##### II. TECHNOLOGY ADMINISTRATION \-- NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF STANDARDS AND TECHNOLOGY 

***Technology Transfer at the Agency's Federal Laboratories -- Approach
and Plans, FY 2005 Activities Achievements***

**1. Agency Approach and Plans for Technology Transfer**

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is an unusual
federal agency. Its mission is broad -- to promote U.S. innovation and
industrial competitiveness by advancing measurement science, standards
and technology in ways that enhance economic security and improve our
quality of life.

An essential part of NIST's work is to anticipate the future measurement
and standards needs of U.S. industry. Fast-moving sectors like
nanotechnology, biotechnology, homeland security, information
technology, and advanced manufacturing need sophisticated technical
support systems to flourish and grow. NIST's laboratories develop and
disseminate measurement techniques, reference data, test methods,
standards, and other infrastructural technologies and services that
support U.S. industry, scientific research, and the activities of many
federal agencies. In carrying out its mission, NIST works directly with
industry partners (and consortia), universities, associations, and other
government agencies.

## NIST's technology transfer activities are designed to disseminate the Institute's measurements and standards research results broadly to industry and other customers. Leading-edge scientific and technical work requires multiple disciplines, high levels of collaboration among organizations and people with diverse capabilities, and highly specialized facilities and tools. For more than a century, the NIST laboratories have successfully collaborated with industry and universities to provide the measurement techniques and technical tools needed by America's innovators. NIST uses many mechanisms to collaborate with industry and to ensure that the resulting knowledge and infrastructural technologies are broadly disseminated. 

The principal technology mechanisms employed for transfer of NIST's
intellectual property and assets -- in rough order of significance -
are: informal research and development collaboration with colleagues
from industry, academia and other government agencies; peer-reviewed
publications; dissemination of Standard Reference Materials, Standard
Reference Data, and Documentary Standards; participation in development
of industry "road maps", conferences and workshops; hosting U.S. and
international Guest Researchers from industry, academia and other
government agencies; Facility Use Agreements; CRADAs; and
patents/licenses.

The set of outputs that NIST uses to transfer its measurement
capabilities and technologies to customers includes standard reference
materials, calibration services, and other products and services that
are described below.[^1]

**● Standard Reference Materials**

Standard Reference Materials (SRMs) are one definitive source of
measurement traceability in the United States. All measurements using
SRM's can be traced to a common and recognized set of basic standards
that provides the basis for compatibility of measurements among
different laboratories. As economic exchange has become more global,
customers increasingly use SRM's to achieve measurement quality and
conformance to process requirements that address both national and
international needs for commerce and trade. NIST produces and
disseminates (sells) SRM's to a large and diverse group of customers,
including private sector laboratories, universities, and other federal
agencies. NIST SRM's support industrial materials production and
analysis, environmental analysis, health measurements, and basic
measurements in science and metrology.\
\
The number of SRM's available for sale \-- currently over 1,200
\--illustrates the breadth of measurements supported by NIST. Over time,
NIST expects slight growth in the number of SRM's available, given its
current strategy of focusing on those SRM's that cannot be produced by
secondary laboratories and which have broad and/or high downstream
impact. In establishing its out-year projections, the NIST SRM Program
monitors, among other things, trends in emerging technologies, new
regulations that will depend on SRM's for enforcement, and the reference
material needs of other federal agencies. Several microeconomic studies
of NIST SRM programs have shown the technology transfer mechanisms built
into these efforts to be effective with resulting high economic benefits
delivered to industry.

**● Calibration Services**

The NIST laboratories provide physical measurement services for their
customers, including calibration services, special tests, and
measurement assurance programs (MAPs). Calibration services and special
tests are characterizations of particular instruments, devices, and sets
of standards with respect to international and national standards. MAPs
are quality control programs for calibrating entire measurement systems.
NIST's calibration services are designed to help the makers and users of
precision instruments achieve the highest possible levels of measurement
quality and productivity. The services constitute the highest order of
calibration services available in the United States. NIST offers more
than 500 different types of physical calibrations covering the following
measurement areas: dimensional; mechanical, including flow, acoustic,
and ultrasonic; thermodynamic; optical radiation; ionizing radiation;
electromagnetic; and time and frequency.\
\
Over the past several years, NIST has calibrated approximately 3,000
items annually. Over the next several years, NIST expects to realize a
relatively high but slightly declining number of items calibrated. This
is in keeping with a long-term trend, over the past several decades, of
a decline in the number of items calibrated by NIST. Despite this
overall trend, the number of calibrations in individual years may
fluctuate slightly due to multi-year calibration cycles. NIST expects to
provide fewer but more highly leveraged calibration services over time.
NIST's strategy is driven by the need to effectively manage trends in
demand from its major industry and government customers for these
services. NIST is pursuing three strategies: (1) performing only those
calibrations that require a direct connection to the national standards;
(2) improving calibration accuracy in those areas where new industry
demands are emerging; and (3) accrediting primary and secondary
calibration laboratories to meet on-going industry needs. In FY 2005,
NIST accredited 6 new calibration laboratories (bringing the total to
84) in fields ranging from dimensional metrology to optical and
chemical. NIST also assessed the performance of 43 calibration
laboratories. Through this overall approach, NIST efficiently leverages
its primary calibration services to support a broader base of secondary
calibrations conducted within the private sector. Several microeconomic
studies of NIST calibration programs have shown the technology transfer
mechanisms built into these efforts to be effective with resulting high
economic benefits delivered to industry.

**● Standard Reference Data**

NIST produces and makes available (i.e., sells or distributes for free)
many Standard Reference Data titles (SRD's). SRD's provide numeric data
to scientists and engineers for use in technical problem solving,
research, and development. These recommended values are based on data
extracted from scientific and technical literature or on measurements
done at NIST laboratories, which are then assessed for reliability and
evaluated to select the preferred values. NIST's SRD databases cover
many areas of science, including analytical chemistry, atomic and
molecular physics, biotechnology, and materials sciences.\
\
Historically, NIST has produced two new SRD titles per year. At the same
time, NIST also provides numerous upgrades to existing databases. Each
year, however, some database titles are eliminated from the NIST
catalog. In FY 2005 an unusually large number of new titles were
released for sale with seven new titles from the NIST Thermodynamics
Research Center (TRC). Over time, NIST expects continued modest growth
in the total number of SRD titles available. Of those titles currently
available, about 50% are available for sale, and 50% are free online
systems.

**● Technical Publications**

NIST uses publications as a key mechanism to transfer the results of its
work to the U.S. private sector and to other government agencies that
need cutting-edge measurements and standards. Many of these publications
appear in prestigious scientific journals and withstand peer review by
the scientific community. Others appear in technological forums where
measurement standards and technologies developed by NIST staff (at times
in collaboration with private sector partners) are disseminated. Of the
technical publications produced annually, approximately 80% are approved
for external publication (such as in scientific journals), while the
remaining 20% are NIST reports and special publications.\
\
Over time, NIST expects a relatively constant level of high quality
publications (2,000-2,300 per year) to be produced by its technical
staff.

**● Informative Collaborative Research, Guest Researchers and Facilities
Users**

Each year hundreds of researchers visit NIST to participate in
collaborative projects and/or to use NIST's research facilities. NIST
makes its facilities available for limited periods of time to domestic
and foreign guest researchers to collaborate with NIST staff on research
and development projects of mutual interest or to transfer NIST
techniques, procedures, and best practices. NIST also sponsors several
formal collaboration programs with universities, among them JILA, an
interdisciplinary institute for research and graduate education in the
physical sciences, located on the main campus of the University of
Colorado (CU) in Boulder, and operated jointly by CU and NIST; and the
Center for Advanced Research in Biotechnology (CARB). CARB conducts
research and provides interdisciplinary training in fundamental problems
at the forefront of biotechnology through collaborations with scientists
at its parent institutions, the University of Maryland Biotechnology
Institute and NIST.

