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This PDF is available at http://nap.nationalacademies.org/27257

An Assessment of the Material

Measurement Laboratory at the National

Institute of Standards and Technology:

Fiscal Year 2023 (2023)

126 pages | 8.5 x 11 | PAPERBACK

ISBN 978-0-309-71068-8 | DOI 10.17226/27257

Panel on the Assessment of the National Institute of Standards and Technology

(NIST) Material Measurement Laboratory; Laboratory Assessments Board; Division

on Engineering and Physical Sciences; National Academies of Sciences,

Engineering, and Medicine

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2023. An Assessment

of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards

and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023. Washington, DC: The National Academies

Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/27257.
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

Consensus Study Report 

An Assessment of the Material

Measurement Laboratory at the

National Institute of Standards

and Technology

Fiscal Year 2023

Panel on the Assessment of the National

Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)

Material Measurement Laboratory

Laboratory Assessments Board

Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

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support for the project. 

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Suggested citation: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2023. An 

Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards 

and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. 

https://doi.org/10.17226/27257. 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

The National Academy of Sciences was established in 1863 by an Act of Congress, signed by 

President Lincoln, as a private, nongovernmental institution to advise the nation on issues 

related to science and technology. Members are elected by their peers for outstanding 

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An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

Consensus Study Reports published by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, 

and Medicine document the evidence-based consensus on the study’s statement of task by an 

authoring committee of experts. Reports typically include findings, conclusions, and 

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For information about other products and activities of the National Academies, please visit 

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An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

v 

PANEL ON THE ASSESSMENT OF THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF STANDARDS AND 

TECHNOLOGY (NIST) MATERIAL MEASUREMENT LABORATORY 

ELSA REICHMANIS (NAE), Lehigh University, Chair

ROBERT ARLEY BEVER, Bode Technology 

AUGUST W. BOSSE, ExxonMobil Technology and Engineering Company 

KENNETH M. CALDERONE, Confocal, Leica Microsystems 

IULIANA CERNĂTESCU, Pratt and Whitney 

STEVEN C. FREILICH, Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment 

GARY S. GROENEWOLD, Independent Consultant, Idaho National Laboratory (retired) 

MINKI HONG, Kyulux North America, Inc. 

MOHAMMAD A. KHALEEL, Oak Ridge National Laboratory 

RICHARD A. LESAR, Iowa State University 

FRANCES S. LIGLER (NAE), Texas A&M University 

QUINGHUANG LIN, Linktech International, LLC 

DAVID MELLOR, Center for Open Science 

NICOLA POHL, Indiana University Bloomington 

JAYAKANTH RAVICHANDRAN, University of Southern California 

JAMES W. RINGER, Innovative Process Solutions, LLC 

GEORGE RODRIGUEZ, ExxonMobil Technology and Engineering 

JAMES E. SAAL, Citrine Informatics, Inc. 

MARC SALIT, The MITRE Corporation 

ISAAC C. SANCHEZ (NAE), The University of Texas at Austin 

ALIX L. SCHMIDT, The Dow Chemical Company 

JESSE C. SEEGMILLER, University of Minnesota 

JOHNNA S. TEMENOFF, Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University 

CRISTINA U. THOMAS, 3M (retired) 

OCKERT J. VAN DER SCHIJFF, Exponent, Inc. 

Staff 

KATIE BRATLIE, Director, Laboratory Assessments Board 

JAMES MYSKA, Senior Program Officer, Study Director

AZEB GETACHEW, Administrative Assistant 

JAYDA WADE, Research Associate (until August 4, 2023) 

 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

vi 

LABORATORY ASESSMENTS BOARD 

TJ GLAUTHIER, TJG Energy Associates, LLC, Chair

ILHAN A. AKSAY1

 (NAE), Princeton University 

ROBERT D. BRAUN (NAE), Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory 

DAVID S. C. CHU, Institute for Defense Analyses 

DONA L. CRAWFORD, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (retired) 

THOMAS R. KURFESS (NAE), Georgia Tech Manufacturing Research Institute 

JUAN DE PABLO (NAS/NAE), The University of Chicago 

CAROL SCHUTTE, Air Force Office of Scientific Research (retired) 

Staff 

KATIE BRATLIE, Director, Laboratory Assessments Board 

AZEB GETACHEW, Administrative Assistant 

LIZA RENEE HAMILTON, Senior Program Officer 

JAMES MYSKA, Senior Program Officer 

JAYDA WADE, Research Associate (until August 4, 2023) 

1

 Resigned from the board on October 25, 2023. 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

vii 

Reviewers

This Consensus Study Report was reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse 

perspectives and technical expertise. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and 

critical comments that will assist the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in 

making each published report as sound as possible and to ensure that it meets the institutional standards 

for quality, objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft 

manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process. 

We thank the following individuals for their review of this report: 

ASAD ABIDI (NAE), University of California, Los Angeles

LYNDA CATHERINE BRINSON, Duke University 

CHANTELLE FERLAND-BECKHAM, Cohen Veterans Bioscience 

STEVEN MCKNIGHT, Department of Energy 

NGA LEE NG, Georgia Institute of Technology 

ANNE ELISABETH OSBOURN (NAS), John Innes Centre, United Kingdon 

STYRON N. POWERS, Independent Safety Consultant 

ANN SALAMONE (NAE), Rochal Industries, LLC 

SHIJING SUN, University of Washington 

Although the reviewers listed above provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they 

were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations of this report nor did they see the final 

draft before its release. The review of this report was overseen by DAVID W. JOHNSON, University of 

Minnesota, Minneapolis, and JENNIE S. HWANG (NAE), H-Technologies Group, Inc. They were 

responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in 

accordance with the standards of the National Academies and that all review comments were carefully 

considered. Responsibility for the final content rests entirely with the authoring committee and the 

National Academies. 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

ix 

Contents 

SUMMARY 1 

1 INTRODUCTION 6 

 

2 OVERVIEW OF THE MATERIAL MEASUREMENT LABORATORY 11 

 

3 APPLIED CHEMICALS AND MATERIALS DIVISION 16 

 

4 BIOSYSTEMS AND BIOMATERIALS DIVISION 23 

 

5 BIOMOLECULAR MEASUREMENT DIVISION 30 

 

6 CHEMICAL SCIENCES DIVISION 38 

 

7 MATERIALS MEASUREMENT SCIENCE DIVISION 50 

 

8 MATERIALS SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING DIVISION 58 

 

9 OFFICE OF DATA AND INFORMATICS 65 

 

10 OFFICE OF REFERENCE MATERIALS 72 

 

11 MATERIAL MEASUREMENT LABORATORY’S RESPONSES TO 

 THE FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE FISCAL YEAR 

 2020 ASSESSMENT REPORT 76 

 

12 OVERARCHING THEMES, KEY RECOMMENDATIONS, AND 

 CHAPTER-SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THIS ASSESSMENT 95 

APPENDIXES 

A Acronyms and Abbreviations 105 

B Panel Biographical Sketches 108 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

1 

Summary 

BACKGROUND AND TASK 

Since 1959, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has annually engaged the 

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to assemble panels of experts—from 

academia, industry, medicine, and other scientific and engineering communities of practice—to assess the 

quality and effectiveness of the NIST measurements and standards laboratories, of which there are six,1

 as 

well as the adequacy of the laboratories’ resources. These reviews are conducted under contract at the 

request of NIST. In fiscal year 2023, NIST asked the National Academies to assess the Material 

Measurement Laboratory (MML). The assessment process included a site visit by the panel, including 

laboratory tours, individual engagement with MML researchers, and follow-on questions after the site 

visit. The panel then used its collective experience and expertise to assess MML according to the 

statement of task and make recommendations. MML is assessed in its entirety every 3 years. 

The statement of task has four main components. First, the panel is asked to assess MML’s 

technical programs, how the quality of research at MML compares to similar programs of research 

internationally, and whether the quality of the programs at MML are adequate for MML to achieve its 

objectives. Second, the panel is also asked to assess the portfolio of scientific and technical expertise at 

MML, whether it is world-class, and how well it supports MML’s technical programs and MML’s ability 

to meet its objectives. Third, the panel is asked to assess the adequacy of MML’s budget, facilities, 

equipment, and human resources, and how well these support MML’s technical work and achieving 

MML’s goals. Finally, the panel is asked to assess the effectiveness of MML’s efforts to disseminate 

products of its work including how well MML’s work is driven by stakeholder needs, how effective and 

comprehensive the dissemination and technology transfer mechanisms are, and how well MML is 

monitoring the stakeholder use, and the impact of, MML’s output. 

MATERIAL MEASUREMENT LABORATORY 

MML comprises six technical divisions and two offices. The two offices manage programs 

related to NIST standard reference materials and NIST data products. The technical divisions engage in 

research and development of the measurement science, standards, technology, and data required to 

support the nation’s need to design, develop, manufacture, and use materials. These divisions interact 

extensively with both industry and public institutions to advance the economy and provide tools for the 

creation of knowledge. 

The divisions and offices in MML are the Applied Chemicals and Materials Division, Biosystems 

and Biomaterials Division, Biomolecular Measurement Division, Chemical Sciences Division, Materials 

Measurement Science Division, Materials Science and Engineering Division, Office of Data and 

Informatics, and Office of Reference Materials. The Applied Chemicals and Materials Division is located 

1

 The six NIST laboratories are the Communications Technology Laboratory, the Engineering Laboratory, the 

Information Technology Laboratory, the Material Measurement Laboratory, the NIST Center for Neutron Research, 

and the Physical Measurement Laboratory. 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

2 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

on the NIST campus in Boulder, Colorado. The remainder of the divisions and offices are located on 

NIST’s campus in Gaithersburg, Maryland. 

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 

Assessment and General Conclusions 

Across the MML divisions and offices, research staff continue to demonstrate impressive 

productivity in scientific publications, standards interactions, intellectual property activity, and customer 

engagement. 

The technical quality of the research at MML is excellent. The work being done at MML not only 

compares favorably with work being done at other national metrology institutes around the world, in 

some cases it is world leading. For example, there is cutting-edge work being done in standards for 

additive manufacturing, a new albumin standard reference material that will allow for far more accurate 

testing for kidney disease, and a new hair peptide analysis technique that is free from concerns about 

DNA contamination and might be sensitive enough to tell the difference between identical twins. The 

quality of the technical work is generally adequate for MML to meet its technical objectives. There is 

room for improvement, however, and this is addressed in each of the chapters where the panel saw the 

need. 

The portfolio of scientific and technical expertise at MML is impressive and is highly recognized 

in the scientific community worldwide. The expertise resident at MML is world-class in the areas of 

MML’s mission and objectives. MML staff are active in many standards bodies, often in leadership roles. 

They produce an impressive output of technical papers and work products. MML staff have won many 

awards, such as being named fellows of ASM International, ASTM International, and the American 

Physical Society. They have received the ASTM International Award the Chemical Society of 

Washington’s Charles Gordon Award, of Merit, and many Department of Commerce and NIST named 

awards. As with the technical programs, there are places where there is room for improvement; these are 

addressed in the chapters where they occur. 

In contrast with the quality of the technical work and expertise at MML, there are challenges in 

the areas of budget, facilities, equipment, and human resources. While these are addressed in more detail 

in the report, generally MML is experiencing budget stress including flat budgets that either barely hold 

or lose ground to inflation, some of its equipment that is dated and in need of refreshing, and serious 

challenges regarding MML’s human resources support. The biggest challenge faced by MML’s staff, and 

across NIST, is the condition of many of MML’s facilities. There are serious deficiencies in places that 

actively impede MML’s work. These are not issues that MML can address on its own; they require action 

by NIST headquarters and work is underway at the headquarters level to address MML’s—and all of 

NIST’s—facilities problems. All of these issues are discussed in the body of the report. Regarding 

facilities, this report notes MML-specific challenges and ties to the National Academies’ 2023 report 

Technical Assessment of the Capital Facility Needs of the National Institute of Standards and Technology

(NASEM 2023; hereafter the “Capital Facility Needs report”). 

Regarding the dissemination of program outputs, MML engages in extensive collaborative work, 

across MML, NIST, and an impressive number of external stakeholders. In essence, MML continues its 

essential role of supporting U.S. industry metrology, technology, and standards needs. The strong support 

of its industrial stakeholders is shown in part by the significant number of cooperative research and 

development agreements in this review along with an increase in nondisclosure agreements. MML 

researchers are highly published and influential, they are very active in international standards bodies, 

holding several leadership positions in those bodies, and they hold many patents. Generally, MML’s work 

is responsive to stakeholder needs and its dissemination and technology transfer mechanisms are 

effective. While there is significant evidence of the impact of MML’s work, the panels make some 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

SUMMARY 3 

recommendations about better tracking this impact and thus more effectively demonstrating MML’s 

value. 

The recommendations in report’s chapters are grouped by division or office to provide actionable 

suggestions that address each division’s unique needs. This Summary highlights overarching, crosscutting themes that emerged over the course of the 2023 assessment. 

KEY RECOMMENDATIONS 

Adequacy of Facilities 

As highlighted in the National Academies’ 2020 MML assessment, An Assessment of the 

Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 

2020 (NASEM 2021), and more recently in Capital Facility Needs report (NASEM 2023), aging facilities 

and infrastructure present significant handicaps. Notably, the 2023 report found that NIST research staff 

spent from 10 to 40 percent of their time working around facility shortcomings, with the typical reported 

values being 20 percent (NASEM 2023). As direct consequence of these limitations, at NIST generally 

and specific to this report, MML researchers are left to mitigate these limitations through repeating their 

work or implementing workarounds with limited research budgets. 

