Archive of the homepage-news 2007

Measuring the density of ultra-pure water
For oceanography – and there in particular for the description of ocean currents – accurate measurements of the density of sea water are of great importance. For this purpose, measuring instruments are needed which reach an uncertainty of approx. 0,001 kg/m³ (relative 1 · 10^–6). To be able to calibrate these measuring instruments, ultra-pure water is required as a reference fluid – the density of which can now be measured with the required accuracy over a large temperature range by means of the Magnetic Flotation Method which has been further developed at PTB.- more

Faster X-ray interferometers due to single-photon interference
By means of X-ray interferometers, lengths down to the mm range can be measured with a resolution of less than one nm. The low translation velocity of the interferometers, which made their use in practice more difficult, could now be increased by a factor of 100 by exploiting the temporal correlation of singly interfering X-ray photons. - more

Fizeau interferometers for surfaces with different reflectivity
Due to their stable design, Fizeau interferometers are used to determine the topography of surfaces such as, e.g., plane surfaces. PTB has now developed a method which makes it possible to analyse surfaces with different reflectivities in a simple way. This method can also be extended to dynamic measurements. - more

Profile waviness artifact for toothed gear flanks
The precise measurement of periodic surface textures on the flanks of toothed gears is becoming increasingly important since it allows conclusions to be drawn with regard to their functional properties (such as wear, efficiency and operating noise) within drive assemblies. Therefore, PTB has developed a method by means of which wavy structures on the flank surfaces of involute cylinder gears can be modelled, represented and, especially, traceably measured for the first time.- more

New Director of the BIPM elected
In future, the international world of metrology will – in a prominent position – be occupied by a German scientist. Prof. Dr. Michael Kühne, a member of the Presidential Board of the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) (National Metrology Institute of Germany), is the future Director of the Bureau International des Poids et Mesures (BIPM), with its seat in Sèvres near Paris. This is the first time in the more than 130-year history of this institution that a German has been assigned this task. - more

120 Years of PTR/PTB
On the occasion of the 120 years of existence of the PTB and its parent institution, the PTR, a celebratory colloquium will be held in the Berlin Institute of the PTB in Berlin-Charlottenburg on Monday, 10th December, beginning at 3.00 p.m. The colloquium will focus on the work - of long standing and rich in tradition - of the current Bundesanstalt (Federal Institute) and its parent institution, as well as give a forecast of the current trends in basic metrological research.The celebratory lectures will be given by Prof. Dr. Rudolf Huebener and Dr. Terry Quinn. - more

Reference values for drinking water comparison measurements
Due to increasing demands for the international comparability of measurement results, metrologically traced-back reference values for comparison measurements are gaining increasingly in importance over the consensus values used mainly today. Within the scope of a study it was possible to show that on the basis of gravimetrically or volumetrically produced samples for the comparison measurements and with the aid of the results of the participants, it was possible to determine traced-back reference values. The path shown here is very rational, and therefore an approach for meeting the great demand for traceability existing in the field of foodstuff- and environmental analysis. - more

German-Brazilian Measuring Instruments Partnership
If a manufacturer of measuring instruments wishes to export his products to another country, then a crucial question for him is will the reliability of the measuring device (tested in his country) be accepted when it passes over the country's border. If not, then the device must be recalibrated in the target country which makes the business more expensive and thus less attractive. An agreement between Germany and Brazil will now be able to strengthen the trade relations between these countries. In the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), the state metrological institutes of both countries, the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) and the National Institute of Metrology, Standardization and Industrial Quality (INMETRO), commit themselves to in future accept certain of the partner's calibration results and moreover to cooperate extensively in the field of metrology. - more

For the Earth and in Space: New Measuring Device for Monitoring Radiation
In radiation protection the motto is: As little radiation as at all possible! Whoever wants to convert this to action, however, must first know how high the current radiation exposure actually is. A new type of measuring device which can even register several types of radiation simultaneously, comes at the right time here. The physicist Dr. Marlies Luszik-Bhadra from the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt has, together with a partner from industry, developed a measuring device which can measure neutron- and photon radiation at the same time. This personal dosimeter is a handy device which has a direct readout and an alarm function. It was possible by means of an invention - the essential principles of which have been patented - to make the dosimeter especially light and compact. For the technology transfer to the Synodys group, Marlies Luszik-Bhadra and her colleagues Wilfried Wendt and Mathias Weierganz receive this year's Technology Transfer Prize of the Industrie- und Handelskammer Braunschweig (Braunschweig Chamber of Commerce and Industry). - more

