The recently built Advanced Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) provides a great step forward for that organization with regard to its research environments. Vibration and temperature control were among the most critical concerns expressed by the researchers, and considerable attention was given to meeting their objectives. Critical laboratory environments called for vibration to be controlled to amplitudes no greater than 25nm rms displacement and 3.1 um/s, and as much less than that as feasible. Some of the spaces required thermal stability controlled to within +/- 0.01° C. The design phase involved research projects examining ways in which those goals might best be achieved. The critical rooms met or exceeded the temperature and vibration control requirements. Some spaces were found to have displacement amplitude on the order of 10 nm, velocity amplitude of 1 um/s, and acceleration of 19 ug, all well below the design goals, making this one of the world’s finest research spaces.
A. Soueid, H. Amick, and T. Zsirai, “Addressing the environmental challenges of the NIST Advanced Measurement Laboratory,” Proceedings of SPIE Conference 5933: Buildings for Nanoscale Research and Beyond, San Diego, CA, 31 Jul 2005 to 1 Aug 2005
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