The MML laboratories in Boulder, Colorado, and Gaithersburg, Maryland, are negatively 

affected by poor temperature and humidity control in addition to inadequate air flow in their laboratories, 

which are not compatible with state-of-the-art measurements and instrumentation. On the Gaithersburg 

campus in 2022, aging infrastructure led to serious flooding of MML research laboratories, resulting in a 

loss of millions of dollars of equipment and time. The facilities are generally inadequate for the 

performance of modern materials chemistry related processes. Much of the infrastructure, both buildings 

and equipment, has exceeded its expected life, leading to time spent inefficiently compared to the 

capabilities of state-of-the-art facilities and equipment in academic and industry laboratories and at 

metrology institutes around the world. Researchers have had to repeat experiments multiple times. They 

have had their ability to work interrupted by utility failures. Postdocs have ended their postdoc without 

having been able to do the work needed to author a publication. The impacts are building, and MML 

broadly is becoming a less and less appealing place to work. MML is already at a compensation 

disadvantage compared to industry, now it cannot always offer world-class facilities, either. While MML 

research efforts are world-leading, aging facilities and infrastructure are such that MML is at the cusp of 

losing its world-leading position and its ability to continue to attract new generations of world-leading 

researchers. It needs to be noted that MML—or any of NIST’s laboratories—have a very limited ability 

to address facilities inadequacies. Major facilities work—the construction, renovation, and modernization 

that is needed to resolve the worst of the problems—is managed and funded by NIST’s Office of 

Facilities and Property Management (OFPM). As detailed in the report Technical Assessment of the 

Capital Facility Needs of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, OFPM has a coordinated 

recovery plan to fix NIST’s facilities. The most important thing for MML to do is to ensure that OFPM is 

fully aware of its facilities issues and that MML’s priorities are reflected in the coordinated recovery plan. 

Key Recommendation 1: The Material Measurement Laboratory (MML) and the National 

Institute of Standards and Technology Office of Facilities and Property Management 

should work together to identify and document critical laboratory infrastructure issues. 

They should collaborate to prioritize items that need to be addressed and create a plan with 

an associated timeline to address those needs. MML should actively encourage its 

researchers to document facilities issues and all associated time lost repeating experiments, 

and the portion of the research budget spent on working around facility issues. 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

4 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

The identified infrastructure issues also represent safety issues: floods can easily lead to sparks 

that can in turn initiate fires; inadequate exhaust will lead to contaminated laboratory air that can 

negatively impact research product quality and in the long term can impact the health of research staff. As 

a whole, aged infrastructure and equipment can have an impact on the overall attitude of the staff toward 

safety. Safety requires intimate and active management involvement, creating and driving an overall 

safety culture. Participation in the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s Voluntary Protection 

Programs might be a useful way to approach safety at MML.2

Key Recommendation 2: Safety is as much a line management responsibility as an 

individual one. Leaders should recognize that every task can be done safely, and every task 

has inherent risks. That attitude needs to be transmitted down the line in order for each 

individual to take responsibility for not only maintaining but also improving the safety of 

their environment and the environments of those around them. The Material Measurement 

Laboratory (MML) should maintain statistics of leading indicators of safety risks and 

facilities dangers that represent the base of the safety pyramid. These statistics should be 

socialized within the organization in such a way that a safe and safety-conscious 

environment is created that results in a safety culture that supports continuous 

improvement. MML should consider engaging with experienced industrial partners who 

can bring a fresh perspective on the safety risks as a way of providing an unbiased and 

fresh pair of eyes to the situation. 

Adequacy of Scientific and Technical Expertise 

MML conducts research at a very high level. It has formal arrangements with renowned 

institutions such as Brookhaven National Laboratory and the Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology 

Research, a joint institute with the University of Maryland, College Park, and the University of Maryland, 

Baltimore. MML has primary responsibility within NIST for producing and curating standard reference 

materials and standard reference data. In addition to maintaining critical standard reference materials and 

standard reference data, MML has developed newer standards products based on biology. The balance of 

maintaining legacy standard reference materials versus redirecting limited resources toward producing 

standard reference materials and standard reference data in new and emerging areas presents both a 

challenge and an opportunity. MML notes that areas of new opportunities include the bioeconomy and 

engineering biology, data science and engineering, artificial intelligence, and the circular economy. 

The robustness of MML’s program against retirements or unforeseen departures could be 

improved. In some places there needs to be more systematic succession planning to prevent gaps from 

occurring. Cross-training to provide backup coverage in case the primary cognizant scientist leaves is a 

further way to protect against disruption. In other instances, retraining staff to take on emerging issues 

requiring different disciplinary knowledge was lacking. 

Pandemic restrictions limited onboarding and other processes that contribute to a cohesive work 

culture, which has been recognized by the MML leadership team. The lack of cohesion negatively 

impacts an organization or culture where career mentoring and professional development for the 

population of term-limited scientific appointees becomes uneven. 

Key Recommendation 3: The Material Measurement Laboratory (MML) should work with 

National Institute of Standards and Technology human resources to develop effective 

processes and procedures for hiring and career development of staff. Processes to ensure 

timely support to MML in hiring and onboarding of postdocs, term, and permanent 

employees should be developed and implemented. 

2

 More information about the Voluntary Protection Programs and how to participate can be found at 

Occupational Safety and Health Administration, “Voluntary Protection Programs,” https://www.osha.gov/vpp. 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

SUMMARY 5 

Key Recommendation 4: The Material Measurement Laboratory (MML) should require 

mentorship training for all research staff within the laboratory to ensure quality vertical 

mentorship and sponsorship in order to increase the impact of the postdoc and early career 

population both within MML and later in industry, academia, or government positions. 

MML should increase the number of employees who have formal leadership training to 

standardize mentoring and onboarding of new personnel. The training should include a 

formalization of clear mentor and mentee expectations in terms of work, in-person 

meetings, and supervision. MML should consider a standard message about the processes of 

transitioning from a postdoc or term appointee to a permanent staff member, and the 

probability thereof so as to minimize the uncertainty around this process. 

Data Management and Data Infrastructure 

Data science represents an increasingly important part of MML’s work to meet its mission. 

Within MML, the Office of Data and Informatics is a dedicated, service-oriented data resource with 

domain expertise in biological, chemical, and materials sciences, specializing in large and informationrich data sets. 

Across MML, data collection, storage, analysis, and movement appear to be handled by multiple, 

fragmented platforms, and computational data does not appear to be managed in a centralized platform. In 

addition, not all of the experimental measurement systems have a consolidated and automated data 

infrastructure, which results in a fragmented data infrastructure that, unfortunately, leads to discrete, 

inefficient, and stovepiped experimental data infrastructure across MML. These observations lead to 

opportunities to unify all computational systems, data formats, and data transmission protocols into a 

single, uniform platform for more efficient and effective data curation, storage, processing, transmission, 

and security management. 

Key Recommendation 5: To the extent possible, the Material Measurement Laboratory 

should launch an initiative to unify all computational systems, data formats, and data 

transmission protocols into a single, uniform platform for more efficient and effective data 

curation, storage, processing, transmission, and security management. This data science 

initiative could be applied to machine learning deployment and expand capabilities in 

laboratory automation, high-performance computing, and artificial intelligence. Computing 

infrastructure should, to the extent possible, be updated to meet current laboratory 

standards. 

REFERENCES 

NASEM (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine). 2021. An Assessment of the 

Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal 

Year 2020. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/26048. 

NASEM. 2023. Technical Assessment of the Capital Facility Needs of the National Institute of Standards 

and Technology. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. 

https://doi.org/10.17226/26684.
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

6 

1 

Introduction 

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine have, starting in 1959, annually 

assembled panels of experts—from academia, industry, medicine, and other scientific and engineering 

communities of practice—to assess the quality and effectiveness of the National Institute of Standards and 

Technology (NIST) measurements and standards laboratories, of which there are six,1

 as well as the 

adequacy of the laboratories’ resources. These reviews are conducted under contract at the request of 

NIST. 

STATEMENT OF TASK 

The National Academies shall appoint a panel to assess independently the scientific and technical 

work performed by the NIST Material Measurement Laboratory. The panel will review technical reports 

and technical program descriptions prepared by NIST staff and will visit the facilities of the Material 

Measurement Laboratory. Visits will include technical presentations by NIST staff, demonstrations of 

NIST projects, tours of NIST facilities, and discussions with NIST staff. The panel will deliberate 

findings in closed sessions and will prepare a report summarizing its assessment findings and 

recommendations. 

NIST has requested that the laboratories be assessed against the following broad criteria: 

1. Assess the organization’s technical programs. 

a. How does the quality of the research compare to similar world-class research in the 

technical program areas? 

b. Is the quality of the technical programs adequate for the organization to reach its stated 

technical objectives? How could it be improved? 

2. Assess the portfolio of scientific expertise within the organization. 

a. Does the organization have world-class scientific expertise in the areas of the 

organization’s mission and program objectives? If not, in what areas should it be 

improved? 

b. How well does the organization’s scientific expertise support the organization’s technical 

programs and the organization’s ability to achieve its stated objectives? 

3. Assess the adequacy of the organization’s budget, facilities, equipment, and human resources. 

a. How well do the facilities, equipment, and human resources support the organization’s 

technical programs and its ability to achieve its stated objectives? How could they be 

improved? 

4. Assess the effectiveness by which the organization disseminates its program outputs. 

a. How well are the organization’s research programs driven by stakeholder needs? 

1

 The six NIST laboratories are the Communications Technology Laboratory, the Engineering Laboratory, the 

Information Technology Laboratory, the Material Measurement Laboratory, the NIST Center for Neutron Research, 

and the Physical Measurement Laboratory. 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

INTRODUCTION 7 

b. How effective are the dissemination methods and technology transfer mechanisms used 

by the organization? Are these mechanisms sufficiently comprehensive? 

c. How well is this organization monitoring stakeholder use and impact of program outputs? 

How could this be improved? 

CONDUCT OF THE ASSESSMENT 

In 2023, at the request of the director of NIST, the National Academies formed the Panel on 

Assessment of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Material Measurement 

Laboratory (the “panel”), having earlier established the statement of task described above. 

The panel’s review covered the six divisions and two offices that comprise MML. The panel 

conducted its review in person on May 16–18, 2023, with a split meeting between Boulder, Colorado, and 

Gaithersburg, Maryland. The panel was divided into 8 sub-panels. After an opening plenary session with 

general presentations and discussions, the panel broke out into its sub-panels to work independently, 

receiving briefings, engaging in discussions, and going on tours. By design, each sub-panel was focused 

on the division or office that it assessed. There was a final working plenary where the panel deliberated as 

a whole and then a session for it to confirm its understandings with MML leadership. NIST staff further 

provided written responses to the panel’s queries. 

To accomplish its mission, the panel reviewed the material provided by MML prior to and during 

the review meeting. The choice of projects to be reviewed was made by MML. The panel applied a 

largely qualitative approach to the assessment, using the members’ professional experience, expertise, and 

judgment to conduct the assessment. Given the non-exhaustive nature of the review, the omission in this 

report of any particular MML project should not be interpreted as a negative reflection on the omitted 

project. Similarly, the natural variations between the chapters in terms of length, level of detail, and 

approach convey no message about the quality of work being performed by MML or the information 

provided to the panel. Each chapter was an independent sub-panel focused on a specific division or office 

and conveyed the information they believed to be important based on their interactions with the staff of 

the particular division or office that they assess. It must be noted that this panel’s charge is not to opine on 

what work MML should be doing. That is guidance provided by another independent NIST advisory 

committee, the Visiting Committee on Advanced Technology. This panel’s charge is confined to 

assessing how well MML is doing its work. 

Special Considerations 

There are two items that need to be addressed to fully understand this report. 

Comparison to International Research Efforts

One of the questions in the statement of task (item 1.a) is “How does the quality of the research 

compare to similar world-class research in the technical program areas?” The panel was impressed with 

the quality of research conducted at MML and found it to be generally world-class or world-leading. As 

with all other assessment topics, this is based on the panelists’ individual and cumulative expertise and 

experience. However, within the time constraints of this project, there was not time to engage in extensive 

additional research. Therefore, the report might have fewer concrete examples in regard to this item of the 

statement of task than the others. Any lack of examples should not be taken as a lack of quality. 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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8 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

Safety 

Also, the panel makes observations and a recommendation on safety. It was very careful in doing 

so. Safety is not part of the formal charge to the panel, but MML leadership indicated that they would like 

to receive any feedback the panel had on this issue. Two panelists—Elsa Reichmanis and Steven 

Freilich—have laboratory and leadership safety experience, but the panel was not composed to conduct a 

rigorous safety review (as it was not tasked to do so). Accordingly, the report notes some things that the 

panel observed that are of concern to it and makes a high-level safety key recommendation to draw 

attention to the panel’s concerns and suggest a path forward withing the limits of the scope, information 

available to the committee, and the panel’s collective expertise. Due to these limitations, the panel took a 

relatively light touch on this matter. 

SUMMARY OF THE 2023 TECHNICAL ASSESSMENT OF THE CAPITAL FACILITY NEEDS 

OF THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF STANDARDS AND TECHNOLOGY REPORT 

In February 2023, the National Academies released the report Technical Assessment of the 

Capital Facility Needs of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NASEM 2023; hereafter 

the “Capital Facility Needs report”). The authoring committee was tasked to assess NIST’s facilities and 

utility infrastructure, review and assess plans and projects to reinvigorate NIST’s facilities and utility 

infrastructure, the cost estimates for doing so, and the factors that NIST should consider in developing a 

comprehensive capital strategy for the facilities and utility infrastructure at NIST’s campuses in Boulder, 

Colorado, and Gaithersburg, Maryland. The committee that authored the 2023 Capital Facilities report 

engaged with the Department of the Interior, the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Army Engineer 

Research and Development Center, and the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory to 

learn about their methods and metrics for assessing facility conditions and maintaining their facilities. 

The condition of NIST’s facilities and utility infrastructure has been a concern since 2002 when 

the Visiting Committee on Advanced Technology issued a report calling NIST’s facilities condition and 

the related funding situation “alarming” and “critical.” Over the following 20 years, the Visiting 

Committee on Advanced Technology returned consistently to this theme with increasingly dire language. 