New MCG device for cardiac signals of mice
Many cardiovascular diseases of men can also be well studied on mice. Before an ECG examination is performed, the animals must be anesthetized - which has an effect on the activity of their heart - or a small transmitter must be implanted - which is expensive. These disadvantages do not occur in the case of a new device developed at PTB, Berlin. The MCG device, the biomagnetic correspondent of the ECG device, senses the magnetic fields - and thus the electric activity of the heart - with supersensitive measuring probes. The new device allows, firstly, the mice to be measured directly without any preparation. Secondly, a complex cabin, which is in other cases required for biomagnetic measurements to shield these from the magnetic fields of the earth, is no longer required. Investigations performed in cooperation with the Max Delbrück Centre for Molecular Medicine in Berlin have shown that the new desk-top unit allows the cardiac signals of the mice to be recorded without contact under normal laboratory conditions. - more

Deep views of the body's interior
How about doing some meditation? Go ahead and use the dark days sometime to listen to yourself closely. Perhaps your own body will present you with the one or other secret. But what if questions come up thereby more than ever, for example about what it may really look like inside yourself? Then you will either need special tools which only a doctor can provide - or you procure for yourself the newest issue of the maßstäbe, the scientific-journalistic magazine of the PTB. Issue No. 8 with the title "Innenansichten" (interior views) provides you with deep insights into the interior of the human body - obtained with such known tools as ultrasound or X-rays - but also with various representatives of the species "Trojan horse". The maßstäbe can be subscribed to free of charge at the Press Office of the PTB (presse@ptb.de). - more

PTB research is excellent
Together, we are better yet! This in a nutshell reflects the reasons why institutes which conduct world-class research join forces to enter new territory with their combined knowledge. This is exactly what the PTB will be doing in the next few years, together with their partners from other universities and research facilities. On Friday, 19th October, the joint authorising committee of the Deutsche For-schungsgemeinschaft and the Wissenschaftsrat (German Research Foundation (DFG) and the Sci-ence Council) announced the decision as to which of a total of 144 applications for clusters of excel-lence will become reality. Among the 20 winners, there are even two clusters with PTB participation: Project QUEST located at the Leibniz University Hannover as well as NeuroCare, the Berlin cluster of excellence. - more

Reliable salinity measurements of seawater
A large impact on the climate of the earth is made by the global circulation of seawater which is driven by density fluctuations. The density of seawater can be calculated by means of measuring temperature, pressure, and salinity. Salinity, a measure of the salt content in water, is therefore one of the essential climate variables of the Global Climate Observation System (GCOS). UNESCO has endorsed the so called Practical Salinity Scale in 1978 (PSS-78), which forms the basis of an internationally accepted method for calculating salinity from conductivity measurements of seawater. However, this scale is not traceable to SI units. Therefore the traceability of salinity determination was investigated in a first EUROMET study. This pilot study showed that the agreement of conductivity and salinity values is good, but indeed more attention has to be paid to the treatment of uncertainty and traceability. - more

Nanoparticles in the battle against cancer
Cancer research is pursuing - with the smallest magnetic particles - a new therapy approach which is said to be far more gentle than conventional methods such as chemotherapy or classical hyperthermic methods. Due to their small size, nanoparticles can penetrate the smallest capillaries without problems. Suitable nanoparticles are, e.g., magnetosomes. In the PTB, they can now be made visible. - more

Mechanical load cell spring of single-crystal silicon
The ideal elastic material properties of single-crystal silicon make this material interesting for use in high-accuracy weighing machines. A first mechanical load cell spring of single-crystal silicon with a nominal load of 6 kg has been manufactured at PTB. Compared to conventional load cells, a lower time dependence and a high reproducibility of the measurement signals of the sensor are expected. - more

PTB-Publica has received a new face
Publications and selected lectures of PTB scientists are documented in the database PTB-Publica. So far, however, only one user interface had been provided - intended more for users who are familiar with database research. Under the name of PTB-Publica, an interface has now been brought out by the PTB Library which can be operated more easily. Nevertheless, the former, well-established standard interface can still be used - under the name of "PTB-Publica_Pro". - more

Founding of the Innovation and Patent Association of Braunschweig
The Technical University of Braunschweig (TU Braunschweig), the Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR) (German Aerospace Centre) and the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) (National Metrology Institute of Germany) have on 18 September 2007 agreed to a close regional cooperation for the strengthening of patent exploitation and technology transfer. All participating institutions have been working together intensively and bilaterally for years in the field of research and development. With this step they are further interlinking their core competencies in the areas of engi-neering sciences, mobility and measurement technology.

