Taking Measure Blog: Atomic / molecular / quantum

Atomic / molecular / quantum

Illustration shows a lottery ball machine: a clear plastic sphere on a stand, half-filled with colorful numbered balls.

Pirouetting Molecules Can Help Us Learn About the History of the Universe

December 11, 2024

Our researchers are trapping tiny, fast-moving molecules — in hopes of learning more about the formation of our stars and universe.

Unlocking Our World’s Earliest Secrets — One Tiny Electron at a Time

August 7, 2024

Why do we exist? It’s a big question — and one that some of NIST’s early universe detectives are getting closer to answering.

Four people sitting outside on a green tarp wear eclipse glasses as they peer up into the sky.

NIST Researchers Measure Greenhouse Gases During the Solar Eclipse

June 5, 2024

Check out some of the things happening at NIST during the past few months through the lens of social media.

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

June 26, 2024

On Lord Kelvin’s 200th birthday today, we’re remembering the scientist who brought us the metric (SI) unit for temperature.

A researcher wearing safety glasses reaches into a box of circuitry and other equipment, which emits a green glow.

Demystifying Quantum: It’s Here, There and Everywhere

April 10, 2024

It’s time to celebrate World Quantum Day! But what is quantum, anyway? A NIST physicist answers your questions.

Historical photo shows Henry Moseley sitting at a desk reading a thick book, with other open books on the desk.

Henry Moseley: A Patriotic Scientist Who Changed the Periodic Table — and Then Went Off to War

February 7, 2024

At a young age, physicist Henry Moseley changed the periodic table of the elements — before dying in a bloody World War I battle.

Isabelle Rivera poses smiling at a computer with two monitors, one showing a spreadsheet and the other multiple file icons.

Reaching for the Stars: My Summer Internship Learning About Spectroscopy in Space and on Earth

October 4, 2023

As a summer high school intern at NIST, I got to take a deep dive into one of the ways scientists study space — the absorption and emission of light by matter

From Escaping a War to Becoming a Mom of 3 at Once, Science Has Always Been There for Me

July 26, 2023

I learned as a young adult not to get attached to material things; they can be gone in an instant. But there were some things I knew no one could take — an

AMO for All: How Online Portals Are Democratizing the Field of Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics

November 2, 2022

Portals allow less-experienced researchers to do real calculations without knowing how to build the code themselves.

Detecting the Flavors of Important Elements With Neutron Depth Profiling

November 17, 2021

The first five minutes of any presentation I give on neutron depth profiling are usually met with blank stares from my audience. This, I hope, is not something

Taking Measure