Public Affairs Office

The next generation of wireless communications technology will allow many more devices to send information much faster, making possible everything from virtual reality to driverless cars. NIST works with industry and academia to understand how those technologies behave, so next generation wireless networks can be deployed sooner and with a better user experience.

Automotive companies are increasingly using lightweight materials to improve vehicle fuel economy. However, incorporating those materials into new vehicles is time-consuming and costly. NIST data and models are helping automakers understand and predict how materials behave in the harsh conditions inherent to manufacturing.

Protein-based biologic drugs, which are increasingly used to treat cancers, autoimmune disorders and infectious diseases, are hard to produce, store and deliver reliably. Better measurement tools developed by NIST drive innovation and lower costs associated with these drugs.

In the past decade, hundreds of thousands of patients were affected by two major recalls of electrical leads used in cardiac pacemakers and implanted defibrillators due to early failures. Today, NIST’s reliability tests are helping manufacturers ensure their cardiac devices last for the length of time promised to patients.