Patents are gaining in importance for securing investments and thus for safeguarding the future capability of the German economy. The participating institutions use patents in order to acquire industrial cooperations, to safeguard their legal claims in key technologies and to open up additional sources of income. The research region of Braunschweig thus offers a unique technology potential with the unique metrological infrastructure of the PTB, the site of the DLR driving simulator, the research air-port and the proven compentencies of the 110 institutes of the TU Braunschweig. - more

First EUROMET comparison in beta dosimetry concluded
For the first time, an international EUROMET comparison measurement for beta radiation has been carried out in the field of radiation protection. In addition to the PTB as pilot laboratory, from Europe the primary laboratories of Finland, France and Italy also participated. From other continents: Japan, Canada, Russia and the USA. Most of the results agree within the scope of the uncertainties and thus document the good agreement of beta dosimetry within the participating state institutes. The results serve for all participants as basis for recording their measurement capabilities in the international databank of the BIPM. - more

Spreading of THz waves in interior rooms
Terahertz radiation with frequencies between 100 GHz and a few THz is nothing else but gentle heat radiation with special characteristics. It has been used for many years already in scientific applications and is now on the verge of being adopted for commercial applications. Initial measur-ing systems for detecting skin cancer, for personal inspection at airports or for the quality control of industrial products have already been developed. Due to the increasing demand for free band-widths, consideration has been given to short range communication systems at frequencies of 300 GHz and above. But how do these waves spread in interior rooms and what receiving characteris-tics are to be expected? These questions are being looked into by the researchers at the Terahertz Communications Lab, an association of three working groups at the TU Braunschweig and a work-ing group at PTB. In a current study, the reflection characteristics of rough interior wall materials were investigated and modelled mathematically. - more

Mix your own physics cocktail
Take a little time, add a few nanometers, mix in some force and round it off with a dash of radon. Or take light and radiation, stir in some sound waves and top it off with frozen water drops. You can mix yourself such a cocktail or entirely different physics cocktails on 8th September, Open Day, in the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB). 23 laboratories and the training facilities are open and awaiting you - from "A" as in "atomic clock" to "Z" as in "zero degrees centigrade - how a drop of water freezes". You are cordially welcome - see you on Saturday, 8th September, from 1 p.m. to 10 p.m.!! - more

Personal dose of persons assisting in dental radiology
In the context of a research project funded by the BMU the personal dose of persons assisting in dental radiology was measured. The determined dose values are in the order of the dose caused by the environmental radiation during one day. - more

Monitoring of blood perfusion in stroke patients
Novel optical measuring techniques allow to non-invasively track the passage of an intravenously administered dye bolus in the adult brain by detecting the dye-induced changes in absorption or the fluorescence of the dye. This approach opens up the opportunity for monitoring cerebral perfusion, e.g. in stroke patients, directly at the bedside. These measuring techniques were developed and validated in close collaboration with the Department of Neurology of Charité (Berlin) within the framework of the Berlin Neuroimaging Center (BNIC), and a joint patent application was filed for the fluorescence method. In a new, binational project on "Hypo- and Hyperperfusion in Subacute Stroke. Detection of Perfusion Kinetics in Stroke Patients by Optical Imaging", the novel method will now be tested in a clinical study together with Charité and partner institutions in Warsaw. - more

Velocity measurement of small space particles
With more than 4000 rocket launches worldwide, a volume of waste - mainly in the form of smallest particles - has got into the near-earth space in addition to the useful load (satellites) as, for example, slag residuals of rocket motors or fragments produced in fuel explosions. Due to the mostly high relative velocities in the case of a collision, even particles of the size of micrometers may cause damage. To be able to better rate this damage, the prototype of a measuring set-up, which determines the velocity of such particles with the aid of laser-light curtains, has been developed at PTB. Out of space, this procedure is suited to exactly measure the velocity of bullets (e.g. of pellets). - more

