When a ballerina pirouettes, twirling a full revolution, she looks just as she did when she started. But for electrons and other subatomic particles, which follow the rules of quantum theory, that’s not necessarily so. When an electron moves around a closed path, ending up where it began, its physical state may or may not…
Copper Source-Derived X-Rays Set New Gold Standard for Measuring Industrial Materials
Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have produced and precisely measured a spectrum of X-rays using a new, state-of-the-art machine. The instrument they used to measure the X-rays took 20 years to develop, and will help scientists working at the agency make some of the world’s most accurate measurements of materials for use…
New NIST Data to Aid Production & Storage of ‘Fascinating’ Medication
Amantadine hydrochloride may be the most common medication you’ve never heard of. This compound has been around for decades as the basis for antiviral and other medications, from flu therapy to treatments for brain disorders such as Parkinson’s disease and the fatigue associated with multiple sclerosis. And yet, this compound has long been a bit…
‘Spectral Fingerprinting’ Sees Through Concrete to Detect Early Corrosion
When you suffer a fall, an on-the-field collision or some other traumatic blow, the first thing the doctor will do is take an X-ray, CT scan or MRI to determine if anything has been damaged internally. Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) are using the same principle, but in a more powerful form,…
Semiconductor Performance Tested with New Method
The traditional test for assessing the quality of a semiconductor, called the Hall method, measures the number of freely moving charge carriers (electrons and holes) in a material. But it is fairly time-consuming to perform. A new, quicker technique makes this measurement by exposing the semiconductor to terahertz (THz) light, which is much redder than…
Better Nanoimages ‘Spin’ the Path to Improved Magnetic Memory
In work that could help make possible a faster, longer-lasting and lower-energy method of data storage for consumers and businesses, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and their colleagues have developed a technique for imaging and studying a promising class of magnetic devices with 10 times more detail than optical microscopes.…
Silk Sensor Could Advance Development of New Infrastructure, Aerospace, and Consumer Materials
Consumers want fuel-efficient vehicles and high-performance sporting goods, municipalities want weather-resistant bridges, and manufacturers want more efficient ways to make reliable cars and aircraft. What’s needed are new lightweight, energy-saving composites that won’t crack or break even after prolonged exposure to environmental or structural stress. To help make that possible, researchers working at the National…
Improved Magnetic Memory from Spinning Nanoimages
In work that could help make possible a faster, longer-lasting, and lower-energy method of data storage for consumers and businesses, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and their colleagues have developed a technique for imaging and studying a promising class of magnetic devices with 10 times more detail than optical microscopes.…
Wearable ‘Watches’ to Monitor Your Blood Pressure
What if there were a wearable fitness device that could monitor your blood pressure continuously, 24 hours a day? Unfortunately, blood pressure (BP) measurements currently require the use of a cuff that temporarily stops blood flow. So a wearable BP “watch” using today’s technology would squeeze your wrist every few minutes, making it impracticable to…
JILA Atomic Clock Mimics Long-Sought Synthetic Magnetic State
Using their advanced atomic clock to mimic other desirable quantum systems, JILA physicists have caused atoms in a gas to behave as if they possess unusual magnetic properties long sought in harder-to-study solid materials. Representing a novel “off-label” use for atomic clocks, the research could lead to the creation of new materials for applications such…
For Wearable Electronic Devices, NIST Shows Plastic Holes are Golden
In science, sometimes the best discoveries come when you’re exploring something else entirely. That’s the case with recent findings from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), where a research team has come up with a way to build safe, nontoxic gold wires onto flexible, thin plastic film. Their demonstration potentially clears the path…
New Standard Helps Optical Trackers Follow Moving Objects Precisely
Throwing a perfect strike in virtual bowling doesn’t require your gaming system to precisely track the position and orientation of your swinging arm. But if you’re operating a robotic forklift around a factory, manipulating a mechanical arm on an assembly line or guiding a remote-controlled laser scalpel inside a patient, the ability to pinpoint exactly…
Man-made Sun, Rain Demonstrate Environmental Contamination
If the 1967 film “The Graduate” were remade today, Mr. McGuire’s famous advice to young Benjamin Braddock would probably be updated to “Plastics … with nanoparticles.” These days, the mechanical, electrical and durability properties of polymers — the class of materials that includes plastics — are often enhanced by adding miniature particles (smaller than 100…
Tiny Electronic Motion Sensor Could Be Used as DNA Sequencer
Researchers from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and collaborators have proposed a design for the first DNA sequencer based on an electronic nanosensor that can detect tiny motions as small as a single atom. The proposed device — a type of capacitor, which stores electric charge — is a tiny ribbon of…
Compact Gyroscope Provides Ultra-Precise Navigation
Shrink rays may exist only in science fiction, but similar effects are at work in the real world at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). After successfully miniaturizing both clocks and magnetometers based on the properties of individual atoms, NIST physicists have now turned to precision gyroscopes, which measure rotation. The NIST team…