Eventually, the conference report accompanying the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 (P.L. 116-

260) requested that NIST “contract with an independent entity to develop a report that assesses the 

comprehensive capital needs of NIST’s campuses.” In response, NIST’s Office of Facilities and Property 

Management approached the National Academies to conduct a study based on a successful study and 

report completed for the National Institutes of Health in 2019 (NASEM 2019). The result was the 2023 

Capital Facility Needs report (NASEM 2023). 

The committee that authored the Capital Facility Needs report visited both the Boulder, 

Colorado, and Gaithersburg, Maryland, campuses. They discovered that many NIST facilities are 

inadequate to support the world-leading research that is NIST’s mission. Both the quality and the 

reliability of power can be problematic, resulting in slowed work, lost work, and unnecessary time spent 

recalibrating sensitive instruments. Inadequacies in basic environmental controls can result in laboratories 

that are too hot or cold, too humid or not humid enough, and lack proper vibration insulation. In one 

1950s-era Boulder laboratory the gaps between the windows and frames allow dust to blow straight into 

the laboratory. Roof leaks have destroyed multimillion-dollar pieces of equipment, such as tunneling 

electron microscopes in both Boulder and Gaithersburg. A water leak in Gaithersburg resulted in 

permanent damage to the world-leading Kibble balance that tied the standard kilogram to the speed of 

light. There are many more instances and stories. In all, the committee that authored the 2023 Capital 

Facility Needs report found that the NIST research staff loses between 10–40 percent of its working time 

fighting against facility inadequacies, also consuming research money to do so. 

That committee concluded that the situation has reached the point where: 

 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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INTRODUCTION 9 

 NIST researchers will not be able to continue their world-class research no matter their 

efforts; 

 This is already impacting the ability to recruit and retain staff and the willingness of foreign 

researchers to do work at NIST; 

 At risk is also NIST’s international credibility and influence and its ability to support national 

security, U.S. international competitiveness, medical therapeutics, and a wide range of other 

activities upon which users in the U.S. government, industry, and academia rely. 

In the course of its work, the authoring committee found that NIST’s internal facility and property 

management policies are not responsible for this situation. Rather, the cause is more than two decades of 

erratic, unpredictable, and inadequate funding for NIST’s Construction of Research Facilities budget, 

which includes facility sustainment, restoration, modernization, and expansion. Exacerbating this problem 

is congressionally directed pass-through funding for things like building laboratories on university 

campuses that are not used by NIST. This pass-through funding is not revenue-neutral to NIST, costing 

staff time and money to administer, draining even more much-needed money from NIST’s facilities 

coffers. 

In short, the committee that authored the 2023 Capital Facility Needs report found that the 

situation requires serious and sustained attention, particularly from leadership levels above NIST. The 

authoring committee also endorsed the coordinated recovery plan drafted by NIST’s Office of Facilities 

and Property Management and recommended its continued refinement and shortening it to complete it in 

12 years. Critically, the authoring committee identified the need for significant and sustained funding to 

address NIST’s facilities and utility shortcomings and bring them to the standard necessary for modern 

metrology. This funding is the critical piece of the recovery plan. The committee that authored the 2023 

Capital Facility Needs report recommends $420 million to $550 million per year in funding for NIST’s 

Construction of Research Facilities budget over at least 12 years. As shown in Table 1-1, this includes 

$120 million to $150 million per year for sustainment, capacity, maintenance, and major repairs funding 

to address the more than $800 million deferred maintenance backlog and bring existing facilities to an 

acceptable condition and keep them there. It also includes $300 million to $400 million per year over at 

least 12 years for the construction and major renovations budget to upgrade, renovate, and build the new 

laboratories with the new capabilities needed to conduct modern metrology research. 

The picture is not unremittingly bleak. NIST has already begun to modernize laboratories as its 

current budget allows. These new laboratories are state of the art and enable the cutting-edge, worldleading research that is NIST’s mission. As an example, one NIST research group—after waiting 18 

months to be relocated into a new, modern laboratory—won the 2021 Physics World Breakthrough of the 

Year award for a previously unprecedented demonstration of the quantum entanglement of microresonators. NIST’s staff is world-class and capable of producing amazing results, results that will serve 

the nation and inspire the next generations of researchers, provided they are given the facilities and tools 

needed to do their work. 

TABLE 1-1 Overview of NIST Facility and Infrastructure Funding Needs 

Funding Component Amount Needed Annually 

Construction and Major Renovations (CMR) $300 million to $400 million 

Safety, Capacity, Maintenance, and Major Repairs (SCMMR) $120 million to $150 million 

Total needed for Construction of Research Facilities (CRF) $420 million to $550 million 

NOTE: CRF funding is the sum of CMR and SCMMR funding. 

SOURCE: NIST (2022).
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

10 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

STRUCTURE OF THIS REPORT 

This report opens with this introductory chapter, followed by an overview of MML. Each division 

and office of MML is then assessed in its own chapter. The structure within each of these chapters is 

aligned with the statement of task presented above to aid the reader in understanding the panel’s 

assessment. Within the common structure of each chapter, each sub-panel had the flexibility to implement 

a substructure that it believed made the most sense for the information that it wanted to convey. This 

results in different substructures among the chapters. After the assessment chapters is a chapter that 

presents the recommendations from the fiscal year (FY) 2020 MML assessment report (NASEM 2021) 

and MML’s responses to those recommendations. The final chapter presents the recommendations from 

this report in one place for ease of reference. Any issue that the panel believed applies to MML as a 

whole is addressed with a key recommendation. These are presented in the Summary, in the chapters in 

which they appear, and in the final recommendation summary chapter. The structure of the report 

chapters lays out thus: 

 Chapter 1: Introduction 

 Chapter 2: Overview of the Material Measurement Laboratory 

 Chapter 3: Applied Chemicals and Materials Division 

 Chapter 4: Biosystems and Biomaterials Division 

 Chapter 5: Biomolecular Measurement Division 

 Chapter 6: Chemical Sciences Division 

 Chapter 7: Materials Measurement Science Division 

 Chapter 8: Materials Science and Engineering Division 

 Chapter 9: Office of Data and Informatics 

 Chapter 10: Office of Reference Materials 

 Chapter 11: Material Measurement Laboratory’s Responses to the Findings and 

Recommendations of the Fiscal Year 2020 Assessment Report 

 Chapter 12: Overarching Themes, Key Recommendations, and Chapter-Specific 

Recommendations from This Assessment 

REFERENCES 

NASEM (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine). 2019. Managing the NIH 

Bethesda Campus Capital Assets for Success in a Highly Competitive Global Biomedical 

Research Environment. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. 

https://doi.org/10.17226/25483. 

NASEM. 2021. An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of 

Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2020. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. 

https://doi.org/10.17226/26048. 

NASEM. 2023. Technical Assessment of the Capital Facility Needs of the National Institute of Standards 

and Technology. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. 

https://doi.org/10.17226/26684. 

NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology). 2022. “NIST Facilities Summary for 

Representative Trone,” Point Paper. Office of Facilities and Property Management. June.
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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11 

2 

Overview of the Material Measurement Laboratory 

The Material Measurement Laboratory (MML) is one of the National Institute of Standards and 

Technology’s (NIST’s) six major laboratories and one of NIST’s fundamental metrology laboratories. 

The preponderance of MML activity occurs at the Gaithersburg, Maryland, campus, where more than 80 

percent of the staff and associates are located. One MML division, Applied Chemicals and Materials, is 

located on the NIST Boulder, Colorado, campus. Smaller deployments are scattered across a further four 

sites, including the Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research in Rockville, Maryland; the 

Hollings Marine Laboratory in Charleston, South Carolina; NIST Beamlines at the Brookhaven National 

Laboratory; and the NIST Pacific Islands Program in Oahu, Hawaii. 

MML describes itself as serving as “the Nation’s primary resource for advancing measurements 

essential to the chemical, biological, and materials sciences and related engineering disciplines” to “bring 

focus to the development of exceptional measurement science expertise and capabilities, reference 

products and standards, and data science and data dissemination capabilities.” The work of MML is 

overall subsumed under three scientific and technical goals: (1) measurement science excellence, (2) 

measurement service excellence, and (3) data science and data management capabilities. There are a 

further two goals: (4) strategic partnering and customer engagement and (5) organizational excellence. 

MML is organized into six divisions and two offices. Five of the divisions—Materials Science 

and Engineering, Materials Measurement Science, Biosystems and Biomaterials, Biomolecular 

Measurement, and Chemical Sciences—and the two offices—Office of Data and Informatics and Office 

of Reference Materials and are primarily located on the NIST campus in Gaithersburg, Maryland. The 

sixth division, Applied Chemicals and Materials, is located at the NIST campus in Boulder, Colorado. 

The divisions are focused on research and the offices are focused on measurement services. MML 

identified challenges include aging and outdated building infrastructure and “large” equipment needs and 

uses. 

The Applied Chemicals and Materials Division focuses on creating and maintaining tools to 

measure the properties and structures of fluids and materials of importance to industry, with the goal of 

providing measurement tools and models, as well as critically evaluated data, to a diverse set of 

stakeholders. Their work is designed to support the creation of better products, and, importantly, new and 

improved standards. 

The Biosystems and Biomaterials Division aims to advance measurement science, standards, and 

technology to promote U.S. biosciences and biotechnology, enhance economic security, and improve 

competitiveness of the U.S. bioeconomy, inclusive of increasing the resilience and flexibility of the biosupply chain. The division is also tasked with developing cybersecurity technologies for the unique needs 

of genomic and biomedical-based systems. 

The Biomolecular Measurement Division provides measurement science, technologies, and 

standards for the evaluation of biomolecules, including proteins, oligonucleotides, carbohydrates, lipids, 

metabolites, and complexes including such molecules. Key stakeholders include the pharmaceutical 

community, makers of analytical instruments, and clinical and forensics laboratories. 

The Chemical Sciences Division manufactures and curates standard reference materials; develops 

chemical measurement science and technology, including development and fabrication of standard 

reference instruments; generates and curates standard reference data, including chemical informatics that 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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12 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

are tied to stakeholder needs; and organizes and performs quality assurance tasks. The division is 

motivated by the need for regulatory rigor that is stipulated by legislation, and by industry, which needs 

accurate measurement science in order to be competitive. 

The Materials Measurement Science Division conducts mission-based fundamental research and 

engages in standards production and applied science and engineering. This work enables innovation in 

U.S. industry and addresses measurement science needs of a range of other agency stakeholders. The 

division’s technical work is focused in 6 areas: safety and security, forensics and public health, microand nano-plastics, semiconductors, climate mitigation, and ceramic additive manufacturing. These focus 

areas are centered around core capabilities in multiscale materials characterization, atomic and nanoscale 

metrology, as well as leveraging growing computational science, artificial intelligence, and data science 

expertise. 

The Materials Science and Engineering Division is engaged in the research and development of 

materials measurement science, standards, technology, and data. It supports the NIST MML mission in 

advanced manufacturing, including the Materials Genome Initiative 2.0, additive manufacturing, and 

biomanufacturing. This division also has programs in advanced electronics, circular economy, climate, 

and the environment. 

The Office of Data and Informatics provides leadership and expertise to meet the data needs of 

MML and NIST research data infrastructure. It also provides services to MML and to NIST through its 

expertise, guidance about data science, and the resources it offers in order to enhance the discoverability, 

usability, and interoperability of data. 

The Office of Reference Materials serves a significant and prominent role in translation of NIST 

measurement science to stakeholders. The office’s administrative activities include managing business 

operations, administrative oversight, product sales, and technical support for the NIST standard reference 

material program. Through its responsibility for managing working capital and standards development 

funding, the office has a strong influence in selecting and resourcing the technical work that is developed 

and disseminated. 

OVERARCHING THEMES AND KEY RECOMMENDATIONS 

Facilities and Safety 

As highlighted in prior review reports and more recently in the 2023 National Academies’ report 

Technical Assessment of the Capital Facility Needs of the National Institute of Standards and Technology 

(NASEM 2023; hereafter the “Capital Facility Needs report”), aging facilities and infrastructure present 

significant handicaps. Notably, the report found that NIST research staff spent from 10 to 40 percent of 

their time working around facility shortcomings, with the typical reported values being 20 percent 

(NASEM 2023). Furthermore, NIST researchers are left to mitigate these limitations through repeating 

their work or implementing workarounds with limited research budgets. 

Similar issues became apparent across MML research laboratories at both the Gaithersburg and 

Boulder campuses during this assessment. For instance, current research in Buildings 2 and 24 at Boulder 

is negatively affected by the poor control of temperature and air flow in their laboratories. On the 

Gaithersburg campus, in 2022, aging infrastructure led to serious flooding of MML research laboratories, 

with resultant loss of equipment and lost time. In addition, neither the Gaithersburg nor the Boulder 

facilities have the humidity and temperature control needed for many state-of-the-art measurements, 

which seriously limits output; and laboratory exhaust systems are inadequate for the performance of 

modern materials chemistry related processes. Aging computer systems limit data-sharing and data 

analysis that are critical for MML to achieve its technical goals. Much of the infrastructure, both buildings 

and equipment, has exceeded its expected life, leading to time being spent inefficiently compared to the 

capabilities of state-of-the-art facilities and equipment. While MML research efforts are world-leading, 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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OVERVIEW OF THE MATERIAL MEASUREMENT LABORATORY 13 

aging facilities and infrastructure are such that MML is at the cusp of losing its world-leading position 

and its ability to continue to attract new generations of world-leading researchers. 

Key Recommendation 1: The Material Measurement Laboratory (MML) and the National 

Institute of Standards and Technology Office of Facilities and Property Management 

should work together to identify and document critical laboratory infrastructure issues. 

They should collaborate to prioritize items that need to be addressed and create a plan with 

an associated timeline to address those needs. MML should actively encourage its 

researchers to document facilities issues and all associated time lost repeating experiments, 

and the portion of the research budget spent on working around facility issues. 