Award for best "nano-film" goes to a PTB scientist
Dr. Hans U. Danzebrink (PTB) was awarded a prize for his short film "Dimensionen" in a competition regarding best images, animations and movies in the area of nanoscience. The prize was handed over at the Deutsches Museum in Munich by a state secretary of the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology. - more

A high-precision view of the sun
Shortly before the preparations for the next Space Shuttle launch to the International Space Station ISS, the solar-spectroradiometer SOLSPEC stopped by at the PTB in Braunschweig to be precisely calibrated at the high-temperature cavity radiator facility. - more

Prize for PTB Nanometrologist
Thorsten Dziomba, a young PTB scientist, has been awarded the title "The Best Young Metrologist of COOMET". His presentation convinced the high-ranking committee, among them the presidents of several national metrology institutes (NMIs) of COOMET. - more

German-japanese story of success
Since 1999 exists a German-Japanese agreement on the mutual recognition of the test results of non-automatic weighing instruments. The rapid metrological progress of the past few years in the field of weighing technology has made a revision necessary. For this reason, a comprehensive extension of the agreement has been signed on June 5, 2007 by PTB and the National Metrology Institute of Japan. - more

Extension of the tactile-optical microprobe to 3D-sensing
The tactile-optical microprobe for coordinate metrology is widely used in industry and research for measurements of small structures. In its current design, it is restricted to in-plane measurements. The PTB together with a German instrument manufacturer has now developed a sensing principle, that overcomes the current 2D-limitations by adding a sensitivity in the direction of the optical axis. - more

Atomic fountain clocks are becoming still more accurate
It was thought to date that the accuracy of the currently best atomic clocks, the cae-sium fountains, could not be significantly increased any more. That is no longer true. Scientists of the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) in Braunschweig have, in a series of experiments with their atomic fountain clock CSF1, found a previ-ously unknown effect in connection with the mutual collisions of the caesium atoms in the clock. The results which were obtained in collaboration with British and US-American colleagues and published in the journal Physical Review Letters enable a substantial improvement in performance for the caesium fountain clocks. - more

Billions of mirrors bring light into the office
The micro- and nanoworld has long stopped being interesting to fundamental researchers only. On the contrary - these fascinating, minuscule objects penetrate more and more into everday life. Thus it is now possible, for example, to produce windows having billions of micromirrors arranged between their two insulating layers of glass. They direct the daylight over a large area into interior spaces; this conserves artificial light, people feel more comfortable in the pleasant, "natural" daylight, and in addition, the micromirrors serve to regulate the heat in buildings. Such "active light-directing windows" - an award-winning development - is the subject of the lecture by Prof. Dr. Hartmut Hillmer, University of Kassel, on Thursday, the 21st of June in the Braunschweigisches Landesmuseum (State Museum of Braunschweig), located at the Burgplatz. Admission is free. - more

Most distinguished prize in metrology: awarded in Braunschweig
His design was already on Mars in order to search for water there, and was also used in an entirely earthly assignment. Göstar Klingelhöfer, a physicist from Mainz, was successful in developing an approx. 100-fold miniaturized version of a generally considerably larger measuring device. A measuring device with which chemical analyses and trace investigations can be carried out very precisely. For this technical accomplishment and the quality of measurement possible with it, Klingelhöfer is to receive this year's Helmholtz Prize for Metrology which is endowed with ¬ 20 000. The awards ceremony will be held on 18th June in the Dornse of the Braunschweig Altstadtrathaus. The Helmholtz Prize for Metrology is awarded by the Helmholtz-Fonds (Helmholtz Foundation) - whose Chairman is the President of the PTB - together with the Stifterverband für die Deutsche Wissenschaft (Donors' Association for the Promotion of Science and Humanities in Germany). The fact that the awards ceremony is being held in Braunschweig is due to Braunschweig's distinction of being this year's "City of the Sciences". - more

Light is more than what you see...
Light, its visible colours and the spectral ranges beyond them are the subject of an exhibition at the PTB at its WWL site (Willy Wien Laboratory) in Adlershof. The attempt is made, here, to go beyond purely metrological aspects and approach the subject from various directions. The exhibition is a co-production of the PTB, a technical college, an architecture firm, commercial suppliers of lighting technology and the Protestant Church Berlin. It can be seen at theat the Long Night of the Sciences on 9 June from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. - more