**● Conferences, Workshops, and Inquiries**

NIST also transfers technology through the hosting of numerous
conferences and workshops, as well as through answering inquiries.  In
FY 2005, NIST inquiries offices handled nearly 8,700 general inquiries. 
In addition, during FY 2005, NIST held 109 conferences with about 9500
attendees.

**● Participation in Documentary Standards Committees**

Still another means by which NIST transfers technology is through staff
participation in the activities of documentary standards developing
organizations, which develop consensus standards on a host of
technologies.  NIST participation enables NIST scientists and engineers
to bring NIST technology directly into a standard, which could involve
test methods and procedures for protecting health, safety, and/or the
environment, or specifications for performance or interoperability, to
name a few.  During CY 05, 370 NIST staff participated on 891 committees
representing 92 standards developing organizations. NIST staff held
1,182 memberships on these committees including 384 in ASTM
International, 88 in the American National Standards Institute (ANSI),
46 in the Institute for Electrical and Electronic Engineering (IEEE),
and 90 in the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).
These activities are also reported by NIST to the Office of Management
and Budget and to Congress as required by the National Technology
Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995.

**2. Performance in FY 2005: Activities and Achievements**

The data below describe the many ways through which NIST transfers
knowledge and technology to the private sector.

In response to the reporting requirements of the Technology Transfer
Commercialization Act of 2000 and other relevant legislation, data are
provided for collaborative relationships for research and development
relationships (CRADAs and other kinds of relationships), invention
disclosures and patenting, and licensing. In addition, in keeping with
the previous discussion, data are also provided for some of the other
technology transfer mechanisms utilized by the NIST laboratories: such
as Standard Reference Materials available, technical publications
produced, items calibrated, and guest researcher collaborations. A
number of examples of downstream outcomes from NIST technology transfer
activities are also provided at the end.

# ■ Collaborative Relationships for Research & Development

+------------------------------------+-----+------+------+------+------+
|                                    | **F | **   | **   | **   | **   |
|                                    | Y** | FY** | FY** | FY** | FY** |
|                                    |     |      |      |      |      |
|                                    | **  | **20 | **20 | **20 | **20 |
|                                    | 200 | 02** | 03** | 04** | 05** |
|                                    | 1** |      |      |      |      |
+====================================+=====+======+======+======+======+
| ● **CRADAs**, total active in the  | 174 | 1    | 1    | 1    | 1    |
| FY ^(1)^                           |     | ,812 | ,653 | ,641 | ,618 |
+------------------------------------+-----+------+------+------+------+
| \- New, executed in the FY         | 22  | 1    | 1    | 1    | 1    |
|                                    |     | ,712 | ,589 | ,605 | ,579 |
+------------------------------------+-----+------+------+------+------+
| ▪ Traditional CRADAs,^(2)^ total   | 174 | \    | \*76 | \*51 | \*65 |
| active in the FY                   |     | *125 |      |      |      |
+------------------------------------+-----+------+------+------+------+
| \- New, executed in the FY         | 22  | 25   | 12   | 15   | 26   |
+------------------------------------+-----+------+------+------+------+
| ▪ Non-traditional CRADAs,^(3)^     | 0   | 1    | 1    | 1    | 1    |
| total active in the FY             |     | ,687 | ,577 | ,590 | ,553 |
+------------------------------------+-----+------+------+------+------+
| \- New, executed in the FY         | 0   | \    | \    | \    | \    |
|                                    |     | *\*1 | *\*1 | *\*1 | *\*1 |
|                                    |     | ,687 | ,577 | ,590 | ,553 |
+------------------------------------+-----+------+------+------+------+
| ● **Other types of collaborative   |     |      |      |      |      |
| R&D relationships**                |     |      |      |      |      |
+------------------------------------+-----+------+------+------+------+
| ▪ Facility use agreements, total   | 372 | 391  | 511  | 590  | 588  |
| in effect, end of FY ^(4)^         |     |      |      |      |      |
+------------------------------------+-----+------+------+------+------+
| -New, executed in the FY           | 172 | 62   | 308  | 239  | 280  |
+------------------------------------+-----+------+------+------+------+
| ▪ Guest scientists and engineers   | 1,2 | 1,   | 1,   | 1    | 2    |
| during the FY ^(5)^                | 00a | 300a | 300a | ,700 | ,115 |
+------------------------------------+-----+------+------+------+------+

CRADA = Cooperative Research and Development Agreement. \-- = Data not
requested from agency in reports of earlier years. a = Figures are
approximate.

\* Includes CRADAs associated with all NIST programs, including
Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP), Technology Services (TS), and
the Director of Administration/Chief Financial Officer.

\*\*"non-traditional" CRADAs protect the results (under CRADA authority)
of calibrated items from disclosure for a period of five years after
development. Such "non-traditional" CRADAs are issued (and terminate) on
an annual basis.

\(1\) "Active" = legally in force at any time during the FY. "Total
active" is comprehensive of all agreements executed under CRADA
authority (15 USC 3710a).

\(2\) CRADAs involving collaborative research and development by a
federal laboratory and non-federal partners.

\(3\) CRADAs used for special purposes \-- such as, material transfer or
technical assistance that may result in protected information.

\(4\) NIST authorizes individuals to use designated facilities. The
numbers reported here represent the Facility Use Agreements in effect
for the NIST Center for Neutron Research.

\(5\) "Guest scientists and engineers" includes foreign and domestic
guest researchers, and researchers working at NIST under
Intergovernmental Personnel Act (IPA) Agreements and CRADAs.

**■** Invention Disclosure and Patenting

+------------------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
|                                    | **F | **F | *   | *   | **F |
|                                    | Y** | Y** | *FY | *FY | Y** |
|                                    |     |     | 200 | 200 |     |
|                                    | **  | **  | 3** | 4** | **  |
|                                    | 200 | 200 |     |     | 200 |
|                                    | 1** | 2** |     |     | 5** |
+====================================+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+
| ● New inventions disclosed in the  | 24  | 16  | 16  | 23  | 19  |
| FY ^(1)^                           |     |     |     |     |     |
+------------------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
| ● Patent applications filed in the | 9   | 11  | 5   | 8   | 5   |
| FY ^(2)^                           |     |     |     |     |     |
+------------------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
| ● Patents issued in the FY         | 20  | 15  | 7   | 10  | 9   |
+------------------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
| ● Active patents, end of the FY    | \-- | 199 | 198 | 143 | 106 |
+------------------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
| ● Patents purposely dropped        | \-- | 34  | 17  | 31  | 42  |
| (triaged) during the FY            |     |     |     |     |     |
+------------------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+

\-- = Data not requested from agency in reports of earlier years.

\(1\) Inventions arising at the federal lab.

\(2\) Tally includes U.S. patent applications, foreign patent
applications filed on cases for which no U.S. application was filed,
divisional applications, and continuation-in-part applications. Excludes
provisional, continuation, duplicate foreign, and PCT applications.