The facilities issues observed in the course of this assessment are not only infrastructure issues. 

Critically, they also represent safety issues. With an abundance of electronic equipment, floods can easily 

lead to sparks that can in turn initiate fires; inadequate exhaust will lead to contaminated laboratory air 

that can negatively impact research product quality and in the long term can impact the health of research 

staff. As a whole, aged infrastructure and equipment can have an impact on the overall attitude of the staff 

toward safety. In addition, MML laboratory tours suggested a risk of safety incidents as a result of a 

perception that the risks, in many cases, are minimal. Safety and excellence go together. The Safety 

Pyramid provides a basis for a safe working environment (Prpich and Unnerstall 2022). 

Safety involves an entire organization, including and particularly line management. Managers set 

the tone and monitor the progress against metrics. They participate in safety inspections. They lead 

investigations of incidents and near misses. In so doing they create the environment that ultimately grows 

into a safety culture. Safety is not a grassroots effort, and management needs to do more than establish the 

objectives; managers at all levels needs to recognize their responsibility and accountability for what 

happens at the same organizational intensity level as revenue and productivity targets. Participation in the 

Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s Voluntary Protection Programs might be a useful way 

to approach safety at MML.1

Key Recommendation 2: Safety is as much a line management responsibility as an 

individual one. Leaders should recognize that every task can be done safely, and every task 

has inherent risks. That attitude needs to be transmitted down the line in order for each 

individual to take responsibility for not only maintaining but also improving the safety of 

their environment and the environments of those around them. The Material Measurement 

Laboratory (MML) should maintain statistics of leading indicators of safety risks and 

facilities dangers that represent the base of the safety pyramid. These statistics should be 

socialized within the organization in such a way that a safe and safety-conscious 

environment is created that results in a safety culture that supports continuous 

improvement. MML should consider engaging with experienced industrial partners who 

can bring a fresh perspective on the safety risks as a way of providing an unbiased and 

fresh pair of eyes to the situation.

Portfolio of Scientific Expertise 

As enumerated in Chapters 3 through 10, the MML research staff continue to demonstrate 

impressive productivity in scientific publications, standards interactions, intellectual property activity, and 

customer engagement. Over the past 3 years MML personnel have participated in more than 180 

standards committees with leadership positions in more than 45 of those committees. The strong 

1

 More information about the Voluntary Protection Programs and how to participate can be found at 

Occupational Safety and Health Administration, “Voluntary Protection Programs,” https://www.osha.gov/vpp. 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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14 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

participation of MML personnel on these committees is of critical importance to the NIST mission, 

making it possible for MML to continue its essential role of supporting U.S. industry technology and 

standards needs. The strong support of its industrial stakeholders is shown in part by a significant number 

of cooperative research and development agreements in this review period (259 since the 2020 

assessment) along with an increase in nondisclosure agreements. MML research staff are engaged and 

highly recognized in the scientific community. The record of peer-reviewed publications is impressive. 

Since 2020, MML has produced 1,292 archival journal papers, 74 conference proceedings, 184 interagency reports, 33 workshop reports, and 29 books or book chapters. 

MML appears to have a limited number of mid-career staff, with large numbers of established 

late-career staff. There does not appear to be a clear succession path to bring in newer staff and fold them 

into the work of MML. While MML has no control over, and limited information about, when staff might 

leave, the lack of a succession plan is troublesome. More systematic succession planning may prevent 

gaps from occurring in mission critical areas. Cross-training to provide backup coverage in case the 

primary cognizant scientist leaves is a further way to protect against disruption. Alternatively, retraining 

staff to take on emerging issues requiring different disciplinary knowledge could be considered. 

Also, regarding staffing, support from the centralized human resources office operation could be 

significantly improved. Hiring new administrative and research staff appears inordinately slow, taking up 

to 6 months just to release standard advertisements. Even when the jobs are posted and interviews 

conducted, there are reported instances where a new hire was agreed upon, but the notification letter never 

went out from human resources to the prospective employee. The procedure for hiring federal scientists 

and engineers was not clear to either the postdoctoral and temporary staff or the panel. The availability of 

positions related to MML programs and mission-focused areas appears de-prioritized compared to timelimited, emergent activities like staffing to support the work that NIST will be getting under the CHIPS 

and Science Act of 2022. More timely support from human resources would ease the frustrations of 

existing staff whose progress is hampered by vacancies in administrative support, hiring of postdoctoral 

fellows, or staffing of existing mission areas. 

Over the course of the discussions with postdocs and limited term employees, it became clear that 

pandemic restrictions limited onboarding and other processes that contribute to a cohesive work culture. 

The MML leadership team is actively working to rebuild these processes, although this work is especially 

challenging given the spread of people across buildings and the limited availability of shared public 

spaces. Career mentoring and professional development for the population of term-limited scientific 

appointees appears uneven. The panel also noted an uneven level of formal leadership training among the 

MML staff. 

Key Recommendation 3: The Material Measurement Laboratory (MML) should work with 

National Institute of Standards and Technology human resources to develop effective 

processes and procedures for hiring and career development of staff. Processes to ensure 

timely support to MML in hiring and onboarding of postdocs, term, and permanent 

employees should be developed and implemented. 

Key Recommendation 4: The Material Measurement Laboratory (MML) should require 

mentorship training for all research staff within the laboratory to ensure quality vertical 

mentorship and sponsorship in order to increase the impact of the postdoc and early career 

population both within MML and later in industry, academia, or government positions. 

MML should increase the number of employees who have formal leadership training to 

standardize mentoring and onboarding of new personnel. The training should include a 

formalization of clear mentor and mentee expectations in terms of work, in-person 

meetings, and supervision. MML should consider a standard message about the processes of 

transitioning from a postdoc or term appointee to a permanent staff member, and the 

probability thereof so as to minimize the uncertainty around this process. 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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OVERVIEW OF THE MATERIAL MEASUREMENT LABORATORY 15 

Data Management and Data Infrastructure 

Integral to its mission, MML collects, stores, analyzes, and transmits data in all of its research, 

measurement, standards-making, and dissemination activities. Accordingly, data science represents an 

increasingly important part of the laboratory’s work to meet its mission. Within MML, the Office of Data 

and Informatics is a dedicated, service-oriented data resource for physical sciences with domain expertise 

in biological, chemical, and materials sciences, specializing in large and information-rich data sets. 

MML projects often result in the development of many different computational and theoretical 

methods, which while impressive are performed as part of individual projects. Across MML, data 

collection, storage, analysis, and movement appear to be handled by multiple, fragmented platforms, and 

computational data does not appear to be managed in a centralized platform. In addition, not all of the 

experimental measurement systems have a consolidated and automated data infrastructure, which results 

in a fragmented data infrastructure that unfortunately leads to discrete, inefficient, and stovepiped 

experimental data infrastructure across MML. Often, aging computer systems limit data-sharing and data 

analysis which are critical for MML to achieve its technical goals. There are many instances where old 

computers—year 2000 or older—using outdated operating systems such as Windows XP and Windows 

2000 are in use. Reliance on outdated computing infrastructure could compromise data integrity. 

However, some of the use of older computers is driven by legacy instruments that cannot work with 

newer operating systems. 

To overcome these deficiencies, the Office of Data and Informatics was effective in consolidating 

many vastly different operating systems of discrete sets of measurement equipment into a virtual 

machine. This virtual machine approach unified the measurement equipment operating systems and 

afforded a unified infrastructure for data management infrastructure, use, and security. The virtual 

machine approach may be a practice that could be useful throughout MML as it balances computational 

infrastructure needs with budgetary constraints. 

Key Recommendation 5: To the extent possible, the Material Measurement Laboratory 

should launch an initiative to unify all computational systems, data formats, and data 

transmission protocols into a single, uniform platform for more efficient and effective data 

curation, storage, processing, transmission, and security management. This data science 

initiative could be applied to machine learning deployment and expand capabilities in 

laboratory automation, high-performance computing, and artificial intelligence. Computing 

infrastructure should, to the extent possible, be updated to meet current laboratory 

standards. 

REFERENCES 

NASEM (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine). 2019. Managing the NIH 

Bethesda Campus Capital Assets for Success in a Highly Competitive Global Biomedical 

Research Environment. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. 

https://doi.org/10.17226/25483. 

NASEM. 2023. Technical Assessment of the Capital Facility Needs of the National Institute of Standards 

and Technology. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. 

https://doi.org/10.17226/26684. 

Prpich, G., and R. Unnerstall. 2022. “Translating Industrial Lab Safety Practices to Academia.” Chemical 

Engineering Progress 118(5):29–34. 

 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

16 

3 

Applied Chemicals and Materials Division 

The Material Measurement Laboratory’s (MML’s) Applied Chemicals and Materials Division, 

located in Boulder, Colorado, focuses on creating and maintaining tools to measure the properties and 

structures of fluids and materials important to industry, with the goal of providing measurement tools and 

models, as well as critically evaluated data, to a diverse set of stakeholders. Their work is designed to 

support the creation of better products and importantly, new and improved standards. 

The division is organized into the following five groups, which have the same structure and same 

leadership team as in the fiscal year (FY) 2020 MML review (NASEM 2021): 

 Thermodynamics Research Center 

 Fatigue and Fracture Group 

 Nanoscale Reliability Group 

 Fluid Characterization Group 

 Thermophysical Properties of Fluids Group 

In addition, a briefing on “3D Materials Research”, an effort led by Edward Garboczi, a NIST 

Fellow in the Applied Chemicals and Materials Division headquarters, was presented. 

The work in the Applied Chemicals and Materials Division is extremely broad, focusing on 

measurements and modeling of materials in their gas, liquid, and solid states. The division has two 

somewhat competing demands for its resources. On one hand, they have a responsibility to continue to 

fund and maintain their traditional role as a developer of standards for both the United States and 

international partners. These standards serve very important roles in developing and using materials by 

industry, government, and academic partners. The division, however, has to balance those responsibilities 

with new challenges that arise from the changing needs for measurement science in response to new 

materials systems and new funding sources. 

ASSESSMENT OF TECHNICAL PROGRAMS 

Accomplishments 

The technical work in the Applied Chemicals and Materials Division was all very good to 

excellent, with several new and promising technical advances in metrology science. The mix of technical 

activities is quite broad in topics and consists of a strong mix of ongoing work in NIST’s traditional role 

of providing standard reference materials and standard reference data to industry and other external 

customers combined with new areas of high-impact research and development of new metrology science. 

Here are a few highlighted examples, starting with the work on standard reference materials and data. 

All of the work in standard reference materials and data is very good and has a high impact on 

industries and other users of their work. The Charpy Machine Verification Program each year sells 

standard reference materials to more than 1,900 customers in 73 countries that are used to certify Charpy 

impact test machines for ensuring the quality of steel used in industry and construction. It has a huge 

impact worldwide, bringing in $2.3 million of support for the sample manufacturing and for activities at 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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APPLIED CHEMICALS AND MATERIALS DIVISION 17 

the Applied Chemicals and Materials Division. The Reference Fluid Thermodynamic and Transport 

Properties Standard Reference Data provides thermophysical property data for 140 industrially important 

fluids and their mixtures and is used by tens of thousands of engineers across hundreds of organizations. 

The ThermoData Engine standard reference data set contains tens of thousands of materials, including 

pure compounds, mixtures, and chemical reactions, and underlies process simulation tools used by 

industry. This data set is built by compiling data reported in scientific journals; MML is not generating 

the data, it is finding it and compiling it for community use. One of their challenges, however, is that 

there is significant loss of experimental data owing to incomplete or inaccurate reporting in the journals. 

To address this issue, they have developed a set of principles for Good Reporting Practice for 

Thermophysical and Thermochemical Property Measurements (Bazyleva et al. 2021), which was 

published as an International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry Technical Report. NIST collects fees 

from its users of its thermophysical properties data, which only accounts for about 50 percent of the total 

cost of the program to division. 

Several key advances were made by the Applied Chemicals and Materials Division over the past 

3 years. In metrology science, they developed key instrumentation and applications. The development of 

extreme ultraviolet atom probe tomography, the only one of its kind in the world, will revolutionize the 

chemical characterization of nanoscale structures and interfaces by overcoming the limitations of 

commercially available atom probe tomography instruments. (Most such instruments use high 

temperatures or high electrostatic fields to drive atoms off the surface, which can lead to changes in the 

local atomic structure via diffusion and other mechanisms. Extreme ultraviolet atom probe tomography 

uses a wavelength that drives atoms off the surface with little change in the local structure.) The Fluid 

Characterization Group has pioneered novel uses of nuclear magnetic resonance that enable the 

concurrent determination of composition, pressure, and temperature for vapor, liquid, or combined vapor 

and liquid samples. This nuclear magnetic resonance method is being used, in addition to other 

applications such as sequestering CO2 in cement, to do ground-breaking, in situ vapor-liquid equilibrium 

measurement in which they can measure temperature, pressure, vapor-phase composition and liquidphase composition, which will lead to better thermodynamic models. Making use of a novel method that 

the Fluids Characterization Group previously developed for vapor pressure measurements over six orders 

of magnitude, members of the group have participated in a pilot study measuring tetrahydrocannabinol 

(i.e., THC) in breath aerosols before and after legal-market product inhalation as part of a project to create 

a cannabis breathalyzer in a project funded in part by the Department of Justice. 

Work in the Applied Chemicals and Materials Division has also led to advances in materials for 

use in additive manufacturing. First, standardization of photopolymer additive manufacturing 

technologies will significantly accelerate the adoption of the additive manufacturing of plastics, soft 

materials, and biological materials. Second, division staff discovered a novel fatigue-resistant additive 

manufacturing titanium microstructure and developed an inexpensive process control technique to 

significantly improve fatigue performance, which will enable that alloy to be used in medical device 

applications, such as hip replacements. 