Technology transfer of dynamic measuring methods
Novel measuring procedures and methods of data analysis for the calibration of accelerometers as have been developed at PTB are the object of a new project which will be carried out by PTB together with SPEKTRA Schwingungstechnik und Akustik GmbH Dresden ("SPEKTRA Vibration and Acoustic Systems Engineering") and will be launched in June. The project is promoted within the scope of the MSTQ transfer programme of the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology (BMWi) which supports the technology transfer of innovative measuring methods to Small and Medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). - more

Building Acoustics en miniature
Problems in building acoustics can be investigated excellently on small, downscaled models. They are more flexible, require less time and effort and are cheaper than the usual measurements carried out in large and standardized test facilities, and they are also more reliable and realistic than most computer simulations. A downscaled model of a building-acoustics wall test facility has been designed and validated according to the theory of similarity. - more

Why life is lighter in the South
Suppose you weigh a kilogram of sugar on an accurately calibrated scale first in Braunschweig and then in Munich. You will find that the sugar is slightly lighter in Munich. The reason for this is the differing gravitational acceleration (g) which is dependent on the geographical latitude as well as the altitude (closer to the pole: higher gravitational acceleration because the Earth is oblate at the poles; higher altitude: low gravitational acceleration). This is important, for example, for the manufacturers of commercial scales as they are used, e.g., in supermarkets. To avoid having the scales indicate differing weights, the different values of the gravitational acceleration are "taken out" with the aid of so-called gravitational zones. The "smart" weighing machine thus knows where it is located. The PTB has now set up a gravitational information system (SIS) on its websites which enables interested users from industry, research and authorities, but also private users, to have the local gravitational acceleration at any place on Earth displayed. - more

New low temperature scale
The low temperature region is of interest for fundamental research as well as for measurement applications as high-sensitive detectors and bolometers. For traceable temperature measurements in this range, currently exist two overlapping between 0.65 K and 1 K but deviating International Temperature Scales: the ITS-90, which also covers the high temperature region, and the PLTS-2000, which is defined down to 0.9 mK. - more

