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

News and Updates

Keyword

Topic Area

An Entangled Matter-Wave Interferometer: Now With Double the Spookiness!

October 20, 2022

A team of researchers at JILA has for the first time successfully combined two of the “spookiest” features of quantum mechanics to make a better quantum sensor.

NIST’s Superconducting Hardware Could Scale Up Brain-Inspired Computing

October 6, 2022

Scientists have long looked to the brain as an inspiration for designing computing systems.

Cameras and equipment set up in the studio in front of a table

NIST Office of Weights and Measures Launches Studio 220

September 30, 2022

Lights, camera, action! The vision to expand training capabilities within the Office of Weights and Measures (OWM) IACET accredited Training Program has become...

Graphic image with scale in front and person typing on a laptop in the background. Text on image reads: NIST Office of Weights and Measures, NIST SP 2200 Legal Metrology Publication Series.

NIST Office of Weights and Measures Launches New SP 2200 Legal Metrology Publication Series

September 29, 2022

In partnership with the NIST research library, the Office of Weights and Measures (OWM) has launched a new NIST Special Publication Series, SP 2200: Legal...

Hooked on Photonics? Math to the Rescue

September 28, 2022

Photonic thermometers – which measure temperature using light – have been around in optical fiber form for decades. These devices, called fiber Bragg gratings...

Infographic comparing characteristics of a checker vs. an inspector

Quantity Versus Quality of Inspections – Taking Shortcuts

September 28, 2022

This article was originally published in March 2005 and has been revamped and re-published here. As weights and measures jurisdictions grapple with finding the...

In-Person Training for Mulch and Soil Testing at the WWMA Annual Meeting

September 27, 2022

Now that we are attending meetings in-person again, this presents an opportunity for OWM staff to provide some of our training directly to our stakeholders...

Group photo outside of MidMAP training attendees

Regional Measurement Assurance Program (RMAP) Back on the Move

September 26, 2022

The Laboratory Metrology Program is wrapping up this year’s Regional Measurement Assurance Program (RMAP) training for the State Weights and Measures Laboratory...

Star Light, Star Bright … But Exactly How Bright?

September 22, 2022

A picture may be worth a thousand words, but for astronomers, simply recording images of stars and galaxies isn’t enough. To measure the true size and absolute...

Adam Kaufman poses for a head shot with a shelf of library books in the background.

NIST Physicist Adam Kaufman Wins Breakthrough New Horizons in Physics Prize

September 22, 2022

Kaufman won for his work in advancing the control of atoms and molecules to improve atomic clocks and quantum information processing.

Back to the Future: Gear Edition

September 12, 2022

As mechanical objects, gears have been around for so long that people may take them for granted. But gears are sophisticated parts that play a vital role in...

No Fib: NIST Unmasks a Superfast Process for Nanoscale Machining

August 23, 2022

Cutting intricate patterns as small as several billionths of a meter deep and wide, the focused ion beam (FIB) is an essential tool for deconstructing and...

A globe spins on a curved stand, blurring the shape of North America.

Spotlight: Keeping Time With the Earth’s Rotation

August 5, 2022

Scientists try to predict how the Earth’s rotation will change so they know how to steer the clocks in the future.

Calibrating the Universe: Behind the Scenes, NIST Scientists Play a Critical Role in Improving Gravitational Wave Measurements

August 2, 2022

Space-time ripples, exploding stars, colliding black holes …. and the National Institute of Standards and Technology? NIST doesn’t exactly come to mind when...

NIST Researchers Develop Miniature Lens for Trapping Atoms

August 1, 2022

Atoms are notoriously difficult to control. They zigzag like fireflies, tunnel out of the strongest containers and jitter even at temperatures near absolute...

Leading Experts Suggest Guidelines for Assessing Emerging Transistor Performance

July 29, 2022

To continue making smartphones, laptops, and other devices more powerful and energy efficient, industry is intensely focused on identifying promising next...

New Device Design Brings Unparalleled Confidence to Cell Measurements

July 20, 2022

Measuring the numbers and properties of cells moving in a stream — a process called flow cytometry — is critically important to diagnostic medicine...