Opportunities and Challenges 

The Fluid Characterization Group has undergone a rather large change in personnel since the FY 

2020 review, losing 7 staff and adding 2 new permanent staff and 3 term staff. To give a sense of the 

significance of this change, the group has 6 permanent staff and 2 associates. It did at the time of the prior 

assessment, too. As part of this change, there was a dramatic change in the makeup of their staff, with all 

of their new staff being chemists, while losing 2 of the four chemical engineers and both of the 

mechanical engineers. Despite these changes, the group remains a small but engaged, highly 

collaborative, productive group conducting and disseminating impactful research. Although small, they 

have made significant advances. However, longer-term program building requires a more stable 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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18 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

workforce. The Fluids Characterization Group will be moving their research to renovated labs in Building 

1, Wing 4. 

The nanoscale reliability team has several legacy projects that are ideally suited to impact the 

upcoming investments through the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022. The team has received advanced 

characterization instrumentation shared with other groups across NIST Boulder (through the precision 

imaging facility), which puts them in an ideal position to lead characterization efforts for projects related 

to the CHIPS Act. The CHIPS Act has the promise of a major source of funds over the next few years. 

Applied Chemicals and Materials Division has hopes of spending $20 million in funds from this act in the 

2024–2025 time frame for purchasing major pieces of equipment, such as scanning electron microscopes 

and transmission electron microscopes. 

Hydrogen-assisted fracture and cracking remains a vexing and poorly understood phenomenon in 

high strength materials such as precipitation-hardened and age-hardening steels, which are essential in the 

oil and fracking industry because of the increased depth of oil and gas wells. The work of the Fatigue and 

Fracture Group at MML contributes greatly to the metals industry as a whole to better understand the 

mechanisms associated with these phenomena with high value for industry. It is not clear how much 

cooperation and support there is from manufacturers of alloy steels that are susceptible to hydrogen 

cracking and if such partnership can be exploited better to grow and expand the program. 

How the Applied Chemicals and Materials Division moves forward and maintains their 

competitiveness, however, is not as clear given that one of their buildings (Building 24) is rated so poorly 

that it would be less expensive to tear it down than renovate. For example, while the Fatigue and Fracture 

Group has unique instrument capabilities (e.g., a million-pound load frame and the hydrogen research 

facility), it is housed in old buildings (including Building 2) without modern support systems and 

features. Reportedly, there have been long standing issues with stable electrical power and chilled water. 

While the chilled water provision is now reportedly working well after major campus level upgrades in 

2022, the electrical power stability remains very problematic and is a site wide issue at NIST-Boulder. 

The temperature control in all three buildings (2, 8, and 12) is also not good and has to be accounted for 

in equipment and experiment design and execution. Even if new buildings are constructed, we were told 

that relocating much of the current equipment will be cost prohibitive and there is a need to couple the 

buildings with investment on new equipment. 

Perhaps the biggest challenge that the Applied Chemicals and Materials Division faces is how to 

continue support for their legacy work in light of the new opportunities arising from the CHIPS Act and 

the recent development of new materials for meeting the challenges of global climate change. As noted 

elsewhere, salary costs at NIST are growing about twice as fast as their base funding, requiring them to 

find new funding just to keep even. How they respond to new initiatives thus becomes of grave concern. 

The Applied Chemicals and Materials Division may have to retire old programs to free up funds for new, 

and highly impactful, work. How the division makes those decisions will be a challenge and when asked, 

they admitted that it is very difficult for them. However, they have relatively recent experience in doing 

this, ending a 20-year program in measuring vapors to find explosives and moving toward the cannabis 

breathalyzer and potentially, breath-based diagnoses of illnesses. What we would have liked to see is a 

plan for how they will make those decisions. 

Recommendation 3-1: The Applied Chemicals and Materials Division should develop a 

process to evaluate the maturity and current and future importance of ongoing projects 

relative to new opportunities to help decide which programs could be cut in effort or retired 

completely. 
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APPLIED CHEMICALS AND MATERIALS DIVISION 19 

ASSESSMENT OF SCIENTIFIC EXPERTISE 

Accomplishments 

The Applied Chemicals and Materials Division possesses a breadth of scientific expertise to 

further the organization’s mission and project objectives as noted below. This expertise adequately 

supports the organization’s technical programs and the organization’s ability to achieve the objectives to 

further the mission of both the division and NIST. 

The division, with 55 scientists—a decrease of 5 percent from the 2020 reporting period—

continues to demonstrate impressive productivity in scientific publications, standards interactions, 

intellectual property activity, and customer engagement. The frequency of publication in archival journals 

continues to average more than 1.3 articles per year per scientist. 

Over the past 3 years Applied Chemicals and Materials Division personnel have participated in 

69 standards committees (an increase of 25 over the 2020 review) with leadership positions in 17 of those 

committees. The strong participation of division personnel on these committees is of critical importance 

to the NIST mission, making it possible for the division to continue its essential role of supporting U.S. 

industry by initiating, evaluating, and maintaining industry standards. The strong support of its industrial 

stakeholders is shown in part by a significant increase in the number of cooperative research and 

development agreements in this review period (46) over that in the 2020 review (13), along with an 

increase in non-disclosure agreements (17 in this review versus 11 in 2020). The staff of the Applied 

Chemicals and Materials Division have also developed a new Research Grade Test Material Reference 

Resin for Photopolymer Additive Manufacturing, which already has 20 material transfer agreements 

completed or in progress. 

A clear measure of the scientific expertise of Applied Chemicals and Materials Division 

researchers is seen with the major advancements in metrology over this review period. A short list of 

those advances includes the development of a pulsed extreme ultraviolet radiation source that greatly 

extends the applicability of atom-probe tomography (patented and licensed); development of a novel 

additive manufacturing microstructure for critical fatigue applications than enables additive-manufactured 

titanium alloys to be used in hip-replacement implants; and an invented measurement approach for in situ 

mechanical measurement for voxel-scale bioprinting and additive manufacturing. 

Finally, members of the Applied Chemicals and Materials Division have received important 

awards from NIST for their work on creating a digital verification program for Charpy standards and from 

the Department of Commerce for increasing cardiac device reliability through improved measurements 

and standards. 

Opportunities and Challenges 

Looking at the demographics of the research staff in the Applied Chemicals and Materials 

Division, there seems to be a gap in the mid-career staff, with large numbers of established late-career 

staff, but with no clear succession path to bring in newer staff and fold them into the division’s work. 

While division has no control on when staff might step down, the lack of a succession plan is 

troublesome. 

The panel met with a group of postdoctoral fellows, associates, and young staff. While some were 

content with the current situation, there were others who raised several concerns, including uncertainty 

about conversions to permanent staff in spite of clear needs, the pay differential between federal 

government scientists and engineers compared to industry, and remote work by mid and senior staff 

members significantly inhibiting postdoc and early career scientist productivity and career advancement. 

In a later question and answer session with the Applied Chemicals and Materials Division director and the 

MML deputy director, these issues were probed. Management described a system of mentoring and 

evaluation of mentors that is part of their yearly assessment. The resulting impression is that neither the 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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20 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

expectations of management nor the expectations of young staff and postdoctoral fellows were being 

consistently met. 

Recommendation 3-2: The Applied Chemicals and Materials Division, and the Material 

Measurement Laboratory broadly, should have a streamlined and standardized mentoring 

plan with suitable evaluation of the mentors. 

BUDGET, FACILITIES, EQUIPMENT, AND HUMAN RESOURCES 

The budget of the Applied Chemicals and Materials Division in FY 2023 was $23.371 million, 

comprising $13.993 million from appropriations, $4.899 million from reimbursable work, and $4.478 

million from providing services and a working capital fund. It has a total of 91 staff, comprising 55 

scientists, 2 technicians, 4 support staff, 1 fellow, and 29 associates. 

Accomplishments 

To carry out its mission, the Applied Chemicals and Materials Division needs onsite access to 

new, state-of-the-art, advanced characterization tools. The division has been successful in finding creative 

solutions (e.g., partnering with other divisions and purchasing equipment from U.S. government surplus 

listings) to not only upgrade their current equipment but to also obtain funding for developing new and 

unique instruments that are not widely available elsewhere (e.g., MML’s extreme ultraviolet atom probe 

tomography instrument and nuclear magnetic resonance to probe the vapor-liquid phase equilibria). 

A glaring issue, which is adequately highlighted in prior review reports, are aging facilities and 

infrastructure, which handicaps the research efforts in the Applied Chemicals and Materials Division. The 

division has been successful, however, in finding funds to renovate laboratory space in the newest 

building, Building 81. They have also found funding and have plans in place to do further renovation in 

Wing 4 of Building 1, with a planned construction start of 2024 or 2025. 

Opportunities and Challenges 

While the appropriated funds from NIST to the Applied Chemicals and Materials Division 

increased by about 9.4 percent since the 2017 review (FY 2016), the Scientist-4 (ZP-IV) midpoint salary 

increased over twice as fast (by more than 20 percent) over the same time period. There is a variety of 

reasons for this. A major driver in salary growth was a market salary survey and resulting upward 

adjustments to MML staff salaries to be more competitive. The disparity between funding growth and 

salary growth means that increased funding from outside projects is required to just maintain the 

division’s budget situation, which has the potential to adversely affect both program development and 

maintaining standards and the ability of the division to move into new areas of research to better meet 

future industrial needs. The panel noted that experienced, and more expensive, PhD-level scientists are 

involved in many routine-seeming tasks related to ongoing activities such as the production of standard 

reference materials and data sets. It might be possible to increase the use of technicians, who are typically 

less expensive, to conduct routine tasks and thereby stretch limited funding further while supporting 

ongoing work and developing new work. 

Given the funding issues just described, it would be good if the Applied Chemicals and Materials 

Division could recover more funds from users who use their products and services. The Charpy program, 

for example, generates about $2 million from external payments, which covers most or all of its costs. 

The division’s standard data products, however, seem to recover only about 50 percent of their costs. 

However, MML contends that the division is charging as much as users would be willing to pay and that 

charging more would result in fewer users for the division’s standard data products. It would seem that a 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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APPLIED CHEMICALS AND MATERIALS DIVISION 21 

detailed market assessment might be a way to assess and maximize the return on the long-term investment 

in generating and maintaining MML’s data-based products. 

Current research in Buildings 2 and 24 is significantly affected by the poor control of temperature 

and air flow in their laboratories. Indeed, Building 24 has been assessed with a facilities condition index 

of –13, indicating that it would be more cost effective to tear down that building and replace it than to 

attempt to renovate it to address the needs of the research conducted in this building. It is worth noting 

that according to the 2023 National Academies report Technical Assessment of the Capital Facility Needs 

of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NASEM 2023), there is a plan in preparation to 

address facility conditions for MML and all of NIST. This plan and associated funding are discussed in 

more detail in Chapter 1 of this report and in the 2023 report. 

Making use of CHIPS Act funding, the Applied Chemicals and Materials Division has an 

aggressive plan to work with the Physical Measurement Laboratory to spend $20 million to substantially 

improve the NIST-Boulder Precision Imaging Facility in the 2024–2025 time frame. The plan includes 

the purchase of new tools, including electron microscopes and focused-ion beams. 

As noted in the FY 2020 MML assessment (NASEM 2021), the Applied Chemicals and Materials 

Division’s dependence on associate staff may lead to potential program continuity issues as the tenure for 

short-term employees ends. The division may not succeed in sustaining additional program growth 

through reliance on increases in future associates. 

Recommendation 3-3: To maximize outcomes from the use of external funds, the Applied 

Chemicals and Materials Division should make greater use of technicians for maintaining 

legacy projects and provide adequate staff time for new initiatives. 

 

Recommendation 3-4: The Applied Chemicals and Materials Division should carry out a 

detailed market assessment to assess and maximize the return on the long-term investment 

in generating and maintaining Material Measurement Laboratory’s’ data-based products. 

EFFECTIVENESS OF DISSEMINATION EFFORTS 

Accomplishments 

The programs at the Applied Chemicals and Materials Division that span emerging topics such as 

photopolymer additive manufacturing and legacy historical needs such as Charpy testing and are largely 

driven by the stakeholder needs. There is significant interaction between the stakeholders and division to 

continuously improve the program outputs to serve the stakeholder needs. 

The Applied Chemicals and Materials Division has been very effective in disseminating its 

outputs in several different ways. Division personnel publish substantially in the open literature, with 229 

papers in archival journals, 18 in conference proceedings, 9 book chapters, and 24 reports during the 

period between the 2020 assessment and this assessment. This amounts to a journal publication rate of 

approximately 1.3 papers per researcher per year. The staff members actively participate in seminars, 

workshops, and conference presentations with 160 invited presentations in the past 3 years. The division 

has worked closely with a variety of organizations, such as the American Society for Testing and 

Materials, the International Organization for Standardization, and the American National Standards 

Institute in developing standards. As noted above, the staff participates in as many as 69 standards 

committees with numerous staff members assuming leadership positions on these committees. 

The Applied Chemicals and Materials Division has also been very successful at disseminating 

their work on standards. Currently there were 21 standard reference material and reference material 

activities and 6 standard reference data activities in the division. There are several notable examples of 

programs driven by stakeholder needs, most notably the Charpy Impact Machine Verification Program 

and the Thermophysical Properties of Fluids Group. The Charpy Impact Machine Verification Program 
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22 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

sells 17 distinct standard reference materials and provides associated services to more than 1,900 

customers in 73 countries to enable certification of the Charpy Impact Test Machines used to ensure that 

the steel produced is in compliance with American Society for Testing and Materials and International 

Organization for Standardization standards. It has remained the leading NIST standard reference material 

year after year. The division’s Reference Fluid Thermodynamic and Transport Properties standard 

reference data database has 1,423 annual licenses and is a go-to source of thermophysical property data 

for the refrigeration, natural gas, aerospace, and other industries. This program calculates the 

thermodynamic and transport properties of 140 industrially important fluids and their mixtures and is 

used by tens of thousands of engineers across hundreds of organizations for product and process design. 

