council/Thales Australia Ltd/Reach Robotics Pty Ltd |
Australian Robotic Inspection and Asset Management Hub (ARIAM), an ARC Research hub hosted by the University of Sydney and in partnership with Queensland University of Technology and The Australian National University. |
Asian Office of Aerospace Research and Development (AOARD) - US Air Force |
Fragility in Topological Photonics |
Asian Office of Aerospace Research and Development (AOARD) - US Air Force |
Quantum correlation dynamics with large two-dimensional trapped-ion crystals |
Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) |
Complementing Human Intelligence to Recognize Opponent Narratives (CHIRON) |
US Air Force Office of Scientific Research |
Beam Combining and Adaptive Optics with Photonic Lanterns |
US Air Force Office of Scientific Research |
Developing a trapped-ion qudit for high-dimensional quantum information processing |
US Army Research Laboratory |
Entangled HEX: Building Superconducting Logical Qubits on a Heavy Hexagonal Lattice |
US Army Research, Development and Engineering Command |
Driven qubit implementations in silicon-MOS devices |
US Army Research, Development and Engineering Command |
Scalable and Efficient Characterization of Noise for Fault-tolerant Quantum Computing |
US Office of Naval Research Science and Technology |
Integrated microwave photonic filter for wideband RF receiver |
| US Office of Naval Research Science and Technology | Trapped-ion quantum simulation of chemical dynamics |
US Office of Naval Research Science and Technology |
Versatile water electrolysis systems based on liquid-to-gas separator-electrode assemblies |
Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP), administered by US Department of Defense |
Comparative effectiveness of exercise, cognitive behavioural therapy, and their combination for people with chronic musculoskeletal pain and poor sleep |
Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP), administered by US Department of Defense |
Exploiting Prostate Cancer Metabolic Dependencies to Develop New Therapeutics and Circulating Prognostic and Predictive Biomarkers |
Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP), administered by US Department of Defense |
HEROIC Prostate Cancer Precision Health Africa1K: Powering precision health to improve prostate cancer outcomes in Africa |
Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP), administered by US Department of Defense |
High-risk prostate cancer in southern Africa: Unravelling the genome and exposome (TARGET Africa) |
Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP), administered by US Department of Defense |
Immunophenotypes and use of aspirin or NSAIDs in ovarian cancer patients (pilot study supplement to 'Aspirin and NSAID use and ovarian cancer prognosis: a molecular epidemiological study') |
Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP), administered by US Department of Defense |
Sleep disturbance as a target for novel biomarkers and therapies for patients with Parkinsons disease |
Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP), administered by US Department of Defense |
Comparative effectiveness of exercise, cognitive behavioural therapy, and their combination for people with chronic musculoskeletal pain and poor sleep |
Note: Defence Industry clients are determined using a combination of the SIPRI database, Defence Connect Australian Defence Industry Report, International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) Military Balance publication amongst other sources.
The University is committed to transparency principles and will release information as it can, subject to relevant laws and regulations, including but not limited to confidentiality obligations, national security requirements, and the privacy, health, and safety of our staff and students.
This webpage will be updated on a regular basis.
Updated: 24 March 2025.