Out of the Shadows: New Imaging Method Reveals Concealed Objects

July 19, 2022

A new way of imaging concealed objects, devised by a researcher at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and his colleagues, might take all...

small atomic clock with coffee bean for scale

New Roles for National Metrology Institutes in the Post-Redefinition World

July 18, 2022

Until the 2019 redefinition of the International System of Units (SI), accurate measurements of properties such as mass and temperature required the use of...

Nanomagnets Can Choose a Wine, and Could Slake AI’s Thirst for Energy

July 18, 2022

A new type of neural network aced a virtual wine-tasting test and promises a less energy-hungry version of artificial intelligence.

A Primary Standard for Measuring Vacuum

July 15, 2022

A novel, quantum-based vacuum gauge system invented by researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has passed its first test to be...

Investigating Coriolis Mass Flow Meters as Field Reference Meters – Compressed Natural Gas Applications

June 30, 2022

Commercial metering systems are ubiquitous in the commercial marketplace (to dispense liquified products, from gas and water to food products and agricultural...

Now Hear This!

June 30, 2022

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have designed and built an optical device that could set a new standard for measuring...

Over 20,000 Propane Cylinders Tested Nationwide!

June 29, 2022

In the summer of 2021, the NIST Office of Weights and Measures (OWM) partnered with the National Conference on Weights and Measures (NCWM) and States to develop...

OWM Featured on CNN Podcast and by Stephen Colbert of The Late Show

June 28, 2022

CNN’s Margins of Error podcast recently published an episode titled “Why Americans Won’t Give an Inch on Metric”. Host Harry Enten “goes the extra ‘yard’ to...

Was this page helpful?

