Pressure & vacuum metrology

News and Updates

Research Under Pressure: NIST Scientists Make Definitive Measurement of the Optical Pascal

June 26, 2025

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and their colleagues have overcome a key obstacle to measuring gas pressure with a

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

Four researchers pose standing in a lab, smiling and wearing safety glasses, surrouded by wires and other electronics.

NIST Demonstrates a New ‘Primary Standard’ for Measuring Ultralow Pressures

August 10, 2023

Chip manufacturing, gravitational wave detectors and quantum computers could all benefit from better ways to measure a vacuum.

Blog Posts

Stephen Eckel wears dark safety glasses as he peers into the complex CAVS apparatus in a darkened lab.

How Low Can Temperature Go? Lord Kelvin and the Science of Absolute Zero

Under Pressure: Blaise Pascal, the Barometer and Bike Tires

How NIST Helped Hero Pilot Jimmy Doolittle Fly

Publications

Chirped magneto-optical trap of molybdenum

December 12, 2025

Author(s)

Sai Naga Manoj Paladugu, Nickolas Pilgram, Stephen Eckel, Eric Norrgard

We have directly loaded a cryogenic beam of molybdenum atoms into a magneto-optical trap. By chirping the detuning of the trapping lasers, we were able to

Avoiding interpolation errors for computed second virial coefficients of noble gases

September 2, 2025

Author(s)

Allan Harvey, Giovanni Garberoglio

Virial coefficients for noble gases calculated from first principles play a key role in gas-based temperature and pressure metrology. They have typically been

Accurate, precise pressure sensing with tethered optomechanics

August 28, 2025

Author(s)

Olivia Green, Yiliang Bao, John R. Lawall, Jason Gorman, Daniel Barker

We show that optomechanical pressure sensors with characterized density and thickness can achieve uncertainty as low as 1.1 % via comparison with a secondary

Gas Pressure Calibration from 0.01 Pa to 400000 Pa using a Portable Quantum Traceable Standard

May 1, 2025

Author(s)

Jacob Edmond Ricker, Kevin Douglass, Jay H. Hendricks, Sarah White

NIST has tested a prototype portable quantum traceable pressure standard for the calibration of pressure gauges. The low-pressure limit of this device was