National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)

Illustration of a prospective biocompatible interface shows that hydrogels (green tubing), which can be generated by an electron or X-ray beam 3D printing process, act as artificial synapses or junctions, connecting neurons (brown) to electrodes (yellow).

NIST's New 3D Printing Method Could Jumpstart Tiny Medical Devices

This could lead to flexible injectable electrodes to monitor brain activity, biosensors for virus detection and soft micro-robots that interact with living cells.

NIST engineer Jeremy Marvel adjusts a robotic arm used to study human-robot interactions. According to a NIST economic study on advanced robotics and automation -- one of four reports on advanced manufacturing -- Marvel's work is the type of research needed to fortify and facilitate this emerging field.

Closing Tech Gaps Can Fortify Advanced Mfg

Gaps in technology infrastructure are limiting advanced manufacturing's further development and adoption.

In NIST's proposed design for a DNA sequencer, a nanoscale ribbon of molybdenum disulfide is suspended over a metal electrode and immersed in water. Single-stranded DNA, containing a chain of bases (bits of genetic code), is threaded through a hole in the ribbon, which flexes only when a DNA base pairs up with and then separates from a complementary base affixed to the hole. The membrane motion is detected as an electrical signal.

DNA Sequencer Based on Nanoscale Sensor

NIST's proposed design for a DNA sequencer is based on an electronic motion sensor.

Mathematician Marc Weiss in the NIST Boulder laboratory that controls an experimental demonstration of time transfer over commercial telecommunications networks. In the experiment, equipment in this room locks onto NIST’s official version of international time, transfers time signals back and forth between NIST and U.S. Naval Observatory time services in Colorado Springs, and measures system time transfer accuracy.

Telecom Could Back Up GPS

What happens if GPS goes down? Researchers work to find a practical backup.

A participant performing relative range measurements in the long length tape tunnel facility at NIST.

Manufacturers Push 3D Scanning Standard

Manufacturers from all over the world converged at NIST to put their scanners through the paces.

NIST and Georgetown scientists have developed a new picture to describe oobleck and similar mixtures of fine particles suspended in liquids.

Friction Thickens Fluid, Could Lead to Advanced Body Armor & Concrete

Shear thickening could lead to body armor that better defends against knife wounds, and protects soldiers against projectiles and blast debris.

Acoustic waveguide channels phonons into the optomechanical cavity, enabling the group to manipulate the motion of the suspended nanoscale beam directly.

Multilingual Circuit

The new breast phantom consists of two components. The one at left is designed to provide a standard for measuring proton spin relaxation time, which varies with different kinds of tissue. The one at right provides references for imaging diffusion.

First Breast Phantoms Shipped

Fight against breast cancer pushes for tests to improve imaging systems.