Advanced communications
-Open Radio Access Network (Open-RAN)
-Quantum communications
-Spectrum sharing
-Wireless (RF)
Artificial intelligence
-Agentic AI
-AI measurement and evaluation
-Autonomous systems
--Automated vehicles
--Autonomous laboratories
-Applied AI
-Fundamental AI
-Hardware for AI
-Machine learning
-Trustworthy and responsible AI
Biotechnology
-Bioeconomy
--Biological data
-Bioimaging
-Bioinformatics
-Biomanufacturing
-Biomaterials
-Biometrology
-Biosecurity
--Biosurveillance
--Genomic cybersecurity
--Nucleic acid sequence screening
-Cell measurements
-Engineering / synthetic biology
--Biofabrication
--Cell-free systems
--Genome engineering
--Protein engineering
-Gene delivery systems
-Genome editing
-Genomics
-Glycomics
-Metabolomics
-Microbial measurements
-Proteomics
Buildings and construction
-Building codes and standards
-Building retrofit
-Building control systems
-Building damage and repair
-Building economics
-Building materials
-Energy efficiency
-Heating, ventilation and air conditioning equipment
-Indoor air quality
-Structural engineering
-Thermal comfort
Chemistry
-Analytical chemistry
-Chemical engineering and processing
-Chemical thermodynamics and chemical properties
-Molecular characterization
-Theoretical chemistry and modeling
-Thermochemical properties
Electronics
-Electromagnetics
-Flexible electronics
-Magnetoelectronics
-Optoelectronics
-Organic electronics
-Semiconductors
-Sensors
-Superconducting electronics
Energy
-Alternative energy
-Conventional energy
-Electric power / smart grid
-Fuels
Environment
-Air / water / soil quality
-Climate measurements
-Environmental health
-Greenhouse gas measurements
-Marine science
-Sustainability
Fire
-Fire detection
-Fire dynamics and science
-Fire fighting
-Fire modeling
-Fire risk reduction
-Materials flammability
-Structural fire resistance
-Wildland urban interface fire
Forensic science
-Digital evidence
-Evidential statistics
-Drugs and toxicology
-Firearms and toolmarks
-Forensic biometrics
-Forensic genetics
-Forensic quality assurance
-Trace evidence
Health
-Biopharmaceuticals
-Cell and gene therapy
-Clinical diagnostics
--Cancer
--Medical imaging
-Food and nutrition
-Human microbiome
-Precision medicine
-Regenerative medicine and advanced therapy
--Flow cytometry
Information technology
-Biometrics
-Cloud computing and virtualization
-Complex systems
-Computational science
-Conformance testing
-Cyber-physical systems
--Smart cities
-Cybersecurity and privacy
--Cryptography
--Cybersecurity education and workforce development
--Cybersecurity measurement
--Identity and access management
--Privacy engineering
--Risk management
--Securing emerging technologies
--Trustworthy networks
--Trustworthy platforms
-Data and informatics
--Human language technology
--Information retrieval
--Natural language processing
-Digital twins
-Federal information processing standards (FIPS)
-Health IT
-Internet of Things (IoT)
-Interoperability testing
-Library and information science
-Location based services
-Mobile
-Networking
--Mobile and wireless networking
--Network management and monitoring
--Network modeling and analysis
--Network security and robustness
--Network test and measurement
--Next generation networks
--Protocol design and standardization
--Software defined and virtual networks
-Software research
--Software testing
-Usability and human factors
--Accessibility
-Video analytics
-Virtual / augmented reality
-Visualization research
-Voting systems
Infrastructure
Manufacturing
-Additive manufacturing
-Factory communications
-Factory operations planning and control
-Interoperability in manufacturing
-Machining
-Manufacturing economics
-Manufacturing quality assurance
-Manufacturing systems design and analysis
-Monitoring, diagnostics and prognostics
-Process improvement
-Process measurement and control
-Product data
-Robotics
--Agility and adaptability
--Collaborative robots
--Dexterous grasping
--Manipulation
--Mobility and industrial autonomous vehicles
--Navigation / actuation / control
--Sensing and perception
-Supply chain
-Sustainable manufacturing
-Systems engineering
-Systems integration
-Technology commercialization
Materials
-Ceramics
-Composites
-Concrete / cement
-Materials characterization
--Composition and structure
--Mechanical properties
--Thermal properties
-Metals
-Modeling and computational material science
-Polymers
-Superconductors
Mathematics and statistics
-Experiment design
-Image and signal processing
-Modeling and simulation research
-Numerical methods and software
-Statistical analysis
-Uncertainty quantification
Metrology
-Amount of substance
-Dimensional metrology
-Electrical / electromagnetic metrology
-Flow metrology and rheology
-Force metrology
-Humidity metrology
-Ionizing radiation metrology
-Mass metrology
-Metric
-Optical / photometry / laser metrology
-Pressure and vacuum metrology
-Thermometry metrology
-Time and frequency metrology
-Weights and measures
Nanotechnology
-Nanobiotechnology
-Nanochemistry
-Nanoelectronics
-Nanofabrication / manufacturing
--Lithography
--Self-assembly
-Nanofluidics
-Nanomagnetics
-Nanomaterials
-Nanomechanics
-Nanometrology
-Nanophotonics
-Nanophysics
-Nanoplasmonics
Neutron research
Performance excellence
-Assessment tools and services
-Baldrige award
-Baldrige examiners
-Baldrige framework and criteria
-Best practices
-Leadership development
Physics
-Atomic / molecular / quantum
-Biological physics
-Condensed matter
-Electron physics
-Magnetics
-Nuclear physics
-Optical physics and communications
-Quantum information science
-Radiation
-Spectroscopy
-Thermodynamics
-Time and frequency
Public safety
-Chemical / Biological / Radiological / Nuclear / Explosives (CBRNE)
-First responder preparedness
-Law enforcement
-Public safety communications research
-Response robots
Resilience
-Community resilience
--Recovery
--Resilience metrics
-Disaster and failure studies
-Earthquake risk reduction
--Functional recovery
-Resilience economics
-Resilient materials
-Windstorm impact reduction
Standards
-Accreditation
-Calibration services
-Conformity assessment
-Documentary standards
-Frameworks
-Quality assurance
-Reference data
-Reference instruments
-Reference materials
-Standards education
Technology transfer
Transportation
-Aerospace
-Automotive