National Institute of Standards and Technology

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is an agency of the United States Department of Commerce. Its mission is to promote American innovation and industrial competitiveness. NIST works on many important areas of science and technology, including nanoscale science and technology, engineering, information technology, neutron research, material measurement, and physical measurement.

From 1901 to 1988, the agency was called the National Bureau of Standards. Today, NIST continues to play a vital role in advancing technology and ensuring accuracy in measurements across many fields. The work done at NIST helps improve products, services, and research in the United States and around the world.

The NIST Historic District was recognized for its importance and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2021, highlighting the long history and continuing impact of NIST's contributions to science and industry.

History

The United States has always needed consistent standards for weights, measures, and money. The Constitution of the United States gave Congress the power to create these standards. Early presidents like George Washington and John Quincy Adams stressed their importance.

In 1901, the Bureau of Standards was created to provide standard weights and measures for the nation. It was later renamed the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in 1988. Over the years, NIST has worked on many important projects, including developing new technologies for World War II, creating early computers, and investigating major building collapses. Today, NIST continues to advance science and technology for the United States.

Constitution

NIST, known from 1901 to 1988 as the National Bureau of Standards, is a measurement standards laboratory. It is part of the United States Department of Commerce and works to help improve innovation and quality of life in the U.S. by advancing measurement science, standards, and technology.

In 2007, NIST had a budget of about $843 million, which grew to $992 million by 2009. The institute employs around 2,900 people, including scientists and engineers, and works with many partners across the country. It also publishes the Handbook 44, which gives important rules for measuring devices. The U.S. Congress passed the Metric Act of 1866 to support the use of the metric system in trade, and later joined an international agreement called the Metric Convention to work together on measuring standards.

Organization

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is based in Gaithersburg, Maryland and also has a facility in Boulder, Colorado. The organization has six main laboratories focused on different areas of science and technology, such as engineering, information technology, and materials.

NIST also runs several important programs to help American businesses, like the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership and the Technology Innovation Program. One famous part of NIST is the NIST‑F1 atomic clock in Boulder, which helps keep the nation's official time.

Projects

NIST supplies industry, academia, and government with over 1,300 Standard Reference Materials. These materials help make sure measuring tools and processes are accurate and reliable.

NIST also creates important guidelines for cybersecurity to help protect computer systems and data. In 2014, they published the NIST Cybersecurity Framework to help organizations manage cybersecurity risks. They continue to update these guidelines to keep up with new technologies and threats. In 2024, NIST introduced new encryption tools designed to protect information from future attacks by very powerful computers called quantum computers.

People

Four scientists at NIST have won Nobel Prizes for their work in physics. William Daniel Phillips, Eric Allin Cornell, John Lewis Hall, and David Jeffrey Wineland were awarded these prizes in different years for their research on cooling atoms with lasers. This helped improve atomic clocks.

In 2011, Dan Shechtman also won a Nobel Prize, this time in chemistry, for discovering quasicrystals. Many other important scientists have worked at NIST, including Milton Abramowitz, James Sacra Albus, David W. Allan, and Kathryn Beers, among others.

Directors

Main article: List of directors of the National Institute of Standards and Technology

Since 1989, the director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology has been chosen by the President and approved by the United States Senate. Over time, the time directors stay in their jobs has become much shorter. After a change in 2011, the director also has another important job title. Many people have served as the official director, with some acting temporarily in the role.

Patents

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) holds patents for the Federal government of the United States. These patents help protect public use of important inventions. One example is a patent for a Chip-scale atomic clock, which was created by a NIST team as part of a competition called DARPA.

Controversy regarding NIST standard SP 800-90

In 2013, news reports suggested that a security standard created by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) might have a hidden weakness. This standard, called SP 800-90, included a special way to create random numbers that some believed could be controlled by certain authorities. This raised concerns because if someone could control these random numbers, they might be able to unlock private data.

NIST responded to these concerns, saying they aim to create strong security standards and follow a clear process. They invited public feedback and later removed the questioned method from their standard to address worries.

Publications

The Journal of Research of the National Institute of Standards and Technology was an important scientific journal at NIST, published from 1904 to 2022. Another journal, the Journal of Physical and Chemical Reference Data, started in 1972. It was a joint effort between the American Institute of Physics and NIST.

NIST also publishes many technical reports on many subjects, such as computer technology and construction. These reports, along with other papers by NIST scientists, are available on the NIST website.