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Material Measurement Laboratory

Materials Measurement Science Division

The Materials Measurement Science Division provides the measurement science, standards, and technology required to enable the discovery and development of next-generation materials.

Our Mission: To Ensure and Promote Excellence in Measurement Science

The Materials Measurement Science Division supports the nation’s materials science needs by providing:

  • Measurements for the determination of composition, structure, and properties of a variety of materials;
  • Standard reference materials, scientific and standard reference data, documentary standards and other methods and materials used to validate existing methods and enable realization of new technologies;
  • State-of-the-art instrumentation, methods, models and software to accurately and precisely measure materials over a range of length and time scales
  • Basic measurement science research to support core capabilities and foster innovation. 

Organization:  The Materials Measurement Science Division is organized into eight Groups according to technical and programmatic expertise.

Key Program Areas:  1) Atomic Arrangements and Structure-Property Relationships; 2) Physical, Chemical and Mechanical Properties; 3) X-Ray Scattering and Spectroscopy; 4) Materials and Metrology for Safety, Security and Forensics; and 5) Informatics and Artificial Intelligence for Materials Design.

PROGRAMS

1) Atomic Arrangements and Structure-Property Relationships

2) Physical, Chemical and Mechanical Properties of Materials

3) X-ray Scattering and Spectroscopy

4) Materials and Metrology for Safety, Security and Forensics

5) Informatics and Artificial Intelligence for Materials Design

News and Updates

An illustration for AI shows a silhouette of a human head containing icons for computer networks.

NIST AI System Discovers New Material

When the words “artificial intelligence” (AI) come to mind, your first thoughts may be of super-smart computers, or robots that perform tasks without needing

Industry Impacts

Scientist puts material down below a tube. Background: computer screen

Helmet Materials for Head Health

Athletes, warfighters and even children riding their bikes all can benefit from better protective gear to prevent head injuries. The Head Health Challenge

Software

DTSA II

NIST DTSA-II

NIST DTSA-II builds on the best available algorithms in the literature to simulate, quantify and plan energy dispersive x-ray analysis measurements.

RMCPROFILE

RMCProfile is a free software package (developed as a collaborative effort between scientists at several institutions including NIST), that can fit

Tools and Instruments

HNL650-small

Focused Ion Beam (Helios 660)

The Helios 660 NanoLab(HNL660) is a Focused Ion Beam Scanning Electron Microscope equipped with spectroscopic detectors to allow elemental and phase

Awards

Press Coverage

Nanoscale LED shines brighter

Physics World
"An innovative fin-shaped design for light-emitting diodes (LEDs) could not only overcome the devices’ limited brightness, it could also help turn them into

Contacts

Division Chief