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Physical Measurement Laboratory

Time and Frequency Division

News and Updates

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Detecting Brain Waves with Atomic Vapor

July 26, 2016

It's really hard to hear what the brain is saying. Neural impulses -- currents of ions moving through channels between the brain's 100 billion neurons at a

NIST's Super Quantum Simulator 'Entangles' Hundreds of Ions

June 9, 2016

Physicists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have "entangled" or linked together the properties of up to 219 beryllium ions (charged

NIST's Internet Time Service Serves the World

March 8, 2016

The Internet Time Service operated by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) serves much of the Earth, with customers from around the globe

NIST Adds to Quantum Computing Toolkit with Mixed-Atom Logic Operations

December 16, 2015

BOULDER, Colo.–Physicists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have added to their collection of ingredients for future quantum

Today, Pause for a Second

June 30, 2015

For the great majority of human history, the earth's rotation—the apparent motion of the sun and stars across the sky—kept time far more precisely than any

40th Time and Frequency Seminar Serves Industry, Government, Academe

June 23, 2015

About 40 participants from industry, US government agencies and academia participated in the 40th Annual Time and Frequency Metrology Seminar at NIST Boulder

Lack of Effective Timing Signals Could Hamper 'Internet of Things' Development

March 19, 2015

Our fast-approaching future of driverless cars and "smart" electrical grids will depend on billions of linked devices making decisions and communicating with

Open-Source Software for Quantum Information

January 23, 2015

NIST has partnered with the private sector to develop the next-generation open-source control software for quantum information systems. NIST is a world leader

NIST Enables Precision Time-stamping of Financial Transactions

December 10, 2014

NASDAQ, a leading stock exchange for technology markets, has announced the launch of a precision time-stamping service for tens of billions of dollars of

Tiny Magnetic Sensor Deemed Attractive

November 24, 2014

Ultra-sensitive magnetic sensor technology pioneered at PML may soon be commercialized for a host of applications from detection of unexploded bombs and

NIST Therapy for Ultraviolet Laser Beams: Hydrogen-treated Fibers

August 11, 2014

To make a better optical fiber for transmitting laser beams, the first idea that comes to mind is probably not a nice long hydrogen bath. And yet, scientists

NIST Ion Duet Offers Tunable Module for Quantum Simulator

August 6, 2014

Physicists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have demonstrated a pas de deux of atomic ions that combines the fine choreography of

'Comb on a Chip' Powers New NIST/Caltech Atomic Clock Design

July 22, 2014

Researchers from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and California Institute of Technology (Caltech) have demonstrated a new design for

NIST Chip Produces and Detects Specialized Gas for Biomedical Analysis

May 20, 2014

A chip-scale device that both produces and detects a specialized gas used in biomedical analysis and medical imaging has been built and demonstrated at the

NIST physicists Steve Jefferts and Tom Heavner with the NIST-F2 cesium fountain atommic clock

NIST Launches a New U.S. Time Standard: NIST-F2 Atomic Clock

April 3, 2014

NIST-F2 Atomic Clock News Briefing: Opening Statement by Tom O'Brian, Chief, Time and Frequency Division Opening Statement by Steve Jefferts, NIST Project

NIST-F2 Atomic Clock Webinar

April 3, 2014

On April 3, 2014, NIST hosted a news briefing on the NIST-F2 Atomic Clock. << Back to the press release. <

A New Era for Atomic Clocks

February 4, 2014

A revolution is under way in timekeeping. Precision timekeeping based on atomic clocks already underpins much of our modern technology—telecommunications

NIST Demonstrates How Losing Information Can Benefit Quantum Computing

November 25, 2013

Suggesting that quantum computers might benefit from losing some data, physicists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have entangled

NIST's New Compact Atomic Clock Design Uses Cold Atoms to Boost Precision

November 5, 2013

Physicists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have demonstrated a compact atomic clock design that relies on cold rubidium atoms

NIST Ytterbium Atomic Clocks Set Record for Stability

August 22, 2013

A pair of experimental atomic clocks based on ytterbium atoms at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has set a new record for stability

NIST Shows How to Make a Compact Frequency Comb in Minutes

July 11, 2013

Laser frequency combs—high-precision tools for measuring different colors of light in an ever-growing range of applications such as advanced atomic clocks

Time to Celebrate: NIST Radio Station WWVB Logs 50 Years of Innovation

June 25, 2013

Fifty years ago on July 5, 1963, a modest radio station in Fort Collins, Colo., officially went on the airwaves—a landmark event for U.S. industry and the

Close up of the NIST chip-scale atomic clock

NIST Scientists Win 2014 Rank Prizes for Chip-Scale Atomic Clock

May 28, 2013

Physicists John Kitching and Svenja Knappe of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) will receive 2014 Rank Prizes in optoelectronics "for

New NIST Time Code to Boost Reception for Radio-Controlled Clocks

March 5, 2013

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is changing the way it broadcasts time signals that synchronize radio-controlled "atomic" clocks and

Physicist David J. Wineland of NIST Boulder Laboratories in Colorado

Congratulations to David Wineland! 2012 Nobel Laureate in Physics

October 9, 2012

We are thrilled at the news that NIST's David Wineland has been awarded the 2012 Nobel Prize in Physics, along with Professor Serge Haroche of the Collège de

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