The NIST Standard Reference Database 103b (the ThermoData Engine) contains original thermodynamic 

experimental data collected from archival scientific journals for ~29,000 pure compounds, ~75,000 binary 

mixtures, ~24,000 ternary mixtures, and ~8,200 chemical reactions with a total of more than 8,000,000 

individual data points. 

The Applied Chemicals and Materials Division has focused on engaging with their customers 

through a variety of activities, including hosting 18 focused workshops, developing 46 cooperative 

research and development agreements, 18 material transfer agreements, 17 nondisclosure agreement, 11 

interagency agreements, 2 memoranda of understanding, and 4 consortia over the past 3 years. These 

mechanisms allow the division to monitor the use and impact of the program outputs. 

The Applied Chemicals and Materials Division has been awarded 1 patent with 7 additional 

invention disclosures and patent applications over the past 3 years. 

Overall, the Applied Chemicals and Materials Division does an excellent job of disseminating its 

output to all stakeholders. 

Opportunities and Challenges 

While the Applied Chemicals and Materials Division has created significant impact with key 

standard reference data and standard reference materials, it needs to, as much as feasible, increase 

revenues from those products so it can better fund these activities, which would enable the division to 

explore both new solutions to its ongoing work and new programs focused on the changing needs for 

alternative materials. 

REFERENCE 

Bazyleva, A., J. Abildskov, A. Anderko, et al. 2021. Good Reporting Practice for Thermophysical and 

Thermochemical Property Measurements (IUPAC Technical Report). 

https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/pac-2020-0403/html. 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

23 

4 

Biosystems and Biomaterials Division 

The Biosystems and Biomaterials division is tasked with advancing measurement science, 

standards, and technology to promote U.S. biosciences and biotechnology, enhance economic security, 

and improve competitiveness of the U.S. bioeconomy. This includes increasing the resilience and 

flexibility of the bio-supply chain. They have also been tasked with developing cybersecurity 

technologies for the unique needs of genomic and biomedical-based systems. There are four main 

research areas: regenerative medicine and advanced therapies, precision medicine, engineering biology, 

and microbial metrology. Research groups collaborate extensively with each other to accomplish the 

goals of the division. They also collaborate with and disseminate results to outside groups including 

industry, academia, federal agencies, and standards developing organizations. 

In April 2023, based on the data that were presented to this panel, the division had 106 staff, 

including 55 scientists, 36 associates, and 8 technicians. This group is diverse in its scientific 

backgrounds—including chemistry, biology, engineering, and statistics—as well as in its gender makeup 

and age range. Postdoctoral fellows, term-limited appointees, and visiting students also regularly bring in 

new ideas and contribute significantly to the division’s mission. Over this review period, individuals in 

the division have earned 12 Department of Commerce and National Institute of Standards and 

Technology (NIST) awards, and 2 external awards (Outstanding Young Scientist Award from Maryland 

Science Center, and the Dirks Prize in Molecular Programming from the California Institute of 

Technology [Caltech]) in recognition of individual contributions to science. 

The division is supported by a $24.6 million budget, comprising appropriations ($20.9 million), 

funds from interagency agreements ($3.4 million) and additional funds ($306,000) for service work. The 

division also receives episodic and term-limited funding for specific work, such as that related to the 

COVID-19 pandemic. 

The division’s products include measurement science data and protocols, which are disseminated 

in publications, reference materials and reference data. Overall, during the review period the Biosystems 

and Biomaterials Division has published more than 95 peer-reviewed articles, organized 26 conference 

proceedings, and presented their research in 118 invited presentations. In regard to stakeholder 

engagement, the division has more than 150 partnership agreements including 4 large consortia and has 

participated in 22 workshops to develop and disseminate information. They have developed 22 standards 

and reference materials and received 4 patents, with 3 additional applications filed. 

ASSESSMENT OF TECHNICAL PROGRAMS 

Accomplishments 

The division is currently divided into four main research areas: regenerative medicine and 

advanced therapies, precision medicine, engineering biology, and microbial metrology. There is strong 

collaboration and sharing of resources and expertise between personnel associated with each of these 

areas. Overall, it was clear that the division was highly accomplished during this review period despite the 

restrictions owing to the COVID-19 pandemic. The research overall, as demonstrated in numerous highquality publications and invited talks (see the section “Effectiveness of Dissemination Efforts” below), is 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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24 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

extremely rigorous and forward-thinking. The technical program organization and the cross-cutting nature 

of the groups, and the high quality of the research products are well aligned to support the division in 

reaching its overall goals in the quickly changing field of biometrology. 

The Regenerative Medicine and Advanced Therapies Program is integral to developing standards 

for the growing bioeconomy. They have developed numerous standards published by the International 

Organization for Standardization (ISO), including the development of a common biotechnology genome 

editing vocabulary to improve communication between stakeholders. They oversee the Genome Editing, 

Flow Cytometry Standards, and Rapid Microbial Testing Methods consortia. They have developed 

methods to evaluate the quality of gene delivery systems, infectious virus titer measurements, and are 

working on extracellular vesicle characterization and reference materials. The standards developed for 

gene delivery systems are integral to increasing confidence in the CRISPR (Clustered Regularly 

Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) era of genetic modifications for use in clinical and experimental 

research. 

The Flow Cytometry Standards consortium is a particularly successful public-private partnership 

to increase the confidence and comparability in flow cytometry data to support the bioeconomy. This 

consortium has developed calibration standards, standard operating procedures to ensure comparability 

between different cytometer platforms and is developing a global filename convention for data 

dissemination. The Rapid Microbial Testing Methods consortium has enabled new characterization of 

existing materials, including flow-based methods to quantify genomes and feasibility studies of E. coli

reference materials. They have also worked to develop and encourage the adoption of reference standards 

across more than nine parameters of cell function. The Regenerative Medicine and Advanced Therapies 

Group has also created an open access tool (the Counting Method Evaluation Tool, known widely as 

COMET1

) to analyze the performance of cell counting methods based on an ISO standard. The group also 

significantly contributed to the development of this ISO standard. This research team has also developed 

new microscopy and spectroscopy techniques to improve stem cell throughput and capabilities through 

liquid media. 

The Precision Medicine Program is tasked with identifying and developing the infrastructure to 

ensure that measurement methods and materials give reproducible results for personalized healthcare. In 

the period covered by this assessment report, this research area has published 10 papers to develop 

benchmarks and best practices and collaborated to evaluate and improve methods with 14 papers. They 

have developed intensity scales for microscopy and a strong evaluation tool of flow cytometers for 

industrial and academic use. This group also runs the Genome In A Bottle consortium, which has 

characterized variants in 7 human genomes, developed open consent cell lines to meet clinical needs, and 

is developing an artificial intelligence model to improve confidence. This consortium improves 

confidence in genome sequencing and variant calling. More than 50 commercial products are available 

based on Genome In A Bottle Personal Genome Project cell lines. Precision Medicine researchers also 

support the Pangenome Reference consortium to further understand the normal and abnormal diversity of 

the human genome. They are collaborating to develop somatic variant reference samples in order to 

support the validation of next-generation sequencing of cancer biomarkers for diagnostics. Cancer 

biomarker reference materials are being developed to improve clinical measurements through 

interlaboratory studies. The liquid biopsy cancer biomarker project operates under an interagency 

agreement with the National Institutes of Health (specifically the National Cancer Institute) to improve 

standards of extracellular vesicle measurements, circulating tumor DNA measurements, and DNA 

methylation measurements. 

The Engineering Biology Program is focused on developing measurement tools and standards to 

support the control and design of biological functions. This includes living measurement systems, which 

are focused on growth, manipulation, sample preparation, and measurement of engineered microbes, and 

systems designed to improve the consistency of biological research and development. They are currently 

1

 For more information, see Standards Coordinating Body, “NIST Develops Cell Counting Method Evaluation 

Tool (COMET),” https://www.standardscoordinatingbody.org/release-comet. 
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BIOSYSTEMS AND BIOMATERIALS DIVISION 25 

focused on three main goals: biological sensors, biological computation, and development of a chassis. 

The chassis refers to a cell-free biological system to use as a testbed of protein synthesis. They have 

developed a living measurement systems foundry to increase the consistency and throughput of biological 

systems development. This is designed to be an automated system to improve throughput and 

consistency. 

The Microbial Metrology Program is focused on the human microbiome as a target for 

diagnostics and therapeutics. Biosurveillance has particular importance in the post-COVID era. This 

group has hosted workshops on standards for microbiome research and biosurveillance. The 

biosurveillance group within the microbial metrology research area has partnered with the Defense 

Advanced Research Projects Agency to develop pathogen detection within samples containing large 

numbers of microbes. Wastewater surveillance allows diagnostics throughout larger regions of 

communities. They developed an Mpox2

 virus assay and positive controls. Considering that the first and 

second Food and Drug Administration–approved microbiome therapeutics have been approved within the 

past 2 years, the need for standards has increased. This group has created the human fecal reference 

material to develop diagnostic standards. 

Challenges and Opportunities 

Building on the current success of all research areas within the division, but especially the 

engineering biology and microbiome areas, there is an opportunity to further develop standards and 

reference materials in the area of biotechnology for agricultural use (clean energy and food 

sustainability). This would further the division’s broad goals to support the growing bioeconomy and 

promote customer outreach to an even broader set of academic and industry stakeholders (see the section 

“Effectiveness of Dissemination Efforts” below).

ASSESSMENT OF SCIENTIFIC EXPERTISE 

Accomplishments 

The Biosystems and Biomaterials Division is a recognized leader in biometrology within the 

United States and internationally. This is demonstrated by the division’s leadership in standards 

development, particularly in the area of advanced therapeutics which has led to more than 40 ISO 

standards; leading in a number of NIST consortia (Genome In A Bottle, Flow Cytometry Standards, 

Genome Editing, and Rapid Microbial Testing Methods); and publications in high-quality journals. 

The four programmatic research areas have continued from the past review period: engineering 

biology, regenerative medicine and advanced therapies, precision medicine, and microbial metrology. 

Expertise in each of these areas is deep, and well aligned to promote the division’s objectives. In 

engineering biology, expertise has centered around supporting the transition of engineering biological 

systems from a costly, laborious, trial-and-error approach to a routine, automated, design-build-test-learn 

workflow. Expertise in the Regenerative Medicine and Advanced Therapies Group allows the researchers 

to provide measurement infrastructure and platform technologies, as well as standards to promote 

manufacturing innovation, improve supply chain resilience, and support characterization and testing to 

facilitate regulatory approval of advanced therapeutics. In precision medicine, expertise has focused on 

supporting the identification, validation, and accurate measurement of biomarkers, especially for cancer 

diagnosis and treatment. Expertise in the Microbial Metrology Group allows the researchers to provide 

complex reference materials and measurement capabilities to support a wide range of industrial activities, 

including microbial therapeutics to treat disease, soil probiotics that enable more robust agricultural 

processes, novel approaches to biofuel production, and bioremediation and carbon capture for the 

2

 Mpox is the new name for monkeypox. 
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26 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

environment and climate. Moreover, the focus of the researchers in each area on a subset of use cases or 

“test-beds” (e.g., Chinese Hamster Ovaries cells and specific viral vectors for genetic modification) helps 

to unify the division’s research teams and encourage knowledge sharing among research teams. 

Through these consortia, the division team has developed reference standards, innovative and 

reliable reference methods, benchmark sets, data, publications, and harmonized lexicons. The division’s 

work has been recognized by numerous awards by the Department of Commerce and NIST awards, 

including 4 Department of Commerce Gold Medals. In addition, the division’s impact has been 

recognized by several external awards, including the Outstanding Young Scientist Award from Maryland 

Science Center, and the Dirks Prize in Molecular Programming from Caltech. 

Since 2020, the groups in Biosystems and Biomaterials Division continue to grow in national 

prominence in the areas of both mammalian and microbial biologics. During this review period, the 

division’s programs have supported the development of the Executive Order on Advancing 

Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Innovation for a Sustainable, Safe, and Secure American 

Bioeconomy (Executive Order 14081), the National Biodefense Strategy, and associated research and 

development strategy documents. The division has built cutting-edge expertise in robotic platforms for 

bioassays and biomanufacturing to accelerate productivity. The division’s success in enhanced group 

activities stems from efficient integration of staff among the groups and the use of modular and flexible 

capabilities (such as a new modular laboratory currently used for cell expansion). This integrated 

structure allows the division to remain flexible to meet unexpected demands on their expertise, such as 

the COVID-19 pandemic, where they helped produce a SARS-CoV-2 polymerase chain reaction 

reference-grade testing material (led by the Biomolecular Measurement Division) and ISO standards on 

SARS-CoV-2 testing. Another laudable example is that the division’s staff was able to use their collective 

expertise and creative redeployment of resources to produce a Mpox DNA standard within 30 days in 

response to this emerging health threat. 

Opportunities 

Notably, during this review period, the Biosystems and Biomaterials Division has paired 

extensively with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) to 

build on JPL’s capabilities to provide a well-architected data management environment (LabCAS/LIMS) 

to support the capture, curation, management, distribution, and analysis of data science activities within 

the division. This work is currently using the JPL cyberinfrastructure for several test cases within the 

Biosystems and Biomaterials Division. Data curation and analysis is of utmost importance for further 

analysis of results from biosystems, biomanufacturing, and bioassays to direct the future of these fields 

over the next 5–10 years. Given the importance of this capacity across the division, there is an 

opportunity to further build (1) expertise in the division and (2) data management capacity within the 

division by both continuing existing programs such as the JPL partnership, as well as continue to partner 

with data scientists at NIST and externally to develop a cohesive data management plan for all data 

gathered within the division.

BUDGET, FACILITIES, EQUIPMENT, AND HUMAN RESOURCES 

Accomplishments 

The division’s leadership works with the six group leaders who oversee the five groups of the 

division (Complex Microbial Systems, Biomarkers and Genomics Sciences, Biomaterials, Cell Systems 

Science, and Cellular Engineering). Personnel in these five subgroups in turn are deployed as needed 

within the division’s four programmatic research areas (or research groups) listed in previous sections. 

