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Physics

News and Updates

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Smart New Laser Technology Can Monitor Greenhouse Gases Faster, More Sensitively

October 9, 2024

New laser technology, known as free-form dual-comb spectroscopy, quickly measures gases of interest by homing in on the most information-rich parts of a sample.

View from near ceiling shows NCNR guide hall filled with big pieces of scientific equipment, including several long cylindrical "guides" running toward the far end of the room.

New Report Highlights Economic Value of Neutron Science to U.S. Industry

September 5, 2024

Research using neutron beams provides an economic return far larger than the cost of building and operating neutron facilities, according to an economic impact...

Table in darkened lab holds wiring and other laser electronics; a circular light source is situated above.

Major Leap for Nuclear Clock Paves Way for Ultraprecise Timekeeping

September 4, 2024

These clocks could lead to improved timekeeping and navigation, faster internet speeds, and advances in fundamental physics research.

Spotlight: Game-Changing Microscopy Technique for Identifying Cancerous Cells

September 3, 2024

Breast-conserving surgery, or lumpectomy, is a treatment for early-stage breast cancer. It’s important for surgeons to remove enough tissue around the tumor to...

Tiny New Lasers Fill a Long-Standing Gap in the Rainbow of Visible-Light Colors, Opening New Applications

August 28, 2024

Researchers have created orange, yellow and green lasers tiny enough to fit on a chip.

Cassie Stoffer smiles while wearing safety glasses and standing next to a large metal tank with many pipes and wires attached to it.

Spotlight: Cassie Stoffer Helps Run Calibration and Measurement Services Related to Magnetic Resonance

August 27, 2024

If you ask NIST physicist Cassie Stoffer what she finds most exciting about science, it’s seeing what she learned in a textbook have real-world applications...

What Time Is It on the Moon?

August 12, 2024

New lunar time proposal is a first step for Moon GPS.

NIST Participates in White House Summit on Standards for Critical and Emerging Technology

July 29, 2024

A new Implementation Roadmap provides recommendations and actions for putting the U.S. standards strategy into effect.

A high-tech laboratory with large black equipment featuring two circular insets showing detailed machinery setups. A computer workstation is in the foreground.

From Pandemics to Pedicures: NIST Rebuilds World-Class UV Calibration System

July 22, 2024

UV detectors need to be carefully calibrated to ensure that the UV light used is both safe and effective.

Close-up of a scientific instrument with wires and a circular metallic component, illuminated by blue light, featuring a small red dot at the center.

World’s Most Accurate and Precise Atomic Clock Pushes New Frontiers in Physics

July 1, 2024

The clock is the latest demonstration that a much more precise definition of the official second is possible and that new applications of clocks are feasible.

Grid of six B&W images of asbestos fibers taken by scanning electron microscopy

NIST Researchers Identify a Cheaper, More Convenient Method to Detect Asbestos

June 25, 2024

Researchers have verified that scanning electron microscopy (SEM) is a highly accurate way to test air samples for the presence of asbestos.

With Some Bumps, NIST Scientists Devise a Novel Way to Extend the Wavelength Range of Microcombs

June 5, 2024

Microcombs – chip-scale devices that generate and measure frequencies of light with exquisite accuracy – have transformed timekeeping and boosted optical...

A photo of the night sky with greenish lights on the right.

Spotlight: Geomagnetic Storm Creates Bright Northern Lights While Also Affecting NIST’s Cesium Clocks

May 21, 2024

Did you see the northern lights recently? NIST’s cesium fountain clocks did.

NIST Awards Over $1.2 Million to Small Businesses to Advance Cybersecurity, Biopharmaceuticals, Semiconductors and More

May 15, 2024

The awards will fund research and development of new products relating to cybersecurity, quantum computing, health care, semiconductor manufacturing and other...

The Big Quantum Chill: NIST Scientists Modify Common Lab Refrigerator to Cool Faster With Less Energy

April 23, 2024

By modifying a refrigerator commonly used in both research and industry, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have...

Scientist working at scientific equipment

Spotlight: The Real-World Applications of Quantum With Julia Scherschligt

April 15, 2024

For NIST physicist Julia Scherschligt, the most exciting thing about quantum is seeing the real-world applications of this science. Julia leads a group that is...

Spotlight: Building the Next Generation of Quantum Computers and Networks With Tasshi Dennis

April 15, 2024

When NIST scientist Tasshi Dennis first encountered quantum physics as a student, he was skeptical it would ever amount to any practical applications. Little...

Tiny red cylinder probes are presented in front of a much larger ice cube.

Spotlight: Shape-Shifting Probes Will Help Improve MRI Imaging

April 12, 2024

Not all gems are the precious stone kind. In the field of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), a type of microscopic magnetic probes called geometrically encoded...

Illustration shows tiny columns of light in different colors standing vertically along circuits on a chip.

Spotlight: Chip-Scale Frequency Combs Can Be Integrated With Other Sensors

April 2, 2024

Frequency combs — specialized lasers that act like rulers to measure light — are now being brought down to a low-power, chip-scale form. NIST researchers David...

NIST Researchers Use Cellphone Compass to Measure Tiny Concentrations of Compounds Important for Human Health

April 1, 2024

Nearly every modern cellphone has a built-in compass, or magnetometer, that detects the direction of Earth’s magnetic field, providing critical information for...

Bullseye! NIST Devises a Method to Accurately Center Quantum Dots Within Photonic Chips

March 18, 2024

Devices that capture the brilliant light from millions of quantum dots, including chip-scale lasers and optical amplifiers, have made the transition from...

Researchers develop a new type of frequency comb that promises to further boost the accuracy of time keeping

March 14, 2024

Chip-based devices known as frequency combs, which measure the frequency of light waves with unparalleled precision, have revolutionized time keeping, the...