20. May: World Metrology Day
Whether the drinking water is pure, the air clean or the soil loaded with contaminants is not visible to the naked eye. Also climate change, radiation exposure or harmful noise can only be determined with the aid of suitable measuring technology. "Measuring for our environment" is thus the subject of this year's World Metrology Day.
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Resistance is not futile
Like in all other fields of information technology, magnetic memories (e.g. the nanometre thick magnetic thin film of a hard disc) or magnetic sensors (which are, for example, used to read the stored information) will have to work faster and faster. Consequently also the test and measurement capabilities must be improved to test magnetic memories and sensors. A new technique which was developed at PTB is able to study the ultra fast magnetization dynamics of magnetic nanostructures simply by measuring their electrical resistance. A large variety of magnetic thin films and nanostructures can be characterized using this novel experimental approach.
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Lens probe for coordinate measuring machines
A lens probe - developed at PTB - which fits each coordinate measuring machine measures optically, for the first time, form, waviness and roughness on complex workpieces with high accuracy. This and three additional exhibits from coordinate measuring technology will be presented by PTB at the Control fair in Sinsheim from 8 to 11 May.
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Magnetic nanoparticles as biomarkers
The signals of magnetic nanoparticles can be used for the diagnosis of infectious deseases. This new method has advantages over conventional, mostly optical methods. Within the scope of the EU project "Biodiagnostics", PTB is developing highly sensitive detectors and measuring methods for it.
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PTB extends its Internet services for industry
As a part of the E-Government Initiative of the Federal Government the PTB presents its range of services offered in a revised and extended form in the chapters "Dienstleistungen" and "Technologietransfer" (in German at the moment, english versions will follow soon). Centralised information - particularly for medium-sized businesses - on calibration and measurement capabilities as well as on the key facilities at the PTB, on dates for technical fairs and the range of patents offered for licence holders, etc., can be researched online. Furthermore, simple ways are described to quickly find a competent contact at the PTB.
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Overturning time - Film experiments with space and time
To work industriously in the office and at the same time lie languidly on the beach - who has not already dreamed of being at different places at the same time? Unfortunately space and time do not allow this. This works just fine the other way around: to be at the same place at different times. Just think of your bed and the sundry nights. If one could only transform space into time and vice versa! But this is precisely what Werner Große, media scientist and mathematician in Göttingen, has attempted: He digitalized short film scenes, replaced - in a computer - spatial image data with temporal data and was astounded. The effect he saw on his screen was surrealistic-appearing moving images which reveal deep glimpses of spatiotemporal correlations. This peculiar world of images and many principle questions about our tactile as well as mental capabilities surrounding the perception of spatiotemporal reality will be presented by Große within the scope of the "City of Science 2007" (Stadt der Wissenschaft 2007) at a lecture on 4th May 2007 at 7 p.m. in the auditorium of the Technical University of Braunschweig.
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Miniaturised trace-finder for Mars and Earth
It searched for water on Mars, examined rock paintings in Brazil or pigments in antique vases - with remarkable results in each case. This sensor answers to the name of MIMOS, is a 100-fold miniaturised version of an in general considerably larger laboratory colleague, and was developed by Dr. Göstar Klingelhöfer. For this technical achievement and the resulting quality of measurements possible, the physicist from Mainz will receive this year's annual Helmholtz Prize for Metrology which is endowed with 20000 Euros.
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Annual Report 2006 issued
The complete Annual Report published on the Internet - and excerpts from it published in printed form as a brochure: this is the - meanwhile established - twofold way in which the latest Annual Report of PTB presents itself. The printed version can be obtained free of charge from PTB's Press and Information Office and gives a survey of PTB - with the most important news of the year, reports of the heads of the different divisions, important figures and facts, and much more. The Internet version offers additional news and a great number of further data and facts.
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Starting of the EU project EFNUDAT
The integrated infrastructure initiative EFNUDAT ("European Facilities for Nuclear Data Measurements") promoted by the European Commission has taken up its work. It is the aim of the project to support high-quality measurements of cross sections for nuclear reactions and to promote corresponding facilities in research institutes as well as their use by external research groups. The core data are used, on the one hand, to push forward the so-called transmutation - i.e. the conversion into isotopes with a distinctly lower half-life - which is of great importance for the treatment of spent fuel elements. On the other hand, the measurement of data needed for the development of reactors of the 4th generation is involved. The PTB is participating in EFNUDAT through its accelerator facility.
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Line scale calibrations with measurement uncertainties below 5 nm
Through optimisations of the illumination and the alignment of the microscope used at the Nanometer Comparator for the detection of line positions, measurement uncertainties of below 5 nm have been reached for the calibration of high quality line scales with a length of 300 mm.
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Differences in the sound reduction in test facilities and in buildings
It was shown by scaled model measurements that in test facilities, homogeneous building elements have a larger sound reduction than in real buildings. This is a broadband effect which decreases with increasing frequencies and amounts up to 5 dB at low frequencies.
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The "Avogadro Baby" weighs 6 kilograms
The international project for the redefinition of the Avogadro constant (under the direction of PTB) has progressed a decisive step: Six kilograms high-purity silicon-28 (equivalent value: € 1.2 m) were produced in Russian centrifuges and can now be reshaped as single crystal spheres. It should be possible with these spheres to determine more accurately than so far the number of atoms in one mole of a substance. It is the aim of the researchers to attain a relative measurement uncertainty close to 10^-8 for the Avogadro constant, thus contributing to the redefinition of the kilogram.