Although most groups have a single leader, the Biomarkers and Genomics Sciences Subgroup is co-led 

by a team of two leaders. The division leader has been very strategic in deployment of resources to have 
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BIOSYSTEMS AND BIOMATERIALS DIVISION 27 

maximal impact. The chief and deputy chief have fostered a climate of open discussion necessary for the 

highest level of work and cultivated a very enthusiastic staff. A pathway to promotion from lab technician 

to team leader and flexible work options within the division has enabled the retention of talent. 

The Biosystems and Biomaterials Division has been very proactive in the incorporation of 

automated liquid handling and other robotics platforms into work routines. The division has an AIenabled Living Measurements Systems Foundry and Prototype Cell Assay Measurement Platform. These 

automated systems aid in reproducible, higher throughput quantitative sample preparation and 

measurements of complex living systems and processes. 

Challenges and Opportunities 

The division is supported by a $24.6 million budget. This support comes from appropriations 

($20.9 million), funds from interagency agreements ($3.4 million), and additional funds for service work 

($306,000). The division also receives episodic and time-limited funding for specific programs such as 

those related to the COVID-19 pandemic. During this review period, the Biosystems and Biomaterials 

Division’s programs have supported the development of standards related to COVID-19 and Mpox 

outbreaks, the development of the Executive Order on Advancing Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing 

Innovation for a Sustainable, Safe, and Secure American Bioeconomy (Executive Order 14081), the 

National Biodefense Strategy, and associated research and development strategy documents. However, 

despite this growing demand for the division’s expertise, the overall budget has decreased in inflationadjusted support since the past review in 2020. 

Recommendation 4-1: Owing to increasing demands on the unit resulting from new 

bioeconomy initiatives, the Material Measurement Laboratory should prioritize allocations 

to the Biosystems and Biomaterials Division within budgetary constraints to ensure 

adequate support and the Biosystems and Biomaterials Division should continue to 

prioritize its efforts mindful of its limited budget. 

The division works in laboratories spread across two buildings on the NIST campus in 

Gaithersburg, Maryland. The groups work closely together yet are physically located in separate 

locations. This separation slows down the work physically (requiring moving of samples a 15-minute or 

more walk each way), as well as slowing idea transfer. Moreover, the state of these buildings has been 

well described in the 2023 report Technical Assessment of the Capital Facility Needs of the National 

Institute of Standards and Technology (NASEM 2023). Room temperatures vary from too hot to too cold 

such that the reliability of modern scientific equipment and measurements is imperiled. Humidity and 

power control are also too variable for consistent operation of sensitive equipment, such as lasers. 

Recommendation 4-2: The Material Measurement Laboratory leadership should evaluate 

space allocations to co-locate the Biosystems and Biomaterials Division in a single building 

with adequate temperature, humidity, and power control for continuous instrument 

function. 

The pandemic restrictions did limit onboarding processes and other processes that contribute to a 

cohesive work culture. The division’s leadership team is actively working to rebuild these processes, 

although this work is especially challenging given the spread of people across buildings and the lack of 

shared public spaces like the cafeteria. Career mentoring and professional development for the population 

of postdoctoral fellows and other term-limited scientific appointees is uneven. The path to employment 

within NIST or within its corporate and academic partners or elsewhere is not clear to many of these 

appointees. Increased mentor training within this population (for horizontal mentorship) and within the 

division overall (for vertical mentorship and sponsorship) would increase the impact of this population 
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28 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

both within NIST and later in industry, academia, or government positions. A larger strategy consistent 

with the mission of NIST would be to partially fund NIST postdoctoral fellows in laboratories of 

stakeholders such as industry, academic, and agency partners in areas of needed expertise development 

for the division, with the expectation that they would spend time within both NIST laboratories and the 

partner institution. This practice would enhance collaborations, the cross-fertilization of knowledge, and 

broader awareness of the work of the Biosystems and Biomaterials Division. 

Recommendation 4-3: The Biosystems and Biomaterials Division leadership should require 

mentorship training for all laboratory employees and increase the number of employees 

who have formal leadership training to standardize mentoring and onboarding of new 

personnel and to make career development opportunities more uniform. 

EFFECTIVENESS OF DISSEMINATION EFFORTS 

Accomplishments 

The Biosystems and Biomaterials Division has been very active in disseminating its protocols, 

materials, and expertise. It has maintained robust participation in national and international consortia and 

national and international working groups through the pandemic years. It is clearly recognized around the 

world. Since the past review in 2020, the division has published almost 100 peer-reviewed articles in 

high-impact journals, published 5 books or book chapters, given 118 invited presentations at conferences, 

and contributed to a dozen workshop reports. The division has actively engaged the industrial community 

and others through 22 workshops, 91 cooperative research and development agreements, and almost 60 

material and data transfer agreements. They also participate actively in four consortia, including the Flow 

Cytometry Standards Consortium and the NIST Rapid Microbial Testing Methods Consortium that was 

launched in June 2020. Four patents have been issued (two in 2020 and two in 2022) and 3 patent 

applications were filed in 2022.

The division is proactive in maintaining an international presence through participation on 22 

standards committees (including 8 leadership positions) and the development of 1 standard reference data 

product, 1 research grade test material, and 22 standard reference materials. This work is critical for the 

development and the success of the biotechnology industry. The U.S. Technical Advisory Group to the 

ISO Technical Committee 276 (which works on Biotechnology), along with the NIST-administered U.S. 

Mirror Committee, has published more than 50 documentary standards to support biomanufacturing and 

biotechnology. A living reference material for certain yeast cells was developed to support the 

Department of Homeland Security’s efforts to benchmark the detection and quantification of microbes. 

The Biosystems and Biomaterials Division was also instrumental in developing a SRM (standard 

reference material) (SRM 2917) in collaboration with the Environmental Protection Agency to estimate 

total fecal pollution and the sources of this type of pollution in water. The Mpox outbreak led to the 

production of a positive control material (RGTM 10223) to assess Mpox diagnostic kits. This division is 

very responsive to the development of standards and protocols needed to drive assay development within 

government and for-profit organizations. 

Challenges and Opportunities 

The Biosystems and Biomaterials Division maintains exceptionally strong networks of 

stakeholders and collaborators including other NIST units, other government entities, industry, and 

academic institutions. These networks contribute to the very strong technical programs and scientific 

capabilities of the division. The challenge will be to continue to expand these assets sustainably to 

contribute to the bioeconomy across industries from health to energy, and from chemicals to agriculture. 

The division has the opportunity to actively reach out to an even broader set of academic institutions 
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BIOSYSTEMS AND BIOMATERIALS DIVISION 29 

across broader geographic areas of the United States to further promote the dissemination of the 

division’s products and capabilities. Such broader geographic outreach is particularly important to reach 

more stakeholders involved in the growing number of bioeconomy initiatives. In addition, NIST also 

offers very good incentives for the filing of patents, but many staff are not aware of them. There is 

therefore an opportunity to increase awareness for all staff, including new arrivals, about the process and 

outcomes of filing patents through NIST.
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30 

5 

Biomolecular Measurement Division 

The Biomolecular Measurement Division provides measurement science, technologies, and 

standards for the evaluation of biomolecules, including proteins, oligonucleotides, carbohydrates, lipids, 

metabolites, and complexes including such molecules. Key stakeholders include the pharmaceutical 

community, makers of analytical instruments, and clinical and forensics laboratories. The core 

competencies are built around methods for biomolecular measurements including mass spectrometry, 

mass spectrometry data analysis and library development, separations, biophysical methods, capillary 

electrophoresis, polymerase chain reaction techniques, genome sequencing, and production and validation 

of standard research materials and research-grade material standards. 

The key focus areas of programmatic activity in the Biomolecular Measurement Division include 

mass spectrometry to support other projects and Reference Library expansion, forensics (genetics and 

drugs of abuse), clinical analyses (protein and nucleic acid markers), and biotherapeutics 

(biomanufacturing and engineering biology). The 77 federal employees and 25 associates in the 

Biomolecular Measurement Division are divided into five groups: the Mass Spectrometry Data Center, 

the Biomolecular Structure and Function Group, the Bioanalytical Science Group, the Applied Genetics 

Group, and the Bioprocess Monitoring Group. These groups seem to interact seamlessly within and 

externally to division to achieve the goals of each program area. For this reason, the following discussion 

is organized by program area and not research group. 

Between April 2020 and March 2023, the Biomolecular Measurement Division published 135 

papers, 4 workshop reports, 22 data sets, and 3 databases of standardized analytical measurements. Four 

patent applications have been issued, and most of these are licensed. They produced 20 standard reference 

materials and reference materials, 3 standard reference data sets, and 2 research-grade test materials. The 

division staff serve on 25 standard committees and 19 working groups—12 of these in leadership 

positions. The balance of activities includes basic science related to technology development (e.g., dyes 

for protein sequencing, sub-zero chromatography for hydrogen/deuterium exchange-mass spectrometry, 

and artificial intelligence for tandem mass spectrometry peptide identification), customer-driven projects, 

and mission-oriented product development. 

The breadth and depth of the projects is impressive. The following analyses are not exhaustive, 

but endeavor to distill the observations from 2 days of tours, the read-ahead materials provided to the 

panel, and the members’ expertise and experience to recognize excellence, offer suggestions for 

possibilities to increase staff productivity, and provide pertinent examples. 

ASSESSMENT OF TECHNICAL PROGRAMS 

The technical programs are focused on developing processes and information relevant to the 

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) mission. There are only a few examples of 

research that could be considered as basic, and that work seemed to be very targeted toward solving 

specific problems in the program areas through technology improvements. While this type of work is 

useful, seed projects involving research potentially relevant for meeting more long-term mission needs 

would be important for the Material Measurement Laboratory (MML) to pursue, if not already in 

progress. None were presented to us. 
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BIOMOLECULAR MEASUREMENT DIVISION 31 

The work under way in response to stakeholder needs and in support of the NIST mission focus 

areas was quite impressive. The research addressed both the fundamental challenges in measurements 

relevant for major areas important to our society—with impact both nationally and globally, building 

consortia with customers, and providing high quality measurement processes and standards. Below are 

short comments about each of these areas. 

Mass Spectrometry 

The technical approach that the Biomolecular Measurement Division is taking to develop mass 

spectrometry libraries is world class. They are selecting molecules to be added to the libraries through a 

process based on the potential of the data to help address important societal problems. The selection of 

compounds to be analyzed is based on an algorithm the group developed, taking into account commercial 

availability, cost of the compound, and the national need for the information (e.g., chemicals in plastics, 

designer drugs, or food allergens). The compounds they purchase must be more than 90 percent pure prior 

to initiating the careful mass spectrometry required for addition of a new molecule to the library. The 

compounds and fragmentation profiles are then vetted, and peaks are assigned by scientists. The 

objectives of the group are clear, and productivity is exemplary in this program area, as illustrated by the 

addition of more than 40,000 compounds to the existing mass spectrometry spectral libraries, even 

through the COVID-19 pandemic. The staff engaged in this program area are efficient and highly 

productive. 

The new Biomolecular Measurement Division hair peptide analysis technique was developed as 

part of MML’s forensics initiative and is designed to identify specific individuals; it is also scientifically 

impressive. The group exploited the mutations of specific hair proteins, one being keratin, and 

demonstrated the discrimination between individuals in terms of subtle variations in proteins. This 

capability is unique in that a hair strand is one sample and cannot be contaminated by DNA from other 

individuals (unlike many samples used for DNA analysis). This technique is quite robust and may even 

differentiate between hairs from identical twins. The results are outstanding, and the staff is encouraged to 

further validate and bolster their findings for this potential paradigm shift in forensic analysis using mass 

spectrometry. 

The mass spectrometry project to support the circular economy mission through plastic recycling 

made impressive use of liquid chromatography mass spectrometry. The staff in the mass spectrometry 

program area are building a library of spectra of plastic components by extracting polymeric subunits and 

additives out of the plastic for careful analysis. This program area may benefit from the integration of 

other analytical techniques (e.g., Raman spectroscopy), simultaneously building a library with spectra 

from both methods. This would allow for simple spectroscopy methods, such as Raman spectroscopy, to 

be employed in the field while coupling the field methods to the more precise liquid chromatographymass spectrometry data acquired in a center of excellence. 

The development of the NIST Urine Albumin Standard Reference Material 2925 now provides 

for global standardization of this critical marker in the urine. Presently, clinical laboratories—with Food 

and Drug Administration–approved diagnostic methods—can differ from one another by more than 40 

percent in concentration measurements. This variability is significant as there are clinical guidelines that 

supply urine albumin cutoff values for the diagnosis of chronic kidney disease. MML will partner with 

external laboratories to develop reference measurement procedures using the albumin standard reference 

material for calibration. This global standardization of urine albumin measurements will enable consistent 

chronic kidney disease diagnosis across the world. Once the standardization system is in place, the staff in 

this program area are prepared to disseminate the information through publications and promotions to the 

health care community. This program area is partnered with the International Federation of Clinical 

Chemistry, the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, and the Joint 

Committee for Traceability in Laboratory Medicine to achieve this mission. The Biomolecular 
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32 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

Measurement Division is addressing an important problem with this albumin standard and its continued 

collaborations with external partners. 

