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Physics

Optical physics and communications

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Single Photon from a Quantum Emitter? It's a Matter of Timing...

April 3, 2013

Many systems envisioned for practical quantum information processing require the use of single, indistinguishable photons as carriers of information and logic

Seeing the Oceans in Their True Colors

April 3, 2013

Much of what is known about the state of the Earth's oceans, and how they change over time, comes from satellite monitoring of reflected and thermally emitted

NIST Tests Underscore Potential Hazards of Green Laser Pointers

March 20, 2013

Using a low-cost apparatus designed to quickly and accurately measure the properties of handheld laser devices, National Institute of Standards and Technology

High Efficiency in the Fastest Single-Photon Detector System

February 19, 2013

A single photon may not seem like much of a catch. But detecting photons one-by-one with near-perfect reliability is formidably difficult. It is also an

Solid state lighting program produces solid benefits

January 9, 2013

A recently published, descriptive case study highlights the benefits of NIST's leadership in developing standards for solid state lighting.* "NIST is making

'Standard Quantum Limit' Smashed, Could Mean Better Fiber-Optic Comms

January 8, 2013

Communicating with light may soon get a lot easier, hints recent research* from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the University of

Photons Emitted by Quantum Dots Can be Made Indistinguishable Through Quantum Frequency Conversion

December 19, 2012

An international collaboration led by researchers from the NIST Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology has demonstrated the ability to make photons emitted

New Platform Developed to Measure and Exploit Optomechanical Interactions

December 12, 2012

Researchers from the NIST Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology and Caltech have developed a new design platform for measuring and exploiting strong

Devices to Measure Temperature (and More) with Light

November 28, 2012

For nearly a century, the instrument of choice for accurate temperature measurements in the range relevant to manufacturing and biomedical applications (–190 °C

The World's Most Stable Laser

September 10, 2012

The world's most stable laser – with frequency variation of no more than 2 parts in 10,000 trillion – has been developed and tested by an international

First Light: NIST Researchers Develop New Way to Generate Superluminal Pulses

May 2, 2012

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have developed a novel way of producing light pulses that are "superluminal"—in some

JILA Team Demonstrates 'A New Way of Lasing': A 'Superradiant' Laser

April 4, 2012

BOULDER, Colo. – Physicists at JILA have demonstrated a novel "superradiant" laser design, which has the potential to be 100 to 1,000 times more stable than the

Future 'Comb on a Chip': NIST's Compact Frequency Comb Could Go Places

October 25, 2011

Laser frequency combs—extraordinarily precise tools for measuring frequencies (or colors) of light—have helped propel advances in timekeeping, trace gas

NIST Physicists 'Entangle' Two Atoms Using Microwaves for the First Time

August 10, 2011

BOULDER, Colo. – Physicists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have for the first time linked the quantum properties of two separated

Photo of UC graduate student Matt Kirchner fine-tuning an ultra-stable microwave generator at NIST

A Quiet Phase: NIST Optical Tools Produce Ultra-low-noise Microwave Signals

June 27, 2011

By combining advanced laser technologies in a new way, physicists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have generated microwave signals

Photo of an advanced laser in the back of a car

Drive Test: NIST Super-stable Laser Shines in Minivan Experiment

May 10, 2011

In a step toward taking the most advanced atomic clocks on the road, physicists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have designed and

New Calculations on Blackbody Energy Set the Stage for Clocks with Unprecedented Accuracy

May 6, 2011

A team of physicists from the United States and Russia announced today that it has developed a means for computing, with unprecedented accuracy, a tiny

New Wave: JILA Develops Efficient Source of Terahertz Radiation

January 19, 2011

JILA researchers have developed a laser-based source of terahertz radiation that is unusually efficient and less prone to damage than similar systems. The

NIST Telescope Calibration May Help Explain Mystery of Universe's Expansion

January 5, 2011

Is the expansion of the universe accelerating for some unknown reason? This is one of the mysteries plaguing astrophysics, and somewhere in distant galaxies are

AFM Positioning: Shining Light on a Needle in a Haystack

November 9, 2010

The researchers characterize their new technique as a neat solution to the "needle in a haystack" problem of nanoscale microscopy, but it's more like the

Glasperlenspiel: NIST Scientists Propose New Test for Gravity

August 31, 2010

A new experiment proposed by physicists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) may allow researchers to test the effects of gravity with

Colorized micrograph of the world's darkest material

Extreme Darkness: Carbon Nanotube Forest Covers NIST's Ultra-dark Detector

August 17, 2010

Harnessing darkness for practical use, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have developed a laser power detector coated

Beware the Dim Laser Pointer: NIST Researchers Measure High Infrared Power Levels from Some Green Lasers

August 3, 2010

Green laser pointers have become a popular consumer item, delivering light that's brighter to the eye than red lasers, but stories have circulated on the Web

NIST/JILA 'Dark Pulse Laser' Produces Bursts of ... Almost Nothing

June 9, 2010

In an advance that sounds almost Zen, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and JILA, a joint institute of NIST and the

$A single photon travels through alternating layers of low (blue) and high (green) refractive index material more slowly (top) or quickly (bottom) depending upon the order of the layers.$

Stacking the Deck: Single Photons Observed at Seemingly Faster-than-Light Speeds

January 26, 2010

Researchers at the Joint Quantum Institute (JQI), a collaboration of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the University of Maryland at

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