Research FacilitiesThe Polymers Division has several state of the art laboratories and facilities which are available for your research needs. Detailed information about each facility describing its capabilities, typical applications, and availability is provided in the links below. Please also note the NIST disclaimer. |
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Small Angle X-ray Scattering (SAXS) FacilitySAXS is a powerful non-destructive technique to probe the structure of materials over length scales of (1 to 100) nm. The SAXS facility in the Division is unique with several configurations available through two target sources, a Bonse-Hart camera, and a pinhole geometry. |
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More information on Small Angle X-Ray
Scattering Facility |
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X-Ray Reflectivity FacilityX-ray reflectivity is a non-destructive technique for characterizing surfaces of solids and liquids in terms of their roughness and electron density depth profile. A depth up to micrometers can be resolved with a resolution less than one nanometer. This capability makes it an ideal tool for characterizing thin films. |
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Reflectivity Facility |
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Neutron Reflectivity FacilityThe polymers division at NIST utilizes neutron reflection (NR) for probing a wide range of surface and interfacial problems in polymer science. |
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on Neutron Reflectivity Facility |
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Small Angle Neutron Scattering FacilityThe US's leading neutron scattering facility is maintained by the NIST Center for Neutron Research. Neutron scattering is used to probe molecular and microstructural features of polymers and other materials. Within the Facility there is an 8 m beam line that is particularly useful for studies of polymers. |
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Small Angle Neutron Scattering Facility |
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Macromolecular Mass SpectrometryThe Mass Spectrometry Facility is used in the measurement of molecular mass and molecular mass distribution of synthetic polymers, as well as in studies of the molecular architecture of prepolymers and copolymers. |
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Spectrometery Facility |
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Fiber-Matrix Interface Strength FacilityNIST has three machines used to measure and assess the interfacial shear properties between fibers and polymeric matrices. The first is an automated single fiber fragmentation testing (SFFT) machine. The second is a manual sfft machine. The third is a microdrop shear apparatus. |
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on Fiber-Matrix Interface Strength Facility |
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Combinatorial MethodsNovel combinatorial methods for polymer "library" design and characterization have been developed in the Polymers Division. These include gradient flow coating with elevated temperature control, automated interferometric mapping of film thickness and refractive index, composition gradient library preparation, UV and wet etch for gradient surface hydrophobicity modification of inorganic and polymer surfaces, infrared spectroscopic composition mapping, temperature gradient processing stage, automated optical reflection and transmission microscopy with polarization and process control programming, automated multi-solvent contact angle instrument, high throughput opto-adhesion methodology, and state of the art on-line data analysis tools for image and pattern processing. |
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on Combinatorial methods |
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Optical Coherence Tomography FacilityOptical coherence tomography (OCT) is a powerful tool for non-destructive, bulk volumetric imaging of synthetic materials. With this technique, information about features with a size of 10 mm and above is obtained. A requirement for this type of tomography is that the material be transparent to near infrared light, making many polymer systems excellent candidates. |
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Coherence Tomography Facility |
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Extrusion Visualization FacilityAn instrumented slit die located at the exit of a twin screw extruder allows in-situ optical measurements of blend morphology and critical processing parameters. The combination of in-line optical microscopy and light scattering probes a size range from 0.1 microns to 100 microns. The facility has been used for the study of polymer blends, reactive blends, in-situ fiber formation and slippage. |
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on Extrusion Visualization Facility |
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Mercury Dilatometer FacilityThe Mercury Dilatometer Facility is used for the kinetic measurement of volumetric changes in polymers. It is ideal for dynamically determining the rate and time dependence of shrinkage or expansion in polymetric materials subjected to chemical or photo polymerization.
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Mercury Dilatometer Facility |
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| NIST Materials Science & Engineering Laboratory - Polymers Division | |