■ **Licensing**

# Profile of Active Licenses

+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
|                                         | **F | **F | ** | ** | ** |
|                                         | Y** | Y** | FY | FY | FY |
|                                         |     |     | 20 | 20 | ** |
|                                         | **  | **  | 03 | 04 |    |
|                                         | 200 | 200 | ** | ** | ** |
|                                         | 1** | 2** |    |    | 20 |
|                                         |     |     |    |    | 05 |
|                                         |     |     |    |    | ** |
+=========================================+=====+=====+====+====+====+
| ● **All licenses**, number total active | 36  | 35  | 39 | 22 | 26 |
| in the FY ^(1)^                         |     |     |    |    |    |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| ▫ New, executed in the FY               | 4   | 2   | 3  | 2  | 5  |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| ▪ **Invention licenses**, total active  | 36  | 35  | 39 | 22 | 26 |
| in the FY                               |     |     |    |    |    |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| ▫ New, executed in the FY               | 4   | 2   | 3  | 2  | 5  |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| \- Patent licenses, ^(2)^ total active  | 36  | 35  | 39 | 22 | 26 |
| in FY                                   |     |     |    |    |    |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| ▫ New, executed in the FY               | 4   | 2   | 3  | 2  | 5  |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| \- Material transfer licenses           | 0   | 0   | 0  | 0  | 0  |
| (inventions), total active              |     |     |    |    |    |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| ▫ New, executed in the FY               | 0   | 0   | 0  | 0  | 0  |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| \- Other invention licenses, total      | 0   | 0   | 0  | 0  | 0  |
| active in the FY                        |     |     |    |    |    |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| ▫ New, executed in the FY               | 0   | 0   | 0  | 0  | 0  |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| ▪ **Other IP licenses**, total active   | 0   | 0   | 0  | 0  | 0  |
| in the FY                               |     |     |    |    |    |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| ▫ New, executed in the FY               | 0   | 0   | 0  | 0  | 0  |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| \- Copyright licenses (fee bearing)     |     |     |    |    |    |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| ▫ New, executed in the FY               |     |     |    |    |    |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| \- Material transfer licenses           |     |     |    |    |    |
| (non-inventions), total active          |     |     |    |    |    |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| ▫ New, executed in the FY               |     |     |    |    |    |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| \- Other, total active in the FY        |     |     |    |    |    |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| ▫ New, executed in the FY               |     |     |    |    |    |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+

Multiple inventions in a single license are counted as one license.
Licenses that include both patents and copyrights (hybrid licenses) are
reported as patent licenses \-- and not included in the count of
copyright licenses.

\(1\) "Active" = legally in force at any time during the FY.

\(2\) Patent license tally includes patent applications which are
licensed.

# Licensing Management 

+----------------------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
|                                        | **F | **F | **F | **F | **F |
|                                        | Y** | Y** | Y** | Y** | Y** |
|                                        |     |     |     |     |     |
|                                        | **  | **  | **  | **  | **  |
|                                        | 200 | 200 | 200 | 200 | 200 |
|                                        | 1** | 2** | 3** | 4** | 5** |
+========================================+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+
| ● **Elapsed execution time**,^(1)^     |     |     |     |     |     |
| licenses granted in the FY             |     |     |     |     |     |
+----------------------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
| ▪ **Invention licenses**               | 4.8 | 5.4 | 3.4 | \   | 1.0 |
|                                        |     |     |     | *\* |     |
| ▫ Average, months                      | 2.0 | 2.5 | 1.0 |     | 1.0 |
|                                        |     |     |     |     |     |
| ▫ Minimum                              | 5.0 | 5.0 | 1   |     | 1.0 |
|                                        |     |     | 0.0 |     |     |
| ▫ Maximum                              |     |     |     |     |     |
+----------------------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
| \- Patent licenses ^(2)^               | 4.8 | 5.4 | 3.4 | \   | 1.0 |
|                                        |     |     |     | *\* |     |
| ▫ Average, months                      | 2.0 | 2.5 | 1.0 |     | 1.0 |
|                                        |     |     |     |     |     |
| ▫ Minimum                              | 5.0 | 5.0 | 1   |     | 1.0 |
|                                        |     |     | 0.0 |     |     |
| ▫ Maximum                              |     |     |     |     |     |
+----------------------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
| ● **Licenses terminated for cause**,   |     |     |     |     |     |
| number in the FY                       |     |     |     |     |     |
+----------------------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
| ▪ **Invention licenses**               | 7   | 3   | 1   | 0   | 1   |
+----------------------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
| \- Patent licenses ^(2)^               | 7   | \*3 | 1   | 0   | 1   |
+----------------------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+

Data included in this table (intentionally) addresses only invention
licenses, with patent licenses distinguished as a subclass.

\-- = Data not requested from agency in reports of earlier years.

\* In addition to the 3 licenses cited here as terminated "for cause," 4
licenses were terminated by mutual agreement and 4 expired with the end
of their original term.

\*\* NIST processed no commercialization licenses in FY 2004.

\(1\) Date of license application to the date of license execution.
(Date of license application is the date the lab formally acknowledges
the written request for a license from a prospective licensee and agrees
to enter into negotiations.)

\(2\) Patent license tally includes patent applications which are
licensed.

Characteristics of Licenses Bearing Income

+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
|                                         | **F | **F | ** | ** | ** |
|                                         | Y** | Y** | FY | FY | FY |
|                                         |     |     | ** | ** | ** |
|                                         | **  | **  |    |    |    |
|                                         | 200 | 200 | ** | ** | ** |
|                                         | 1** | 2** | 20 | 20 | 20 |
|                                         |     |     | 03 | 04 | 05 |
|                                         |     |     | ** | ** | ** |
+=========================================+=====+=====+====+====+====+
| ● **All income bearing licenses**,      | 19  | 33  | 29 | 15 | 17 |
| total number                            |     |     |    |    |    |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| ▫ Exclusive                             | 12  | 18  | 19 | 10 | 11 |
|                                         |     |     |    |    |    |
| ▫ Partially exclusive                   | 5   | 2   | 0  | 0  | 0  |
|                                         |     |     |    |    |    |
| ▫ Non-exclusive                         | 2   | 13  | 10 | 5  | 6  |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| ▪ **Invention licenses**, income        | 19  | 33  | 29 | 15 | 17 |
| bearing                                 |     |     |    |    |    |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| ▫ Exclusive                             | 12  | 18  | 19 | 10 | 11 |
|                                         |     |     |    |    |    |
| ▫ Partially exclusive                   | 5   | 2   | 0  | 0  | 0  |
|                                         |     |     |    |    |    |
| ▫ Non-exclusive                         | 2   | 13  | 10 | 5  | 6  |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| \- Patent licenses,^(1)^ income bearing | 19  | 33  | 29 | 15 | 17 |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| ▫ Exclusive                             | 12  | 18  | 19 | 10 | 11 |
|                                         |     |     |    |    |    |
| ▫ Partially exclusive                   | 5   | 2   | 0  | 0  | 0  |
|                                         |     |     |    |    |    |
| ▫ Non-exclusive                         | 2   | 13  | 10 | 5  | 6  |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| ▪ **Other IP licenses**, income bearing | 0   | 0   | 0  | 0  | 0  |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| ▫ Exclusive                             |     |     |    |    |    |
|                                         |     |     |    |    |    |
| ▫ Partially exclusive                   |     |     |    |    |    |
|                                         |     |     |    |    |    |
| ▫ Non-exclusive                         |     |     |    |    |    |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| \- Copyright licenses (fee bearing)     |     |     |    |    |    |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| ▫ Exclusive                             |     |     |    |    |    |
|                                         |     |     |    |    |    |
| ▫ Partially exclusive                   |     |     |    |    |    |
|                                         |     |     |    |    |    |
| ▫ Non-exclusive                         |     |     |    |    |    |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| ● **All royalty bearing                 | 19  | 33  | 29 | 15 | 17 |
| licenses**,^(2)^ total number           |     |     |    |    |    |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| ▪ **Invention licenses**, royalty       | 19  | 33  | 29 | 15 | 17 |
| bearing                                 |     |     |    |    |    |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| \- Patent licenses,^(1)^ royalty        | 19  | \   | 29 | 15 | 17 |
| bearing                                 |     | *33 |    |    |    |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| ▪ **Other IP licenses**, royalty        | 0   | 0   | 0  | 0  | 0  |
| bearing                                 |     |     |    |    |    |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+
| \- Copyright licenses (fee bearing)     |     |     |    |    |    |
+-----------------------------------------+-----+-----+----+----+----+

\-- = Data not requested from agency reports of earlier years.

