Quantum Devices Group

The Quantum Devices Group, part of NIST's Electronics and Electrical Engineering Laboratory, and the Quantum Electrical Metrology Division, advances measurement science in a variety of fields using state-of-the-art science and technology, especially.

• quantum effects, including superconductivity,
• low temperatures to reduce thermal noise, and
• state-of-the-art lithography to achieve small sizes.

Major activities of the Group include:

• Josephson array voltage standards, the most complex superconducting integrated circuits in actual use,
• a new capacitance standard, based on counting electrons one at a time using nanometer scale tunnel junctions,
• a new temperature standard, based on precision measurement of Johnson (thermal) noise,
• new x-ray and gamma-ray spectrometers, combining the best features of two different earlier devices, now being licensed for commercialization,
• fully multiplexed arrays of ultra-sensitive microcalorimeters for astronomical observation,
• understanding the physics and technology of quantum computing based on current-biased superconducting Josephson junctions, and
• magnetic devices for forensics and other applications.

Located at the base of the Flatiron mountains in Boulder, Colorado, the Group draws heavily on its optical and electron beam fabrication capabilities as well as those for creating micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS).