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Physical Measurement Laboratory

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NIST/JILA Fellow Jun Ye Wins Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics

September 9, 2021

BOULDER, Colo. — Physicist Jun Ye of the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has been awarded the 2022...

Groundbreaking Technique Yields Important New Details on Silicon, Subatomic Particles and Possible ‘Fifth Force’

September 9, 2021

Using a groundbreaking new technique at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), an international collaboration led by NIST researchers has...

Ion trap is tiny chip held in place as part of a larger metal scientific device.

Spotlight: An (Almost) Laser-Free Way to Trap Ions for Quantum Computing

September 9, 2021

Look Ma, (almost) no lasers! NIST researchers and collaborators found a potential new way to make more powerful quantum computers based on ions (charged atoms)...

Testing 1-2: New Laser-Based Microphone Calibration Measures Up

September 2, 2021

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have conducted the first demonstration of a faster and more accurate way to calibrate...

Exploring quantum gravity—for whom the pendulum swings.

August 18, 2021

When it comes to a marriage with quantum theory, gravity is the lone holdout among the four fundamental forces in nature. The three others—the electromagnetic...

Two men in dark goggles stand over a table of scientific equipment.

NIST’s Quantum Crystal Could Be a New Dark Matter Sensor

August 5, 2021

Physicists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have linked together, or “entangled,” the mechanical motion and electronic properties of...

19th International Workshop on Low Temperature Detectors (LTD19)

July 29, 2021

The 19th International Workshop on Low Temperature Detectors (LTD19) was an opportunity for researchers from around the world to exchange information about the...

Ultracold transistors serve as their own memory devices

July 29, 2021

Digital transistors – assembled by the billions in today’s computer chips – act as near-perfect electronic switches. In the “on” position, achieved when an...

Latest Values of Fundamental Constants Published

July 13, 2021

Four scientists from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have reported the latest values for the fundamental constants of nature on June...

A woman wearing a mask stands over a yellow sphere at a lab bench.

NIST-Led Study Finds Variations in Quantitative MRI Scanners’ Measurements

June 30, 2021

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is widely used in medicine to detect, diagnose and treat diseases such as cancer, while relying on experts’ interpretation of...

Human figure stands facing large wooden board. Behind that is a row of tubes sticking up from a base.

NIST Method Uses Radio Signals to Image Hidden and Speeding Objects

June 25, 2021

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and Wavsens LLC have developed a method for using radio signals to create real-time...

Escape From Flatland: Calibration Method Enables Microscopes to Make Accurate Measurements in All 3 Dimensions

June 24, 2021

Conventional microscopes provide essential information about samples in two dimensions — the plane of the microscope slide. But flat is not all that. In many...

New Standard for Vaccine Fridges Unveiled

June 17, 2021

You know that part of your fridge that always freezes your lettuce? Or the section in your freezer door that leaves your popsicles a little mushy? Different...

Detecting mid-infrared light, one photon at a time

June 1, 2021

For some 30 years, scientists have used superconducting materials to record the tiniest specks of light imaginable — individual photons, or single particles of...

cartoon cow and chicken using slingshots to fling pairs of entangled photons through a glass of milk and a chicken cutlet

Spotlight: Two Photons Walk Into a Chicken

May 26, 2021

In weird but potentially practical news, NIST researchers headed to the grocery store to find out. Not as a joke, but as a step toward better imaging methods...

NIST team probes indestructible quantum states that may aid quantum computing

May 14, 2021

They may not be impervious to bullets like Superman, but groups of electrons that gather along the edges of some ultrathin materials have their own superpowers...

Race Logic: Novel Circuitry Solves a Myriad of Computationally Intensive Problems With a Minimum of Energy

May 11, 2021

From the branching pattern of leaf veins to the variety of interconnected pathways that spread the coronavirus, nature thrives on networks — grids that link the...

Gray ovals on blue background are linked to curved gray lines.

NIST Team Directs and Measures Quantum Drum Duet

May 6, 2021

Like conductors of a spooky symphony, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have “entangled” two small mechanical drums and...

Different colored spots of light form a circle on a black background.

Spotlight: A Giant Leap for Magnifying Materials With Neutron Beams

May 2, 2021

From the stars to the Lilliputian — a new camera lens using the power of reflection has the potential to transform neutron imaging. Wolter optics, named after...

Identifying Individual Molecules: NIST Study Suggests How to Build a Better ‘Nanopore’ Biosensor

April 27, 2021

Researchers have spent more than three decades developing and studying miniature biosensors that can identify single molecules. In five to 10 years, when such...

Nathan Tomlin wears protective clothes and safety goggles while reaching into a complex-looking scientific device.

Spotlight: Thermal Detectors Among the Stars to Study the Earth’s Climate

April 22, 2021

To understand climate change, scientists need the ability to constantly measure the solar radiation entering and leaving the Earth’s atmosphere. Researchers...

NIST Study Finds Ideal Doping Concentration and 3D/2D Structure to Prevent Degradation of Potential Solar Power Material

April 19, 2021

The crystal known as perovskite is a promising photovoltaic material for harnessing energy from sunlight. Perovskites have several advantages over silicon, the...

A photon is absorbed, creating an electron–hole pair (carrier pair).

Light Fantastic: Counting Single Photons at Unprecedented Rates

April 12, 2021

In high-end 21 st century communications, information travels in the form of a stream of light pulses typically traveling through fiber optic cables. Each pulse...

A shadow image with purple background of a male scientist looking at a microscope

The Ins and Outs of a NIST Patent

April 6, 2021

Electron or X-Ray Beam Lithography in Liquids Description These days, the fabrication of 2D and 3D structures out of liquid, biocompatible, hydrogel solutions...

The Case of the Cloudy Filters: Solving the Mystery of the Degrading Sunlight Detectors

March 25, 2021

More than 150 years ago, the Sun blasted Earth with a massive cloud of hot charged particles. This plasma blob generated a magnetic storm on Earth that caused...

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