\* Of the 35 licenses active in FY 2002 (see earlier table), two were
royalty-free research licenses.

In general, license income can result from various sources: license
issue fees, earned royalties, minimum annual royalties, paid-up license
fees, and reimbursement for full-cost recovery of goods and services
provided by the lab to the licensee including patent costs.

\(1\) Patent license tally includes patent applications which are
licensed.

\(2\) Note that royalties are one component of total license income.

Income from Licenses

+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
|                              | *     | *     | *     | *     | *     |
|                              | *FY** | *FY** | *FY** | *FY** | *FY** |
|                              |       |       |       |       |       |
|                              | **2   | **2   | **2   | **2   | **2   |
|                              | 001** | 002** | 003** | 004** | 005** |
+==============================+=======+=======+=======+=======+=======+
| ● **Total income**, all      | \$26  | \$8   | \$12  | \$14  | \$12  |
| licenses active in FY ^(1)^  | 1,968 | 9,750 | 2,850 | 4,828 | 3,348 |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▪ **Invention licenses**     | \$26  | \$8   | \$12  | \$14  | \$12  |
|                              | 1,968 | 9,750 | 2,850 | 4,828 | 3,348 |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| \- Patent licenses ^(2)^     | \$26  | \$8   | \$12  | \$14  | \$12  |
|                              | 1,968 | 9,750 | 2,850 | 4,828 | 3,348 |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▪ **Other IP licenses**,     | 0     | 0     | 0     | 0     | 0     |
| total active in the FY       |       |       |       |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| \- Copyright licenses        |       |       |       |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
|                              |       |       |       |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ● **Total Earned Royalty     | \$26  | \$8   | \$12  | \$14  | \$12  |
| Income** (ERI) ^(3)^         | 1,968 | 9,750 | 2,850 | 4,828 | 3,348 |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ Median ERI                 | n/a   | \$    | n/a   | n/a   | \*\$  |
|                              |       | 2,300 |       |       | 2,500 |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ Minimum ERI                | \$    | \$700 | \$960 | \$640 | \$640 |
|                              | 1,000 |       |       |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ Maximum ERI                | \$13  | \$2   | \$3   | \$5   | \$4   |
|                              | 5,927 | 0,000 | 5,000 | 4,072 | 5,000 |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ ERI from top 1% of         | n/a   | \$2   | \$3   | dw    | Dw    |
| licenses                     |       | 0,000 | 5,000 |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ ERI from top 5% of         | n/a   | \$2   | \$3   | dw    | Dw    |
| licenses                     |       | 0,000 | 5,000 |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ ERI from top 20% of        | n/a   | \$5   | \$4   | dw    | Dw    |
| licenses                     |       | 0,000 | 5,000 |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▪ **Invention licenses**     | \$26  | \$8   | \$12  | \$14  | \$12  |
|                              | 1,968 | 9,750 | 2,850 | 4,828 | 3,348 |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ Median ERI                 | n/a   | \$    | n/a   | n/a   | \*\$  |
|                              |       | 2,300 |       |       | 2,500 |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ Minimum ERI                | \$    | \$700 | \$960 | \$640 | \$640 |
|                              | 1,000 |       |       |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ Maximum ERI                | \$13  | \$2   | \$3   | \$5   | \$4   |
|                              | 5,927 | 0,000 | 5,000 | 4,072 | 5,000 |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ ERI from top 1% of         | n/a   | \$2   | \$3   | dw    | dw    |
| licenses                     |       | 0,000 | 5,000 |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ ERI from top 5% of         | n/a   | \$2   | \$3   | dw    | dw    |
| licenses                     |       | 0,000 | 5,000 |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ ERI from top 20% of        | n/a   | \$5   | \$4   | dw    | dw    |
| licenses                     |       | 0,000 | 5,000 |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| \- Patent licenses ^(2)^     | \$26  | \$8   | \$12  | \$14  | \$12  |
|                              | 1,968 | 9,750 | 2,850 | 4,828 | 3,348 |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ Median ERI                 | n/a   | \$    | n/a   | n/a   | \*\$  |
|                              |       | 2,300 |       |       | 2,500 |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ Minimum ERI                | \$    | \$700 | \$960 | \$640 | \$640 |
|                              | 1,000 |       |       |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ Maximum ERI                | \$13  | \$2   | \$3   | \$5   | \$4   |
|                              | 5,927 | 0,000 | 5,000 | 4,072 | 5,000 |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ ERI from top 1% of         | n/a   | \$2   | \$3   | dw    | Dw    |
| licenses                     |       | 0,000 | 5,000 |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ ERI from top 5% of         | n/a   | \$2   | \$3   | dw    | Dw    |
| licenses                     |       | 0,000 | 5,000 |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ ERI from top 20% of        | n/a   | \$5   | \$4   | dw    | Dw    |
| licenses                     |       | 0,000 | 5,000 |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▪ **Other IP licenses**,     | 0     | 0     | 0     | 0     | 0     |
| total active in the FY       |       |       |       |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ Median ERI                 |       |       |       |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ Minimum ERI                |       |       |       |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ Maximum ERI                |       |       |       |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ ERI from top 1% of         |       |       |       |       |       |
| licenses                     |       |       |       |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ ERI from top 5% of         |       |       |       |       |       |
| licenses                     |       |       |       |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ ERI from top 20% of        |       |       |       |       |       |
| licenses                     |       |       |       |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| \- Copyright licenses        |       |       |       |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ Median ERI                 |       |       |       |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ Minimum ERI                |       |       |       |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ Maximum ERI                |       |       |       |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ ERI from top 1% of         |       |       |       |       |       |
| licenses                     |       |       |       |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ ERI from top 5% of         |       |       |       |       |       |
| licenses                     |       |       |       |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▫ ERI from top 20% of        |       |       |       |       |       |
| licenses                     |       |       |       |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+

n/a = Data not available from agency at time of this report. \-- = Data
not requested from agency in reports of earlier years. dw = Data
withheld to protect proprietary information.

\*The distribution of NIST's annual license income is bimodal at the
extremes. The median figure cited here is rather unrepresentative.

\(1\) Total income includes license issue fees, earned royalties,
minimum annual royalties, paid-up license fees, and reimbursement for
full-cost recovery of goods and services provided by the lab to the
licensee including patent costs.

\(2\) Patent license tally includes patent applications which are
licensed.

\(3\) "Earned royalty" = royalty based upon use of a licensed invention
(usually, a percentage of sales or of units sold). Not a license issue
fee or a minimum royalty.

