U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Physical Measurement Laboratory / Quantum Measurement Division

Mass and Force Group

Projects/Programs

Displaying 1 - 8 of 8
SI Base Units chart

Calibration of Force Transducers

Ongoing
The calibration report describes the relationship between the applied force and the measured deformation, either in electrical or mechanical units. A transducer can be calibrated using (1) a readout device furnished by the customer, in which case the transducer and the readout device are calibrated...
traceability chain illustration

Calibration of Mass Standards

Ongoing
Redefinition of the Kilogram and Consensus Value of the Kilogram The unit of mass was redefined in May 2019 as part of a general revision to the International System of Units (SI). See SI Redefinition. The kilogram is now defined by the Planck constant. The International Prototype Kilogram (IPK) no...
Accelerometer

Dynamic Mechanical Metrology: Acceleration, Force, and Acoustics

Ongoing
The Dynamic Mechanical Metrology Project develops primary standards and primary measurement methods for sound, vibration and force at the highest accuracy levels, and uses these to disseminate traceability in measurements of these quantities to industry and society. Calibration Services...
weighing device

National Type Evaluation Program (NTEP)

Ongoing
NTEP requires industry to submit prototype weighing devices for evaluation to determine whether or not it meets the uncertainties which are related to tolerances associated with the intended final use in the marketplace. All devices sold in the United States for "legal for trade" purposes must pass...
mass-in-vacuum precision mass comparator

The NIST Mise en Pratique since the Redefinition of the Kilogram

Ongoing
Realization Since the redefinition of the kilogram, the NIST Mass and Force Group has been closely involved with the NIST-4 Kibble balance project and its realization of the electronic kilogram via the Kibble Principle. Traceability post-realization is maintained through what is referred to as the...
DPO sensor

Quantifying the environmental contributions to mass change

Ongoing
Experiments using two types of centimeter scale oscillators are described: the double paddle oscillator (DPO) and a commercial quartz crystal microbalance (QCM). Double Paddle Oscillator (DPO) Since mass changes are mostly on the surface of mass artifacts, we have implemented a micro-weighing sensor...
deadweight

Reconditioning of the 4.45 MN deadweight machine

Completed
The 4.45 MN DWM has been in use in the NIST Force Laboratory since 1965 and is frequently characterized as the largest deadweight force standard in the world. Thousands of measurements through many force calibrations have been performed over the lifespan of the machine. The machine was the...
relative uncertainty, force and mass

Small Mass and Small Force Metrology at NIST

Ongoing
Project 1: The electronic milligram. As a result of kilogram redefinition within the SI, it may be possible to realize mass at the milligram level and below using electrical measurements. To this end, the NIST Electrostatic Force Balance (EFB) has been used to measure the mass of artifacts spanning...
Was this page helpful?