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Physical Measurement Laboratory

Quantum Electromagnetics Division

News and Updates

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Calibrating Next-Gen Telecom at 5G and Beyond

February 22, 2021

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have devised and demonstrated the output components of a novel, quantum-based, self

Square wood box with multicolored wires arranged in ever-smaller squares inside and three small plastic strips attached in several places.

NIST Sensor Experts Invent Supercool Mini-Thermometer

November 17, 2020

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have invented a miniature thermometer with big potential applications, such as

EBIT’s Improved X-ray Vision Promises Astronomical Insights

April 25, 2019

Look at an astronomical marvel like the Cat’s Eye Nebula at right, with an average gas temperature about twice as hot as the surface of the Sun. It seems

Uncrunching the Frequency Spectrum

September 26, 2018

The squeeze is here, and the crunch is coming. Soon. Explosive demand for high-speed wireless communication is placing growing pressure on the limited frequency

NIST’s Superconducting Synapse May Be Missing Piece for ‘Artificial Brains’

January 26, 2018

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have built a superconducting switch that “learns” like a biological system and could

NIST Boulder Microfab Lab Goes 'Nano'

September 12, 2017

The world-class clean room in the NIST Boulder Microfabrication Facility (BMF) has just gotten a bit more crowded – in a good way. Staff members have recently

a rectangular block of wood covered in green with markings, 2 bolts and 2 screws

NIST ‘Noise Thermometry’ Yields Accurate New Measurements of Boltzmann Constant

June 29, 2017

By measuring the random jiggling motion of electrons in a resistor, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have contributed to

Supercomputing: Probing the Future

April 25, 2017

NIST scientists have developed a novel automated probe system for evaluating the performance of computer components designed to run 100 times faster than today

Seeing Light’s Effect on Atoms — Within Picoseconds

November 16, 2016

For the first time in a laboratory setting, NIST scientists have made stop-action x-ray measurements of the way visible light interacts with atoms and molecules

Noise, Temperature, and the New SI

November 15, 2016

NIST has recently made substantial improvements to its Johnson-noise thermometry system, which is playing a vital role in the worldwide effort to determine the

NIST System Replicated by Chip Maker

June 6, 2016

A highly sensitive measurement system for the performance of nanoscale magnetic devices, invented and developed at NIST, was successfully replicated recently by

Shedding Light on Dark Matter with SQUIDs

February 16, 2016

Perhaps fortunately, most folks haven't noticed that 85% of the Milky Way is missing: The kind of familiar, ordinary matter we know – made up of protons

Reading the Secrets of Ancient Light

June 19, 2015

Much of what we know about the origin and early history of the universe comes from a phenomenon discovered by accident 50 years ago: The cosmic microwave

Getting a Critical Edge on Plutonium Identification

March 23, 2015

A collaboration between NIST scientists and colleagues at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) has resulted in a new kind of sensor that can be used to

Hybrid Memory Device for Superconducting Computing

January 23, 2015

A team of NIST scientists has devised and demonstrated a novel nanoscale memory technology for superconducting computing that could hasten the advent of an

New High-Resolution X-ray Spectrometer for Beam Lines

October 24, 2014

NIST scientists have pioneered a technology that may speed the arrival of long-awaited materials and devices including advanced high-temperature superconductors

Demagnetization Dynamics on a Femtosecond Time Scale

March 20, 2014

There are many unknowns in the future of computing. But one thing is certain: Devices will be reading and writing information faster, and storing it at ever

Quantum Voltage Standard Delivered to BIPM

October 17, 2013

A PML team has delivered a state-of-the-art 10 V voltage standard to the International Bureau of Weights and Measures (BIPM), where it will serve as the

The Persistence of Memory: Looking into MRAM

August 5, 2013

Many in the electronics industry want to change how memories are made. So PML scientists are exploring the physics and developing the metrology required to do

An Unprecedented View of Spintronic Switching

April 26, 2013

If spintronics is to become the Next Big Thing, it will be because researchers have learned how to control many extremely small, but hugely significant, things

A Primary Voltage Standard for the Whole World

April 4, 2013

PML researchers are on the verge of reaching a long-sought major goal: Providing the world with a programmable quantum voltage standard that has an uncertainty

New NIST Microscope Measures Nanomagnet Property Vital to 'Spintronics'

March 14, 2013

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have developed a new microscope able to view and measure an important but elusive

New Boulder Clean Room Open for Business

November 2, 2012

After months of construction, installation, troubleshooting, and testing, the new clean room at NIST's Precision Measurement Laboratory complex on the Boulder

Near-Field Scanning Microwave Microscope: Big at the Nanoscale

September 28, 2012

NIST's ability to determine the composition and physics of nanoscale materials and devices is about to improve dramatically with the arrival of a new near-field

Cross-section of a high-temperature superconducting cable design invented at NIST.

Compact High-Temperature Superconducting Cable Wins 'R&D 100' Award

June 22, 2011

A method developed by researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the University of Colorado at Boulder for making thin

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