# Disposition of License Income

+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
|                              | *     | *     | *     | *     | *     |
|                              | *FY** | *FY** | *FY** | *FY** | *FY** |
|                              |       |       |       |       |       |
|                              | **2   | **2   | **2   | **2   | **2   |
|                              | 001** | 002** | 003** | 004** | 005** |
+==============================+=======+=======+=======+=======+=======+
| ● **Income distributed**     |       |       |       |       |       |
| ^(1)^                        |       |       |       |       |       |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| ▪ **Invention licenses**,    | \$26  | \$8   | \$12  | \$14  | \$12  |
| total distributed            | 1,968 | 9,750 | 2,850 | 4,828 | 3,348 |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| \- To inventor(s)            | \$10  | \$4   | \$5   | \$5   | \$4   |
|                              | 2,040 | 5,650 | 1,773 | 4,134 | 8,148 |
|                              |       |       |       |       |       |
|                              | (39%) | (51%) | (42%) | (37%) | (39%) |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| \- To other ^(3)^            | \$15  | \$4   | \$7   | \$9   | \$7   |
|                              | 9,928 | 4,100 | 1,076 | 0,694 | 5,199 |
|                              |       |       |       |       |       |
|                              | (61%) | (49%) | (58%) | (63%) | (61%) |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| \- Patent licenses,^(2)^     | \$26  | \$8   | \$12  | \$14  | \$12  |
| total distributed            | 1,968 | 9,750 | 2,850 | 4,828 | 3,348 |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| \- To inventor(s)            | \$10  | \$4   | \$5   | \$5   | \$4   |
|                              | 2,040 | 5,650 | 1,773 | 4,134 | 8,148 |
|                              |       |       |       |       |       |
|                              | (39%) | (51%) | (42%) | (37%) | (39%) |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| -To other ^(3)^              | \$15  | \$4   | \$7   | \$9   | \*\$7 |
|                              | 9,928 | 4,100 | 1,076 | 0,694 | 5,199 |
|                              |       |       |       |       |       |
|                              | (61%) | (49%) | (58%) | (63%) | (61%) |
+------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+

Invention licenses are the chief policy interest regarding disposition
of income; content of table reflects this focus.

\(1\) Income includes royalties and other payments received during the
FY.

\(2\) Patent license tally includes patent applications which are
licensed.

\(3\) NIST only in FY 2001-04. In FY 2005, \$1500 to NIH and rest to
NIST

# ■ Other Performance Measures Deemed Important by the Agency

+----------------------------------+------+------+------+------+------+
|                                  | **   | **   | **FY | **FY | **   |
|                                  | FY** | FY** | 20   | 20   | FY** |
|                                  |      |      | 03** | 04** |      |
|                                  | **20 | **20 |      |      | **20 |
|                                  | 01** | 02** |      |      | 05** |
+==================================+======+======+======+======+======+
| Standard Reference Materials     | 1    | 1    | 1    | 1    | 1    |
| (SRMs) available ^(1)^           | ,335 | ,353 | ,214 | ,211 | ,246 |
+----------------------------------+------+------+------+------+------+
| Standard Reference Materials     | 31   | 30   | 29   | 30   | 32   |
| (SRMs) sold ^(2)^                | ,985 | ,996 | ,527 | ,490 | ,163 |
+----------------------------------+------+------+------+------+------+
| Standard Reference Data (SRD)    | 65   | 90   | 106  | 95   | 110  |
| titles available ^(3)^           |      |      |      |      |      |
+----------------------------------+------+------+------+------+------+
| Number of items calibrated ^(4)^ | 3    | 2    | 3    | 3    | \*3  |
|                                  | ,192 | ,924 | ,459 | ,373 | ,145 |
+----------------------------------+------+------+------+------+------+
| Technical publications produced  | 2    | 2    | 1    | 2    | 2    |
| ^(5)^                            | ,207 | ,236 | ,918 | ,074 | ,070 |
+----------------------------------+------+------+------+------+------+

See Section I above for additional information about the measures listed
here. See also the Department of Commerce's annual reports under the
Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) for detailed information
about each of these measures, analysis of trends, and future-year
performance projections
<http://www.osec.doc.gov/bmi/budget/FY2006APP.htm>

\* These 3,145 calibrated items were covered by 1,553 "non-traditional"
CRADAs that protect the results from disclosure.

\(1\) Direct and verifiable count of SRMs available to customers at the
close of the fiscal year. The number of SRMs available for sale
illustrates the breadth of measurements supported by NIST. Over time,
NIST expects slight growth in the number of SRMs available.

\(2\) Direct and verifiable count of NIST SRM units sold during the
fiscal year. In recent years, NIST had beemn expecting a continuing
slight decline in the number of SRM units sold, as NIST made greater use
of highly leveraged SRM services over time, including accreditation of
Nationally Traceable Reference Material producers. However, in FY 2005,
the number of SRMs sold increased. Some possible contributing factors
include the implementation of new EPA regulations, environmental
activities, increased in construction projects, and the availability of
previously out-of-stock SRMs.

\(3\) Direct and verifiable count of SRD products developed and
disseminated by NIST. NIST expects continued modest growth in the total
number of SRD titles available. Of those titles currently available,
about 50% are available for sale, and 50% are free online systems. Over
time, a larger percentage of SRD\'s will be distributed via the
Internet. New growth in online systems is anticipated for FY 2006 with
the release of fee-based titles for the Internet.

\(4\) Direct and verifiable count of items calibrated by the NIST
laboratories. Over the next several years, NIST expects to realize a
relatively high but slightly declining number of items calibrated. This
is in keeping with a long-term trend, over the past several decades, of
a decline in the number of items calibrated by NIST. NIST expects to
provide fewer but more highly leveraged calibration services over time.

\(5\) Annual number of technical publications generated by NIST's
technical staff. The number is a direct count of the number of technical
publications cleared for publication by the NIST Editorial Review Boards
at the Gaithersburg and Boulder sites. Over time, NIST expects a
relatively constant level of high quality publications (2,000-2,200 per
year) produced by its technical staff. Of the publications produced
annually, approximately 80% are approved for external publication (such
as in scientific journals); the other 20% are NIST reports and special
publications.

■ **Outcomes from Technology Transfer**

NIST develops and disseminates infrastructural technologies and services
required by the U.S. private sector and other non-profit and government
partners. The outputs of the NIST laboratories provide a foundation for
industry in all stages of commerce \-- research, development, testing,
production, and marketing \-- and in turn enable socioeconomic impacts,
such as productivity gains, increased market access and efficiency, and
improved quality of life. These impacts are long-term, accruing years
after the original infrastructural technologies were developed by NIST
(often in conjunction with industry partners).

The examples below show how NIST's various technology transfer
mechanisms -- CRADA's, Standard Reference Materials, joint research
facilities, software, and documentary standards -- have, over the long
term, produced outcomes that significantly benefit consumers and improve
the quality of life.

***Measurement Science***

• **Compact system stabilizes laser frequency**. A new compact,
inexpensive method for stabilizing lasers that reduces sensitivity to
vibration and gravity 100 times better than similar approaches has been
demonstrated by scientists at JILA, a joint institute of NIST and the
University of Colorado at Boulder.

The method stabilizes the laser to a single frequency so that it can be
used as a reliable reference oscillator for technologies such as optical
clocks and light-based radar (lidar). The new stabilizer design performs
better than similar systems of comparable size and is much smaller and
less expensive than the best-performing systems.

NIST's method improves the reliability of GPS clocks. Widely used by the
military, first responders, surveyors, and even consumers, the Global
Positioning System is a navigation system consisting of ground-based
monitors and a constellation of satellites that rely on atomic clocks to
precisely locate positions on the earth. A statistical method developed
by NIST, and tested and implemented with the help of several
collaborators, has made the job of analyzing the accuracy and
reliability of these satellite-borne time signals significantly faster
and easier. The method helps ensure that GPS clocks produce accurate
location and distance measurements and remain closely synchronized with
official world time.

