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Physical Measurement Laboratory

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NIST Staff Honored in 2007 Presidential Rank Awards

October 25, 2007

Four members of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) staff have been honored in the 2007 Presidential Rank Awards. The awards recognize...

NIST Physicist Honored for Measuring Forces between Ultra-cool Atoms

October 25, 2007

The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) has named NIST physicist Paul D. Lett as one of its new fellows. AAAS cites Lett for his work in...

Larger schematic showing a tiny human figure indicates the scale of the ITER toroid.

NIST Light Source Illuminates Fusion Power Diagnostics

October 11, 2007

Using a device that can turn a tiny piece of laboratory space into an ion cloud as hot as those found in a nuclear fusion reactor, physicists at the National...

illustration of NIST's modified field-effect transistor

New Quantum Dot Transistor Counts Individual Photons

October 11, 2007

A transistor containing quantum dots that can count individual photons (the smallest particles of light) has been designed and demonstrated at the National...

'Dead Time' Limits Quantum Cryptography Speeds

September 27, 2007

Quantum cryptography is potentially the most secure method of sending encrypted information, but does it have a speed limit? According to a new paper by...

Artist's rendition of the NIST superconducting quantum computing cable.

Digital Cable Goes Quantum: NIST Debuts Superconducting Quantum Computing Cable

September 26, 2007

BOULDER, Colo.— Physicists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have transferred information between two "artificial atoms" by way of...

JILA Finds Flaw in Model Describing DNA Elasticity

September 13, 2007

DNA, the biomolecule that provides the blueprint for life, has a lesser-known identity as a stretchy polymer. JILA scientists have found a flaw in the most...

Colorized micrograph of a silicon micro-cantilever

'Radio Wave Cooling' Offers New Twist on Laser Cooling

September 13, 2007

Visible and ultraviolet laser light has been used for years to cool trapped atoms—and more recently larger objects—by reducing the extent of their thermal...

JILA Physicist is Finalist for Service to America Medal

August 30, 2007

Konrad Lehnert, a physicist at JILA, is a finalist for the 2007 Service to America medals, presented annually by the non-profit, non-partisan Partnership for...

Cartoon illustrates new NIST technique for selectively modifying resistance of a semiconductor device layer.

Nanoscale Blasting Adjusts Resistance in Magnetic Sensors

August 16, 2007

A new process for adjusting the resistance of semiconductor devices by carpeting a small area of the device with tiny pits, like a yard dug up by demented...

New NIST Calibration Service 'Arms' Phasors for More Reliable Power Grids

August 16, 2007

While the new calibration service for phasor measurement units (PMUs) offered by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) sounds like it would...

Illustration of a nano-layerof Ruthenium in a magnetic sensors

Nano-layer of Ruthenium Stabilizes Magnetic Sensors

August 3, 2007

A layer of ruthenium just a few atoms thick can be used to fine-tune the sensitivity and enhance the reliability of magnetic sensors, tests at the National...

Black background. Blue structure that looks like an egg carton with red and yellow globes in each pocket

Thousands of Atoms Swap 'Spins' in Quantum Square Dance

August 3, 2007

Physicists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have induced thousands of atoms trapped by laser beams to swap "spins" with partners...

Changing the Rings: A Key Finding for Magnetics Design

August 3, 2007

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology's Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology (CNST) have done the first theoretical...

Thousands of Atoms Swap 'Spins' with Partners in Quantum Square Dance

July 25, 2007

GAITHERSBURG, MD—Physicists at the Commerce Department's National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have induced thousands of atoms trapped by laser...

Magnetic Tape Analysis "Sees" Tampering in Detail

July 20, 2007

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has developed an improved version of a real-time magnetic microscopy system that converts evidence of...

spectroscopy image of electron interference in a section of graphene sheet

Speed Bumps Less Important Than Potholes for Graphene

July 20, 2007

For electrical charges racing through an atom-thick sheet of graphene, occasional hills and valleys are no big deal, but the potholes—single-atom defects in the...

Three NIST Researchers Receive Flemming Awards

June 8, 2007

Three scientists from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) were among the eight federal employees who received the Arthur S. Flemming Award...

Schematic represents cryogenic packaging system

Long-Distance Record: 'Quantum Keys' Sent 200 Kilometers

June 1, 2007

Palo Alto, Calif. —Particles of light serving as "quantum keys"—the latest in encryption technology—have been sent over a record-setting 200-kilometer fiber...

black and white image that looks like holes in water

Magnetic Computer Sensors May Help Study Biomolecules

May 10, 2007

Magnetic switches like those in computers also might be used to manipulate individual strands of DNA for high-speed applications such as gene sequencing...

‘Tunable’ Network Features Coordinated Frequency Combs

May 10, 2007

A super stable fiber-optic network that can be tuned across a range of visible and near-infrared frequencies while synchronizing the oscillations of light waves...

Tiny Spectrometer Offers Precision Laser Calibration

May 10, 2007

A tiny device for calibrating or stabilizing precision lasers has been designed and demonstrated at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)...

Graphic showing a lipid bilayer membrane (blue) with an alpha-hemolysin nanopore

DNA Sieve: Nanoscale Pores Can Be Tiny Analysis Labs

May 10, 2007

Imagine being able to rapidly identify tiny biological molecules such as DNA and toxins using less than a drop of salt water in a system that can fit on a...

NIST Nanoscale Science and Technology Center Now Accepting Proposals

May 1, 2007

University, industry, government and other researchers who need access to state-of-the-art and beyond-state-of-the-art facilities to study a wide range of...

Placing Single Nanowires: NIST Makes the Connection

April 26, 2007

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have devised a system for manipulating and precisely positioning individual nanowires...

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