U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Physical Measurement Laboratory /Quantum Measurement Division

Mass and Force Group

The Group performs the research and development needed to provide traceability, measurement solutions, and calibration services to the US industry, government, and academia in the areas of mass, force, and the dynamic mechanical quantities of acoustics, force, and vibration.

The group also

  • Represents the interests of the US in the national, regional, and international metrology communities, through participation and/or leadership in consultative committees, working groups, and standards organizations to guarantee US competitiveness and the equivalence of standards worldwide.
  • Carries out research and development and provides technical support in legal metrology, measurement science, instrumentation design, development, and testing to develop new physical measurement services, new realization of the units, new transfer standards, new methods and data, and custom tests to improve NIST capabilities in providing traceability and leadership to meet the needs and demands of U.S. industry, government, and the scientific community.

News and Updates

truebq thumbnail

A Better Balance for Tiny Liquid Masses

Scientists from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) are developing a mass balance to measure miniscule amounts of liquid with much higher
sound setup

Now Hear This!

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have designed and built an optical device that could set a new standard for measuring

Projects and Programs

SI Base Units chart

Calibration of Force Transducers

Ongoing
The calibration report describes the relationship between the applied force and the measured deformation, either in electrical or mechanical units. A transducer can be calibrated using (1) a readout device furnished by the customer, in which case the transducer and the readout device are calibrated
traceability chain illustration

Calibration of Mass Standards

Ongoing
Redefinition of the Kilogram and Consensus Value of the Kilogram The unit of mass was redefined in May 2019 as part of a general revision to the International System of Units (SI). See SI Redefinition. The kilogram is now defined by the Planck constant. The International Prototype Kilogram (IPK) no
Anechoic-Chamber-400 X 324

Dynamic Mechanical Metrology: Acceleration, Force, and Acoustics

Ongoing
The Dynamic Mechanical Metrology Project develops standards and provides calibrations for SI-traceable acceleration, acoustical and dynamic force metrology. We develop improved reference standards and calibration techniques, sensor-embedded standards, calibration techniques for new technologies, and
weighing device

National Type Evaluation Program (NTEP)

Ongoing
NTEP requires industry to submit prototype weighing devices for evaluation to determine whether or not it meets the uncertainties which are related to tolerances associated with the intended final use in the marketplace. All devices sold in the United States for "legal for trade" purposes must pass

Publications

Dynamic Calibration of Instrumented Charpy Strikers

Author(s)
Akobuije Chijioke, Nicholas Vlajic, Enrico Lucon
Charpy V-notch testing of metallic materials involves application of kilonewton-range force pulses on millisecond time scales, generated by impacting the

Low-power, agile electro-optic frequency comb spectrometer for integrated sensors

Author(s)
Kyunghun Han, David Long, Sean Bresler, Junyeob Song, Yiliang Bao, Benjamin Reschovsky, Kartik Srinivasan, Jason J. Gorman, Vladimir Aksyuk, Thomas W. LeBrun
Sensing platforms based upon photonic integrated circuits have shown considerable promise; however, they require corresponding advancements in integrated

Optical-cavity-based primary sound standard

Author(s)
Akobuije Chijioke, Richard A. Allen, Steven E. Fick, David Long, Benjamin Reschovsky, Jared Strait, Randall P. Wagner
We propose an optical sound standard in which the sound pressure is directly measured by using an optical cavity to observe the induced change in the refractive

Tools and Instruments

Awards

Contacts

Group Leader