The NIST method has been incorporated into the GPS clock analysis
software system managed by the Naval Research Laboratory used in
commercial software and instruments for various timing applications.

• **New NIST tool measures silicon wafer thickness**. The optics and
materials for "printing" nanoscale circuit lines in microprocessors and
other integrated circuits chips requiring that the silicon wafers used
be perfectly flat and of uniform thickness. To assist the industry in
achieving this goal, NIST developed a new instrument that accurately
measures differences in thickness across a 300 mm wafer with an
repeatability of 5 nanometers.

The instrument uses intersecting waves of light to create interference
patterns, which in turn are used as a ruler to measure nanoscale
dimensions. While most interferometers use red laser light, the NIST
instrument uses infrared laser light. These much longer wavelengths pass
right through a silicon wafer, with the result that the instrument can
illuminate the both the top and bottom of wafer, producing a detailed
spatial map of differences in thickness in one pass. Conventional tools
require spinning the wafer and measuring at multiple locations.
Precision measurements of the wafer's index of refraction---the amount
that light is "bent" as it passes through the silicon--- is a critical
step in correctly interpreting the interference patterns.

• **New NIST method improves accuracy of spectrometers**. Measurements
of the intensity of light at different wavelengths can be made more
accurately now, thanks to a new, simple method for correcting common
instrument errors. The new method, developed by NIST researchers will
benefit fields such as color measurement, lighting development, remote
sensing, biotechnology and astronomy.

The NIST method improves the measurement accuracy of spectrometers,
devices that measure optical radiation at different wavelengths.
Spectrometers are used widely in industry and research to analyze the
emissions from lamps or other light sources, as well as to analyze
optical properties of materials. The new NIST technique corrects errors
arising from unwanted scattered radiation within an instrument, to a
level less than 0.001 percent of the total signal, a desirable level for
most industrial and scientific applications. This allows very accurate
measurement of low-power components of radiation and accurate
measurements across a large dynamic range of intensities.

• **World\'s first UV \'ruler\' sizes up atomic world**. The world\'s
most accurate \"ruler\" made with extreme ultraviolet light has been
built and demonstrated with ultrafast laser pulses by scientists at NIST
and the University of Colorado at Boulder. The new device consistently
generates pulses of light lasting just femtoseconds (quadrillionths of a
second, or millionths of a billionth of a second) in the ultraviolet
region of the electromagnetic spectrum.

The device is expected to become an important tool for ultraprecise
measurements in many fields of science, including chemistry, physics and
astronomy. A ruler made with shorter wavelengths of light makes it
possible to "see" more precise differences than ever before in the
energy levels of light emissions that identify specific atoms, in the
timing of chemical reactions, or, if additional applications are
developed, in the dimensions of certain nanometer-scale objects. The new
device also can be compared to a camera with ultrafast shutter speeds
and consistent shot-to-shot frame speed and stability, allowing
scientists to take real-time "pictures" of finer structures and
dynamics. By combining many such pictures at a high speed, scientists
can gain a more detailed understanding of many phenomena.

• **NIST method improves timing in oscilloscopes**. A new method for
correcting common timing errors in high-speed oscilloscopes was
developed by researchers at NIST. The method improves the accuracy and
clarity of measurements performed in the development and troubleshooting
of components for wireless and optical communications, military radar
and other technologies.

The software analyzes an oscilloscope\'s measurements of both a signal
of interest and two reference waves that are offset from each other. The
reference waves are generated by an external device and are synchronized
in time with the signal being measured. Measurements of the reference
waves are compared with a calculation of an ideal wave to produce an
estimate of total time errors due to distortion and jitter. These errors
then can be corrected automatically for each measurement made by the
oscilloscope.

The NIST correction method can be applied to older standard equipment,
can correct time records of almost any length and can be applied to
electromagnetic signals of almost any frequency. It also provides the
user with an estimate of the residual timing error after the correction
process has been completed. The Timebase Correction software package has
been made available free of charge.

• **Light scattering method reveals details under skin**. A new optical
method, jointly demonstrated by NIST and Johns Hopkins University
Applied Physics Laboratory can image structures under skin. The method
relies on differences in the way surface and subsurface features of
various materials scatter light. It was demonstrated with small pieces
of pigskin and inorganic materials and might eventually prove useful for
imaging living tissues to help diagnose or determine the extent of
various types of skin cancers.

The method was developed under a CRADA between the two institutions. The
project adapted light scattering techniques originally developed by NIST
researchers to image surface and subsurface features in inorganic
materials such as silicon wafers, mirrors and paint coatings. Research
is continuing on making the new method faster and easier to use.

• **Tiny, atom-based detector senses weak magnetic fields**. A
low-power, magnetic sensor about the size of a grain of rice that can
detect magnetic field changes a million times weaker than the Earth\'s
magnetic field has been demonstrated by NIST researchers. The device can
be powered with batteries and is about 100 times smaller than current
atom-based sensors with similar sensitivities, which typically weigh
several kilograms.

The new magnetic sensor is based on the principles of the NIST
chip-scale atomic clock, and expected applications for a commercialized
version of the new sensor could include hand-held devices for sensing
unexploded ordnance, precision navigation, geophysical mapping to locate
minerals or oil, and medical instruments.

Like the NIST chip-scale clock, the new magnetic sensor can be
fabricated and assembled on semiconductor wafers using existing
techniques for making microelectronics and microelectromechanical
systems (MEMS). This offers the potential for low-cost mass production
of sensors about the size of a computer chip. When packaged with
associated electronics, the researchers believe the mini magnetometer
will measure about 1 cubic centimeter or about the size of a sugar cube.

Magnetic fields are produced by the motion of electrons either in the
form of an electrical current or in certain metals such as iron, cobalt
and nickel. The NIST miniature magnetometer is sensitive enough to
detect a concealed rifle about 12 meters away or a six-inch-diameter
steel pipeline up to 35 meters underground.

• **Innovative chiral separation breakthrough**. NIST scientists have
developed a chiral separation technique that will give pharmaceutical
companies a new analytical tool that may help to prevent dangerous side
effects of drugs in patients. Many drugs on the market today, as well as
those currently under development, are chiral, i.e., the active drug
molecule has an inactive "twin" that is compositionally identical but
structurally is a mirror image. As such they are commonly synthesized as
mixtures. Because of their physical and chemical similarities,
separation and quantitation two conformations of a chiral drug can be
very difficult, yet crucial in protecting patient welfare.

The pharmacological activity and toxicity of the two conformations can
be vastly different, sometimes causing serious side effects.
Consequently, current FDA guidelines require the development of
"quantitative assays for individual conformations in in vivo samples" as
well as methods for assessing conformational purity and stability.

NIST's new chiral separation technique provides a combination of high
resolving power and theoretically unlimited concentration enhancement
for very low detection limits. Performing remarkably faster and with
greater sensitivity than conventional methods, NIST's new technique
provides a valuable tool for drug development research.

• **New temperature and pressure standard**. The innovation of a
quasi-spherical cavity resonator has revolutionized temperature
standards and it may revolutionize pressure standards as well. For a
temperature standard, NIST researchers simultaneously measured microwave
and acoustic resonances of a grapefruit-sized, copper-walled,
helium-filled, quasi-spherical cavity with uncertainties of a few parts
per million. The cavity is almost spherical, however it has small,
deliberate distortions, hence the name "quasi-spherical." The
distortions prevent the microwave frequencies from overlapping each
other, making accurate measurements possible. If the frequency
uncertainties can be reduced to a few parts per billion, the results
also will determine the helium pressure more accurately than existing
piston and cylinder standards. One of NIST's goals is to disseminate
consistent standards for physical measurements to researchers, industry,
and academia. The quasi-spherical cavity will enable users to have
highly accurate standards of temperature and pressure in their own
laboratories that they can use to calibrate the transducers they use for
process control and for measuring temperature-dependencies of properties
of materials.

