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Search News by Ronald Cowen

Displaying 51 - 75 of 98

Sneezes, Rain Clouds and Ink Jets: NIST Improves the Ability of Optical Microscopes to Measure the Volume of Microdroplets

December 20, 2021

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

Impeding the Impedance: Research Reveals How to Design a Better Next-Generation Lithium-Ion Battery

November 16, 2021

The newest generation of lithium-ion batteries now under development promises a revolution in powering cell phones, electric vehicles, laptops and myriad other

A Smart Use for Doping: Implanted Atoms Create Unique Electrical IDs That Distinguish Bona Fide Devices From Forgeries

September 16, 2021

If someone sells you a luxury handbag from Paris, France, but it turns out be a forgery from Paris, Texas, the counterfeit item might cost you a thousand bucks

A New Harmony: NIST Researchers Develop a Universal Method for Calculating the Resonances of Oscillators

September 15, 2021

The natural, or resonance, frequency at which a simple harmonic oscillator vibrates reveals with exquisite sensitivity the essential properties of the physical

Exploring quantum gravity—for whom the pendulum swings.

August 18, 2021

When it comes to a marriage with quantum theory, gravity is the lone holdout among the four fundamental forces in nature. The three others—the electromagnetic

Ultracold transistors serve as their own memory devices

July 29, 2021

Digital transistors – assembled by the billions in today’s computer chips – act as near-perfect electronic switches. In the “on” position, achieved when an

Escape From Flatland: Calibration Method Enables Microscopes to Make Accurate Measurements in All 3 Dimensions

June 24, 2021

Conventional microscopes provide essential information about samples in two dimensions — the plane of the microscope slide. But flat is not all that. In many

Detecting mid-infrared light, one photon at a time

June 1, 2021

For some 30 years, scientists have used superconducting materials to record the tiniest specks of light imaginable — individual photons, or single particles of

NIST team probes indestructible quantum states that may aid quantum computing

May 14, 2021

They may not be impervious to bullets like Superman, but groups of electrons that gather along the edges of some ultrathin materials have their own superpowers

Race Logic: Novel Circuitry Solves a Myriad of Computationally Intensive Problems With a Minimum of Energy

May 11, 2021

From the branching pattern of leaf veins to the variety of interconnected pathways that spread the coronavirus, nature thrives on networks — grids that link the

Identifying Individual Molecules: NIST Study Suggests How to Build a Better ‘Nanopore’ Biosensor

April 27, 2021

Researchers have spent more than three decades developing and studying miniature biosensors that can identify single molecules. In five to 10 years, when such

As Good as it Gets: NIST Develops Its Fourth Generation Wire Micrometer that Rivals Best in the World

March 11, 2021

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have developed a dramatically improved laser-based instrument that measures the

A Better Way to Measure Acceleration

March 8, 2021

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

Bringing Atoms to a Standstill: NIST Miniaturizes Laser Cooling

January 21, 2021

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

NIST Publishes a Beginner’s Guide to DNA Origami

January 8, 2021

In a technique known as DNA origami, researchers fold long strands of DNA over and over again to construct a variety of tiny 3D structures, including miniature

A new twist on measuring spin: NIST Develops Microresonator to Study Electron Spin in Small Volumes

November 17, 2020

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have developed a device to detect a quantum property of electrons, known as spin, in

Room Temperature Conversion of CO₂ to CO: A New Way to Synthesize Hydrocarbons

November 2, 2020

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and their colleagues have demonstrated a room-temperature method that could

A novel, low-cost method detects nanoscale contaminants during manufacture of semiconductor devices

October 19, 2020

As computer chips and other electronic devices continue to shrink in size, they become ever more sensitive to contamination. However, detecting the nanoscale

A Billion Tiny Pendulums Could Detect the Universe’s Missing Mass

October 13, 2020

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and their colleagues have proposed a novel method for finding dark matter, the cosmos’s

What Laser Color Do You Like?

October 13, 2020

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the University of Maryland have developed a microchip technology that can convert

NIST Scientists Get Soft on 3D Printing

September 22, 2020

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have developed a new method of 3D-printing gels and other soft materials. Published in

Painting With Light: Novel Nanopillars Precisely Control the Color and Intensity of Transmitted Light

September 4, 2020

By shining white light on a glass slide stippled with millions of tiny titanium dioxide pillars, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and

Making the DNA Melt Curve More Accurate

August 18, 2020

DNA is not only the blueprint of life; it has become the backbone for making tiny structures that can be inserted into the human body to diagnose and treat

Atomic ‘Swiss Army Knife’ Precisely Measures Materials for Quantum Computers

July 6, 2020

It images single atoms. It maps atomic-scale hills and valleys on metal and insulating surfaces. And it records the flow of current across atom-thin materials

cryogenically cooled laser microresonator frequency comb

Comb on a Chip: New Design for ‘Optical Ruler’ Could Revolutionize Clocks, Telescopes, Telecommunications

June 22, 2020

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