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Displaying 326 - 350 of 391

Black background. Blue structure that looks like an egg carton with red and yellow globes in each pocket

Thousands of Atoms Swap 'Spins' in Quantum Square Dance

August 3, 2007

Physicists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have induced thousands of atoms trapped by laser beams to swap "spins" with partners...

Thousands of Atoms Swap 'Spins' with Partners in Quantum Square Dance

July 25, 2007

GAITHERSBURG, MD—Physicists at the Commerce Department's National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have induced thousands of atoms trapped by laser...

Magnetic Tape Analysis "Sees" Tampering in Detail

July 20, 2007

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has developed an improved version of a real-time magnetic microscopy system that converts evidence of...

Schematic represents cryogenic packaging system

Long-Distance Record: 'Quantum Keys' Sent 200 Kilometers

June 1, 2007

Palo Alto, Calif. —Particles of light serving as "quantum keys"—the latest in encryption technology—have been sent over a record-setting 200-kilometer fiber...

black and white image that looks like holes in water

Magnetic Computer Sensors May Help Study Biomolecules

May 10, 2007

Magnetic switches like those in computers also might be used to manipulate individual strands of DNA for high-speed applications such as gene sequencing...

Tiny Spectrometer Offers Precision Laser Calibration

May 10, 2007

A tiny device for calibrating or stabilizing precision lasers has been designed and demonstrated at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)...

New JILA Apparatus Measures Fast Nanoscale Motions

March 16, 2007

A new nanoscale apparatus developed at JILA—a tiny gold beam whose 40 million vibrations per second are measured by hopping electrons—offers the potential for a...

First 2D Pictures of a 'Frequency Comb' Transform It into a Brush

February 7, 2007

BOULDER, Colo.—Physicists at the Commerce Department's National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have taken the first ever two-dimensional pictures...

NIST Develops Rapid Method for Judging Nanotube Purity

February 1, 2007

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have developed a sensitive new method for rapidly assessing the quality of carbon...

'Tornadoes' Are Transferred From Light to Sodium Atoms

November 9, 2006

For the first time, tornado-like rotational motions have been transferred from light to atoms in a controlled way at the National Institute of Standards and...

The NIST process for "purifying" an unusual property of quantum physics called entanglement involves illuminating two pairs of beryllium ions (charged atoms) with a series of ultraviolet laser pulses.

NIST Physicists Boost 'Entanglement' of Atom Pairs

October 18, 2006

BOULDER, Colo.—Physicists at the Commerce Department's National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have taken a significant step toward transforming...

Molecular Spintronic Action Confirmed in Nanostructure

October 12, 2006

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have made the first confirmed "spintronic" device incorporating organic molecules, a...

Emergency Tests Focus on Lab Radioactivity Analyses

September 28, 2006

Working under severe time pressure, government laboratories can analyze radioactive samples fairly quickly—in a matter of hours—but with variable accuracy, and...

Small, Low-noise Oscillator May Help in Surveillance

September 14, 2006

A new design for a microwave oscillator that is smaller, simpler, and produces clearer signals at a single frequency than comparable devices has been invented...

Joint Quantum Institute Created by University of Maryland, NIST and NSA

September 11, 2006

COLLEGE PARK, Md. – Today, the University of Maryland (UM), the Commerce Department's National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), and the National...

NIST Scientists Use Electron Beam to Unravel the Secrets of an 'Atomic Switch'

August 17, 2006

GAITHERSBURG, MD –Scientists at the Commerce Department's National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have used a beam of electrons to move a single...

Road to AC Voltage Standard Leads to Important Junction

July 20, 2006

After 10 years of research, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has unveiled the world's first precision instrument for directly measuring...

'Micro-boxes' of Water Used to Study Single Molecules

July 20, 2006

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have demonstrated the use of water droplets as minuscule "boxes" for small numbers of...

NIST physicist Jim Bergquist with the mercury ion clock

Mercury Atomic Clock Keeps Time with Record Accuracy

July 14, 2006

BOULDER, COLO.—An experimental atomic clock based on a single mercury atom is now at least five times more precise than the national standard clock based on a...

False-color images of 1, 2, 3, 6, and 12 magnesium ions loaded into NIST's new planar ion trap

New Ion Trap May Lead to Large Quantum Computers

July 6, 2006

Physicists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have designed and built a novel electromagnetic trap for ions that could be easily mass...

Noise Measurement May Boost Cell Phone Performance

June 22, 2006

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and industry collaborators have developed improved methods for accurately measuring...

Circuit Board Materials May Like It Hot (or Not)

June 8, 2006

Electrical circuits may act differently in Arizona than they do in Alaska—potentially affecting the performance of computers and other electronics. A new...

Laser Trapping of Erbium May Lead to Novel Devices

April 28, 2006

Physicists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have used lasers to cool and trap erbium atoms, a "rare earth" heavy metal with unusual...

Image taken from animation that shows how single photons are sent and detected by the NIST QKD system.

Code for 'Unbreakable' Quantum Encryption Generated at Record Speed over Fiber

April 18, 2006

Gaithersburg, Md.—Raw code for "unbreakable" encryption, based on the principles of quantum physics, has been generated at record speed over optical fiber at...

"Frequency Comb" Spectroscopy Proves to be Powerful Chemical Analysis Tool

March 16, 2006

Boulder, Colo. -- Physicists at JILA have designed and demonstrated a highly sensitive new tool for real-time analysis of the quantity, structure, and dynamics...

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