***Nanotechnology***

• **New design developed for silicon nanowire transistors**. In an
advance for nanoscale electronics, researchers at NIST demonstrated a
new design for silicon nanowire transistors that both simplifies
processing and allows the devices to be switched on and off more easily.

Silicon nanowire devices have received considerable attention recently
for possible use in integrated nanoscale electronics as well as for
studying fundamental properties of structures and devices with very
small dimensions. The NIST work overcomes some key difficulties in
making reliable devices or test structures at nanoscale dimensions. The
results also suggest that nanowire transistors made with conventional
lithographic fabrication methods can improve performance in nanoscale
electronics, while allowing industry to retain its existing silicon
technology infrastructure.

The NIST design uses a simplified type of contact between the nanowire
channel and the positive and negative electrodes of the transistor. The
design allows more electrical current to flow in and out of the silicon.
The researchers believe the design is the first to demonstrate a
\"Schottky barrier\" type contact for a nanowire transistor built using
a \"top-down\" approach. This barrier, an easily formed metal contact
that electrons can tunnel through, requires much less doping with
impurities than do conventional ohmic contacts, thereby simplifying
processing requirements.

• **Chip-scale refrigerators cool bulk objects**. Chip-scale
refrigerators capable of reaching temperatures as low as 100 milliKelvin
have been used to cool bulk objects for the first time by NIST
researchers. The solid-state refrigerators have applications such as
cooling cryogenic sensors in highly sensitive instruments for
semiconductor defect analysis and astronomical research.

NIST researchers used the chip-scale refrigerator to cool a cube of
germanium about 11,000 times larger than the volume of the chip. This is
roughly equivalent to having a refrigerator the size of a person cool an
object the size of the Statue of Liberty.

The refrigerators are fabricated using common chip-making lithography
methods, making production and integration with other microscale devices
straightforward. The devices are much smaller and less expensive than
conventional equipment used for cooling down to 100 mK, a target
temperature for optimizing the performance of cryogenic sensors.

• **Nano-sized chip features measured with atom \'ruler\'**. Device
features on computer chips as small as 40 nanometers (nm) wide---less
than one-thousandth the width of a human hair---now can be measured
reliably thanks to new test structures developed by NIST with SEMATECH
and other collaborators. The test structures are replicated on reference
materials that will allow better calibration of tools that monitor the
manufacturing of microprocessors and similar integrated circuits.

The NIST rulers are precisely etched lines of crystalline silicon
ranging in width from 40 nm to 275 nm. The spacing of atoms within the
box-shaped silicon crystals is used like hash marks on a ruler to
measure the dimensions of these test structures. Industry can used these
reference materials to calibrate tools to reliably measure
microprocessor-device gates, for example, which control the flow of
electrical charges in chips. In the absence of reference materials such
as these, companies have calibrated measurement tools using in-house
standards, which may neither be accurate nor agree with each other. The
new reference materials are now being evaluated by SEMATECH member
companies.

***Biosciences and Health***

• **Detecting anthrax proteins at ultralow concentrations**. A new
laboratory method for quickly detecting active anthrax proteins within
an infected blood sample at extremely low levels has been developed by
researchers at NIST, the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of
Infectious Diseases, and the National Cancer Institute. Current
detection methods rely on injecting live animals or cell cultures with
samples for analysis and require up to several days before results are
available. The new method produces unambiguous results in about an hour.

• **Chemical link indicated between alcohol and certain cancers**. NIST
developed a new chemical analysis method that has assisted researchers
at the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA),
National Institutes of Health in demonstrating a potentially important
chemical link between alcohol consumption and cancer. Using this novel
chemical assay, they uncovered a chain of chemical reactions that, under
physiological conditions, may lead from alcohol to a known mutagen.

It has been known for years that there is a statistical relationship
between excessive alcohol consumption and an increased risk of certain
cancers, particularly upper gastrointestinal cancer. Alcohol itself is
not a carcinogen but is metabolized in the body to form a suspected
carcinogen, acetaldehyde (AA).

NIST and NIAAA researchers filled in the missing link, s a class of
chemicals called polyamines that are produced in cells and believed to
be involved in cell growth. Using a sensitive chemical analysis
technique developed at NIST, the team showed that AA reacts with
polyamines to produce compound that in turn reacts with DNA to produce a
known mutagen.

The work strongly suggests a pathway between alcohol consumption and
cancer, and that certain specific mutations in genes could affect
individual susceptibility to cancer for alcoholic beverage consumption.

• **Study of RNA dynamics may help in drug design**. NIST and University
of Colorado biophysicists have developed a method for studying, in real
time, a nanoscale "docking and undocking" interaction between small
pieces of ribonucleic acid (RNA). The technique may be broadly useful in
studying structural changes in RNA that affect its function with
applications in the design of effective new drugs based on small RNA
strands.

The group developed a simple model system for studying the reversible
docking of a small piece of RNA at a receptor site in the same molecule.
They used a technique called fluorescence resonance energy transfer, in
which the two pieces of RNA are labeled with different dyes that have
overlapping emission bands. One dye emits light of the same color that
the other dye absorbs; the second dye then emits light of a different
color. One piece of RNA is excited by a laser and, when the two pieces
are close enough together to dock, passes energy to the other one, which
then fluoresces. This method was used to measure the distance between
the two pieces of RNA as it varied the docked state to the undocked
state.

• **New NIST SRM**. A new NIST reference standard was developed to help
genetics labs develop improved methods of searching for a mutant needle
in a DNA haystack. To help the research community develop and test more
sensitive techniques for detecting low-frequency mutations in
heteroplasmic DNA, NIST researchers have developed a new Standard
Reference Material, SRM 2394, "Heteroplasmic Mitochondrial DNA Mutation
Detection Standard." The new material is a set of mixtures, at 10
different certified concentrations, of two DNA fragments that differ
from each other at only one position.

Accurate analysis of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), either for forensic
identification or for studying genetic-based diseases, often hinges on
the ability to detect mutations that occur only infrequently, even in
the same individual. Unlike the cell\'s nuclear DNA, a person\'s mtDNA
is often heteroplasmic \-- a mix of a dominant DNA sequence with fewer
mutated sequences that differ from the dominant version by one or more
nucleotides. There are hundreds or thousands of mitochondria in cells,
and the exact percentage of the minority mtDNA in the mix can vary
dramatically in an individual, from tissue to tissue, and even from cell
to cell. In general, it can be very difficult to identify variants that
make up less than 20 percent of the sample unless you already know they
are there.

• **New NIST SRM reinforces "fragile-X" screening**. A new NIST Standard
Reference Material will help clinical genetics labs improve the accuracy
of their diagnostic tests for the most common cause of hereditary mental
retardation.

"Fragile X Syndrome" is a genetic mutation affecting approximately one
in 3,600 males and one in 4,000 to 6,000 females. It has been linked to
several physical abnormalities and to intellectual problems ranging from
minor learning disabilities to severe mental retardation and autism. The
mutation is characterized by an excessive number of repeats of a
sequence of three nucleotides (the chemical building blocks of DNA)
within a particular gene on the human X chromosome.

Proper diagnosis depends on accurate counts of the number of triplet
repeats.

