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Five hundred million years ago, the oceans teemed with trillions of trilobites — creatures that were distant cousins of horseshoe crabs. All trilobites had a
Like a vocal coach who extends the octave range of an opera singer, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have expanded by
Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and their colleagues have significantly improved the ability of a type of optical
Inside every cellphone lies a tiny mechanical heart, beating several billion times a second. These micromechanical resonators play an essential role in
Scientists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have invented and demonstrated a novel scheme for substantially improving the detection
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) recently completed major upgrades to two key instruments serving critical national needs: measuring
Sneezes, rain clouds, and ink jet printers: They all produce or contain liquid droplets so tiny it would take several billion of them to fill a liter bottle
JILA scientists have boosted the sensitivity of their decade-old frequency comb breathalyzer a thousandfold and can detect additional biomarkers of disease —
The 19th International Workshop on Low Temperature Detectors (LTD19) was an opportunity for researchers from around the world to exchange information about the
Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have upgraded their laser frequency-comb instrument to simultaneously measure three
Conventional microscopes provide essential information about samples in two dimensions — the plane of the microscope slide. But flat is not all that. In many
For some 30 years, scientists have used superconducting materials to record the tiniest specks of light imaginable — individual photons, or single particles of
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have installed a Doppler lidar
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
After the optical frequency comb made its debut as a ruler for light, spinoffs followed, including the astrocomb to measure starlight and a radar-like comb
Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have developed a dramatically improved laser-based instrument that measures the
You’re going at the speed limit down a two-lane road when a car barrels out of a driveway on your right. You slam on the brakes, and within a fraction of a
Investigating colors in the wind — NIST researchers expand beyond a current spectroscopy technique for measuring greenhouse gases to now detect volatile organic
It’s cool to be small. Scientists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have miniaturized the optical components required to cool atoms
As computer chips and other electronic devices continue to shrink in size, they become ever more sensitive to contamination. However, detecting the nanoscale
Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the University of Maryland have developed a microchip technology that can convert
Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have devised and demonstrated a system that could dramatically increase the performance
By shining white light on a glass slide stippled with millions of tiny titanium dioxide pillars, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and
Just as a meter stick with hundreds of tick marks can be used to measure distances with great precision, a device known as a laser frequency comb, with its
Always on the lookout for better ways to measure all kinds of things, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have published a