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Contract for 7-tesla MRI scanner signed
Max-Delbrück-Centrum für Molekulare Medizin (MDC) Berlin-Buch, PTB, and Siemens Medical Solutions signed a contract, at MDC, for a 7-tesla whole-body magnetic resonance imaging system (7-tesla MRI) for medical research. The contract with a financial volume of almost 8 million Euro is also about an intensive research cooperation of all partners involved. The 7-tesla MRI is envisaged to be ready for operation in summer of 2008. Worldwide unique will be its use in cardiovascular research. Furthermore, it will also be tested in cancer and brain research. Researchers from Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, German Heart Institute Berlin, and Forschungszentrum für Molekulare Pharmakologie are additional partners in this project
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First programmable 10-V Josephson series array
PTB has achieved a breakthrough in the manufacturing of Josephson series arrays. For the first time it was possible to manufacture programmable Josephson series arrays with an output voltage of 10 V for the high-precision reproduction of DC and AC voltages. First applications that are being carried out at the moment are a quantum voltmeter for AC voltage and PTB's primary standard for electric power.
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X-ray flash meets matter
It is nowadays already possible to make nanostructures visible by means of X-rays. In future, it will even be possible to record their movements and to provide, for example, "snapshots" of chemical reactions. At the moment, X-ray lasers are being developed at DESY in Hamburg for this purpose which bundle radiation into ultra-short, highest-intensity flashes. PTB has, in collaboration with DESY, developed detection systems and new methods for the characterisation of these X-ray flashes and carried out first experiments on the question as to how this type of radiation interacts with matter (in this case: gaseous nitrogen).(A.A. Sorokin et al., J. Phys. B 39, L299 (2006)).
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How efficient are methods of ultrasound-supported cleaning?
Ultrasound in the frequency range from 20 kHz to 200 kHz is applied in various ways in technology, medicine and research for the cleaning of various-sized parts. Due to to the variety of applications, general principles for application and optimized operation are not present. At PTB, sound field measurements were performed, and it has been shown that the investigation of the sound field in cleaning baths with appropiate sensors may be suitable for the estimation of the cleaning effect.
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Contacting of ZnO nanowires
Zink oxide (ZnO) is a promising material for optoelectronic circuits. To be able to characterize nanowires of ZnO electrically, a method has been developed at PTB which allows statistically distributed nanowires to be contacted by means of electron beam lithography and a vapour deposition process. The project was a cooperation with the working group of Prof. Waag at the Institute of Semiconductor Technology, Technical University of Braunschweig. In first experiments, nanowires contacted in this way could be electrically characterized.
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Worldwide unique accelerator facility
From fundamental research to clinical application - a new accelerator facility for dosimetry in radiation therapy will clearly expand the measurement capabilities of the PTB. Also the quality assurance of clinical dosimetry will profit therefrom. The accelerators required for this will be moved into the new Glocker Building on the premises of the PTB. The building, which is being erected by the state construction management, is structurally complete, allowing the topping-out ceremony to be celebrated on 15 February. It is expected that the facility will go into operation at the end of 2007.
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Novel 3D standards for nanometrology
In a cooperation, BAM (Berlin) and PTB have developed novel 3D standards which are suited for the calibration of Scanning Probe Microscopes (SPM) just as well as for the calibration of Scanning Electron Microscopes (SEM), Confocal Laser Scanning Microscopes (CLSM) and for many other high-resolution dimensional measurement techniques. They allow the calibration factors of all three axes incl. the axis couplings to be determined in only one calibration step.
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New centre for wireless communications of tomorrow
Data rates of short-range wireless communcation systems (WLAN. UWB, 60 GHz) will not suffice to cover the demand for bandwith already in 10 to 15 years from now. In order to provide the data rates of 10 Gbps and more, greater bandwith must be tapped that require much higher operating frequencies than are nowadays in use. Research groups from Technical University of Braunschweig and PTB have jointly launched the Terahertz Communications Lab to tackle the challenges of multi-gigabit communications in the THz range.
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"Berlin Declaration" signed
The PTB has, together with the Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing (BAM) and the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR), signed the so-called "Berlin Declaration". A declaration in which the signers have pledged to make their own publications accessible, free of charge, via the Internet. The background to this is the "Open Access" movement which would like to ensure access, free of charge, to scientific information via the Internet - without limitations as to time and place.
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Behind the scenes: from the ell to the laser
Did you know that the prototype of the metre has long ago become a museum piece? And would you like to know what the current definition of length is based on? Or why lasers are used when lengths are to be measured exceedingly accurately? Then report to the tour through the PTB on Thursday, the 18th of January, from 5:00 to 7:30 p.m. An evening "behind the scenes" awaits you - thus, the same title as the series of events within the framework of the "City of Science 2007".
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European metrology institutes join together
The National Metrology Institutes (NMI) of Europe, among them the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB), are moving closer together in the field of research. On 11 January 2007, the first 26 institutes signed, in a festive ceremony in Berlin, the memorandum of association of "EURAMET e.V.". One of the essential aims of this association will be to develop a joint European Metrology Research Programme. Currently, intense negotiations with the European Commission are under way with regard to a substantial research funding.
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