To assist clinical diagnostic and genetic testing laboratories in
accurately counting fragile-X repeat sequences, NIST has developed a new
reference material that can be used as a check on test procedures and
for quality control. SRM 2399, "Fragile X Human DNA Triplet Repeat
Standard" joins more than 50 reference materials produced by NIST for
quality control in clinical testing.

• **HIV database**. An international plea for a standardized HIV
database resource available to all pharmaceutical research scientists
worldwide has been received and answered by NIST researchers, in
collaboration with scientists at the U.S.' National Cancer Institute and
Rutgers University.  NIST's HIV SRD 102 collects and classifies data
from thousands of structures of HIV protease and its inhibitors,
organizing drug inhibitors according to their chemical structure with
3-D animations allowing manipulation in all directions. It is easily
accessible, reliable, and standardized.

Each year millions of dollars of both public and private investments
target AIDS research, seeking a cure for this deadly disease. Because so
many scientists are involved in this endeavor worldwide, the NIST
database provides a centrally located resource where all involved in
AIDS research can exchange structural information for mutual benefit. 
The significant impact of NIST's work was quickly recognized by the
scientific community, as evidenced by the extraordinary number of
web-site hits, highlights in alternate publications, and hyperlinks that
have appeared on numerous database websites.  Since the public release
of the new HIV SRD 102 on July 16, 2004, its multi-million hits make it
one of NIST's most accessed databases.

***Public Safety and Homeland Security***

• **Bioagent detector guide aids first responders**. Ever since
envelopes containing anthrax bacteria were mailed to Congressional and
media offices in 2001 causing several deaths, many first responder
departments have worked to improve their ability to quickly detect toxic
biological agents. To help them make informed decisions about which
biological agent detection devices best meet their needs, NIST recently
developed a guide for the emergency responders that provides ways to
compare and contrast commercially available biological detection
equipment.

To help first responders decide on appropriate equipment, the guide
includes data on 19 selection factors, including sensitivity,
specificity, start-up and response times, ease-of-use, alarm capability,
power requirements, skill level, cost, durability and portability.

• **New system 'sees' crimes on audiotape**. A real-time magnetic
imaging system that enables criminal investigators to "see" signs of
tampering in audiotapes \-- erasing, overdubbing and other alterations
\-- while listening to the tapes has been developed by NIST researchers.
The new system, which permits faster screening and more accurate
audiotape analysis than currently possible, was delivered to the Federal
Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

The FBI's Forensic Audio Analysis Unit receives hundreds of audiotapes
annually for analysis from a wide variety of devices, including
answering machines, cassette recorders and digital audiotape recorders.
At the heart of the NIST technology is a cassette player modified with
an array of 64 customized magnetic sensors that detects and maps the
microscopic magnetic fields on audiotapes as they are played. The array
is connected to a desktop computer programmed to convert the magnetic
data into a displayable image. Authentic, original tapes produce images
with non-interrupted, predictable patterns, while erase and record
functions produce characteristic "smudges" in an image that correlate to
"pops" and "thumps" in the audio signal. An examiner can also use the
new system to help determine the authenticity of a tape or if that tape
is a copy.

• **New software judges quality of scanned fingerprints**. An improved
suite of automated fingerprint analysis tools, including a new software
program that judges the quality of a scanned fingerprint, is now
available to U.S. law enforcement agencies, manufacturers and biometrics
researchers as a result of work at NIST.

The software can be used to help ensure that images collected with
digital fingerprint scanners will be of high enough quality to produce
good matches with fingerprints already on file. Ideally, a fingerprint
image will have clear and distinct ridges and valleys. But problems,
including dry skin, the size of the person's fingers, or equipment
issues such as dirty or damaged sensor plates, can result in poor images
that could produce inaccurate matches.

NIST software will for the first time allow users to compare directly
the fingerprint image quality produced by scanners made by different
manufacturers. The package also includes improved software for matching
fingerprints, pattern classification, minutiae detection, fingerprint
encoding and decoding, and segmenting four-finger "slaps" into
individual prints.

***Information and Knowledge Management***

• **Software advance helps computers act logically**. A new software
language, developed by NIST and colleagues in France, Germany, Japan and
the United Kingdom, promises to enable computers to reason much more
precisely and thus better reflect subtleties intended by commands from
human operators. The process specification language should make
computers much more useful in manufacturing.

The software language uses artificial intelligence and mathematical
logic to represent computer commands in the context of a manufacturing
plan. Researchers have incorporated approximately 300 concepts, such as
"duration" and "sequence," into its software structure. Computers using
software with this feature can act on a word's "meaning," interpreting a
command almost like a person.

For instance, a person who hears the commands "paint it before shipping
it" and "turn on the coolant before milling" understands that the word
\"before\" has slightly different meanings in these two different
contexts. In the first command, it is understood that painting and
drying must be completed prior to the next action, shipping. In the
second command, however, the first action, turning on the coolant,
continues after the milling starts. The software supports computer
systems with this type of rudimentary understanding of context-specific
language and is especially suited for the exchange of process planning,
validation, production scheduling and control information for guiding
manufacturing processes.

• **Fluid mixture computer simulation innovation**. Fluid mixtures are
essential in an extremely wide range of practical applications and
industrial processes. For example, heat pumps, air conditioners,
refrigeration equipment and processes like, chemical (including fuel)
production, purification, and separation, and environmental cleanup
typically involve multiple coexisting fluids of differing composition
(called phases). The amounts of each phase and their compositions change
as conditions of temperature and/or pressure are varied - these changes
also typically involve energy deposition or release by the fluid system.

Accurate knowledge of this complex behavior is required for design,
optimization, and control of these industrial devices and processes.
Because laboratory determination of these many mixture properties is
very expensive and time-consuming, it is highly desirable to have a
computational means to determine this information. With NIST's
innovation, results are far more accurate and are realized in less than
a single day! This new method is beginning to be recognized by the
chemicals industry as major breakthrough. In addition, it has attracted
the attention of biologists for modeling the onset of multiple
coexisting phases of large biomolecules such as proteins in solution.

• **Simulation models for refrigeration and air conditioning
equipment**. The U.S. air conditioning and refrigeration industry is
under tremendous pressure from international competition to design and
manufacture equipment and systems with increasing performance and
decreasing costs. They must do this in a climate where environmental
concerns of customers are becoming increasingly demanding, particularly
outside the U.S. Thus the products and systems must perform at their
optimum, using working fluids that do no damage to the atmosphere and
have the highest possible efficiency to limit the impact on global
warming.

NIST has developed and disseminated a suite of simulation/design tools
to the refrigeration and air conditioning industry that enables them to
optimize the design of both whole systems as well as individual
components that was never possible before. These tools are being used by
over 60 companies and organizations in the U.S. searching for the
optimum refrigerant or refrigerant mixture.

**Appendix:**

**Progress in Improving the Agency's Performance Metrics for Tech
Transfer**

The additional activity metrics included by NIST in FY 2002, 2003, and
2004 (notably, for non-traditional CRADAs to cover NIST calibration
services; greater detail on licenses and license income; workshops,
conferences, and publications; and participation by NIST staff in
documentary standards committees) are now well integrated into the
annual report process. The present array of metrics covers the wide
variety of mechanisms that NIST employs for technology transfer.

NIST continues, however, to evaluate the effectiveness of its technology
transfer activities and will consider including additional metrics as
need may arise.

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[^1]: NIST's authority to perform its technology/knowledge transfer
    activities does not rest solely in the Bayh-Dole Act,
    Stevenson-Wydler Act, Federal Technology Transfer Act (FTTA) and
    related legislation. It also resides in NIST's Organic Act (15 USC
    272) and the Standard Reference Data Act (15 USC 290).