Forensics 

The Applied Genetics Group is a recognized leader in the forensic community. Their research on 

the statistical interpretation of DNA mixtures, use and validation of DNA sequence-based genetic loci, 

and introduction of novel peptide variant markers (discussed in the previous section) is high-quality and 

will be used to support forensic stakeholders such as law enforcement laboratories and the U.S. legal 

system. The applied genetics technical programs focus on meeting national goals by supporting current 

legacy technologies as well as providing standard reference materials and validating processes to be used 

with newly emerging technologies such as the next generation sequencing of forensically relevant genetic 

loci. They currently use next generation sequencing to analyze specific areas of the genome associated 

with ancestry, kinship, visible phenotypes, and personal identification. Additionally, forensic scientists 

have used whole-genome technologies to lay the foundation for forensic investigative genetic genealogy, 

which generates leads for unsolved violent crimes or the identification of missing persons. The 

laboratories are well equipped with the requisite instrumentation typically used in conventional forensic 

laboratories; Access to whole-genome sequencing equipment, which is finding significant utility in stateof-the-art laboratories, is only available through an external source. This is adequate for now, but plans 

for obtaining newer generation, lower cost equipment need to be considered as such equipment becomes 

more commercially available and used more broadly. 

The standard reference materials produced by the Applied Genetics Group are used routinely by 

forensic laboratories for the quantitative and qualitative measurement of genetic markers. This group is 

revising their standard reference materials based on stakeholder needs as more genetic markers are being 

developed for forensics. This is demonstrated by the 2023 revision and implementation of Standard 

Reference Material 2391d, a polymerase chain reaction-based DNA Profiling Standard, by adding more 

than 11,000 additional genetic markers to it. Furthermore, they are in the process of developing a research 

reference material that will be used for interlaboratory studies relevant to the analysis of samples 

including mixtures of DNA from multiple individuals. 

Clinical Analyses Using Protein and Nucleic Acid Markers 

The research and development efforts in this area have focused on exhaustive development of 

methods for analyzing IgG and RNA. The RNA efforts produced usable standard materials for SARSCoV-2 and Mpox in amazingly short time frames, demonstrating the skill and responsiveness of the staff 

to meet critical national and international needs. The methods used to analyze these molecules are widely 

applicable to other important proteins and nucleic acids. There is also some excellent underlying research 

that is important for analyzing particulates used in plastics recycling and therapeutics that will be relevant 

for both the circular economy project and biotherapeutic product manufacturing. 

Biotherapeutics, Biomanufacturing, and Engineering Biology 

The focus in this program area leveraged the availability of the NIST monoclonal antibody (NIST 

mAb) and the NIST Chinese Hamster Ovaries cell line that produces the monoclonal antibody to validate 

protein manufacturing processes and products. These are great tools, and both are and will continue to be 

important standards. Furthermore, the group developing these standards appreciates their value for 

education. For example, the NIST Chinese Hamster Ovaries cells can be put through bench-scale 

fermentation procedures to produce antibodies in teaching laboratories with minimal facilities 

development—a very powerful tool for workforce development, especially when coupled with metrics for 

the processes and their products. The research staff is interested in developing new tools for 
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BIOMOLECULAR MEASUREMENT DIVISION 33 

biomanufacturing and bioprocess monitoring but does not possess much expertise outside of their current 

analytical methods, most of which are too expensive or impractical for implementation in a large-scale 

biomanufacturing operation. Thus, the staff’s focus on providing information from high-resolution 

systems that can validate lower resolution data in processing operations makes sense. 

The staff in this program area has developed simulations for overall biotherapeutic product 

stability and manufacturing quality control. This cutting-edge approach was achieved by combining 

nuclear magnetic resonance, electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy, small-angle X-ray scattering, 

small-angle neutron scattering, and hydrogen/deuterium exchange mass spectrometry techniques to 

validate the simulations. These approaches are on the forefront of biomanufacturing technologies and 

definitely position the team to lead these efforts in the field. 

ASSESSMENT OF SCIENTIFIC EXPERTISE 

The Biomolecular Measurement Division has a deep pool of knowledgeable scientific staff. This 

pool includes chemists, physicists, data and computer scientists, life and biological scientists, and forensic 

scientists. This matrixed expertise has produced world-class results and assisted the United States in 

staying at the forefront of biomolecular measurements. The expertise at NIST supports the technical 

programs well, meeting deadlines and achieving the overall goals for the organization and its 

stakeholders. 

Mass Spectrometry 

In terms of mass spectrometry, based on the presentations the panel received, tours, and 

interactions with the staff, MML definitely has a group that is world-class. The mixture of mass 

spectrometrists and data and computer scientists is particularly strong. The mass spectroscopy reference 

library is supplied, along with periodic updates that include expanded analyses, with spectrometers sold 

by most major suppliers and are critical to analytical laboratories worldwide. Thus, this product makes a 

major contribution to NIST’s international reputation. In addition, the mass spectrometry group develops 

new methods for analytics that pushes the capabilities for molecular analysis at the cutting edge. 

Forensics 

The Biomolecular Measurement Division has a portfolio of scientists that are considered leaders 

in the global forensic genetics community and are well recognized in the field through their publications, 

presentations, and workshops. The applied genetics scientists support the organization’s mission by 

providing best methods to interpret data through focused research on rapid DNA analysis, mixture 

interpretation, development of novel genetic markers, validation studies of new instrumentation and 

forensic genetic test kits, and coordination of interlaboratory studies associated with measurement of 

genetic data. The scientists support the division’s mission by improving the legacy standard reference 

materials to include new genetic loci and systems. An area that could potentially use more expertise is the 

application of genomic techniques, particularly in the area of forensic investigative genetic genealogy, as 

this technology becomes increasingly accessible and moves into forensics laboratories. This expertise 

could be gained through collaboration with other NIST divisions supporting human genome science, 

especially the Biosystems and Biomaterials Division. 

Clinical Analyses Using Protein and Nucleic Acid Markers 

The research staff have the expertise to use a wide variety of analytical methods to evaluate 

protein and nucleic acid biomarkers. The choice of problems on which the staff focus is largely driven by 
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34 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

their responsiveness to big companies or industry-government consortia, demonstrating that the staff are 

very responsive to national needs in biomanufacturing. The two standard methods for assessing albumin 

in urine (mentioned above) were developed in response to stakeholder requests. The same is true for the 

standards under development for diagnosing food allergens (a growing area). The development of 

standards for RNA identification from viruses of immediate concern (e.g., SARS-CoV-2 and Mpox) 

showed how fast and how well the staff can produce vital results, giving high credibility to their expertise. 

The exploration of methods for analyzing extracellular vesicles and nanoparticles is a developing area that 

will be extremely important in the future as these types of therapeutics are expanding rapidly. MML will 

be at the forefront of defining acceptable product metrics for use in vaccines, drug delivery, and 

regenerative medicine. The staff have the expertise and drive to conduct important applied research and 

early-stage development in this area, especially in separations as well as analytics. 

Biotherapeutics, Biomanufacturing, and Engineering Biology 

This team seems to be relatively new. They are just building their expertise base and could use 

more staff (as well as redeveloping the facilities in space available to the Biomolecular Measurement 

Division in the Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research [IBBR]). Biotherapeutics is an 

important area for the U.S. economy, and the need for standard analytical methods during processing as 

well as for product validation is critical, especially analytics for use in-line during biomanufacturing 

processes. NIST is relying on its customers and the National Institute for Innovation in Manufacturing 

Biopharmaceuticals collaborators for technical expertise, which is good, but NIST needs to strengthen its 

in-house expertise to make a long-term impact in biomanufacturing. 

BUDGET, FACILITIES, EQUIPMENT, AND HUMAN RESOURCES 

In fiscal year 2023 the budget of the Biomolecular Measurement Division was $36 million—61 

percent of this comes from appropriations; 32 percent from providing standard reference materials and 

data and a working capital fund; and 7 percent from reimbursable work for other federal agencies. 

All of the groups in the Biomolecular Measurement Division are generating tremendous amounts 

of data. They need more expert staff support in laboratory information management systems development 

and data management. While the mass spectrometry group includes these experts, as well as 

bioinformatics experts, the level of computational support was highly variable across the mission areas. 

The groups that rely on centralized support from information technology and data management experts 

received inconsistent support. More personnel to support the other groups would leverage their existing 

expertise and increase productivity. 

The staff is very dedicated to their missions and invested in disseminating the products of their 

labors. The young federal staff members are especially enthusiastic about the opportunities they have for 

expanding their research endeavors and developing leadership skills. The postdocs enjoy what they are 

doing, and in many cases really appreciate the independence they have to focus on projects of their 

choosing, but some of them feel very isolated and uncertain about what future directions they could 

pursue after time at NIST. Mentoring of postdocs seems to be uneven, and postdocs in particular could 

benefit from a mentoring program that includes information about what constitutes short-term success in 

MML and long-term career development opportunities. 

The support from the human resources office, especially in terms of replacing lost staff, could be 

significantly improved. Hiring new administrative staff is inordinately slow, taking up to 6 months just to 

release standard advertisements. Even when the jobs are posted and interviews conducted, instances were 

reported when the group has agreed to hire someone and the notification letter never went out from 

human resources to the prospective employee. Bringing postdocs on board can take months after they 

accept the offer and complete their PhD, during which time some of the new postdocs have no income. 

The procedure for hiring federal scientists and engineers was not clear. The availability of positions 
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BIOMOLECULAR MEASUREMENT DIVISION 35 

related to MML programs and mission-focused areas seems to have been put on the back burner as human 

resources work priorities focus on hiring to support new work deriving from the CHIPS and Science Act 

of 2022. These problems will impact group productivity and need to be fixed. 

Conclusion 5-1: The current staff is scientifically outstanding, but maintaining a critical mass of 

scientists and engineers with critical expertise is challenging. More timely support from the 

human resources department would make the projects more competitive and ease the frustrations 

of existing staff whose research progress is hampered by vacancies in administrative support, 

hiring of postdoctoral fellows, or staffing of existing mission areas. Postdocs could benefit from 

increased mentorship in terms of networking and career development. 

Recommendation 5-1: The Biomolecular Measurement Division should work with the 

Material Measurement Laboratory (MML) leadership and the National Institute of 

Standards and Technology’s headquarters human resources personnel to develop effective 

procedures for the hiring and career development of staff. Internally, MML should improve 

their mentorship of postdoctoral fellows to address career development planning. 

In terms of facilities, Building 227 is old and outdated, but still functional. The air handling and 

plumbing systems are a particular problem. Building 221 appears to be an ongoing disaster and a calamity 

waiting to happen. Too much high-tech equipment is crowded into a space that is under-resourced in 

terms of air handling, electrical supply, and safety infrastructure. Facility upkeep by NIST maintenance 

workers appears to be an issue, especially with inadequate heating, ventilation, and air conditioning 

systems. The mass spectrometry equipment is considered state of the art and adequate for the projects 

being undertaken and to complete all of the tasks for stakeholders. However, temperature fluctuations 

already threaten the quality of the mass spectrometry data, which is critical for a key NIST product, the 

Mass Spectrometry Data Library. These mass spectrometry instruments are very sensitive to temperature 

changes; if the room temperature varies too much—e.g., between 68 to 85 degrees Fahrenheit—the mass 

spectrometers may produce erroneous results as the spectral peaks will be shifted. This can limit 

productivity for the group and will be an ever-present issue until remedied. The infrastructure problems in 

Building 221 have reached a critical stage; building 227 also needs upgraded heating, ventilation, and air 

conditioning systems. Funding for these types of major renovations needs to come from appropriated 

funds as the level of funding from overhead income is far from sufficient. 

In contrast, space at IBBR is high quality. Moving the entire division to IBBR would solve its 

space problem, provide space in Building 227 for other NIST researchers (as well as present an 

opportunity for renovation), and encourage increased interactions with researchers from universities 

across Maryland who also work in IBBR. The space is currently available at IBBR and some funding to 

begin appropriate renovation in preparation for them to move in has already been identified. 

Conclusion 5-2: Existing facilities do not support continued work at the world-class level. 

Facilities staff are fighting a losing battle trying to keep existing systems—especially the heating, 

ventilation, air conditioning, plumbing, and building integrity—operational. The research staff 

lose valuable time making ad hoc workarounds to facility shortcomings and are, at times, unable 

to operate and maintain high-tech equipment owing to maintenance issues. Facilities renovation 

is too expensive to be covered by internal Material Measurement Laboratory funding. 

Recommendation 5-2: The Biomolecular Measurement Division (BMD) should work with 

Material Measurement Laboratory leadership and the National Institute of Standards and 

Technology to identify, as soon as possible, laboratory facilities with the level of 

temperature and humidity control, and space required by BMD to perform its work safely 

and at a world-class level. A move of BMD to the Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology 

Research could be part of this solution. 
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36 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

While much of the equipment is aging, most of it is working well. There is some need for new 

instruments to integrate new capabilities into the analytical capabilities, for example, next-generation 

gene and protein sequencing systems. A definite need exists for more automation of contiguous 

separations and analytics to increase sample throughput. Dedicated funds for both equipment and 

expertise in laboratory robotics would benefit multiple operations and improve the efficiency of long-term 

data output. 

Conclusion 5-3: Much of the work in the Biomolecular Measurement Division is repetitive and 

highly amenable to automation. With the introduction of appropriate robotic systems and 

expertise, the existing staff could be even more productive. Automation is used throughout the 

stakeholders’ labs. Increased automation within the division would also enable the Material 

Measurement Laboratory to provide guidance on automated processes to its stakeholders. 

Recommendation 5-3: The Biomolecular Measurement Division should increase laboratory 

automation to support critical steps in production of standard products and processes. 

EFFECTIVENESS OF DISSEMINATION EFFORTS 

The Biomolecular Measurement Division disseminates its results in multiple ways: research 

publications, conference presentations, round-robin trials with customers, workshops, staff participation 

in standards groups, and the production of standard products—both the well-characterized standard 

reference materials for which NIST is well known and now research-grade standards. The inclusion of the 

mass spectrometry libraries with commercial mass spectrometers, as well as triannual updates, is very 

broadly valued across academia and industry. The active participation of the Applied Genetics Group 

staff in the forensic standards-setting organizations—Scientific Working Group on DNA Analysis 

Methods and the Organization of Scientific Area Committees for Forensic Science—as well as the 

dissemination of peer-reviewed publications is vital to forensic stakeholders as they present scientific 

evidence to the courts. The extent to which NIST documentation is viewed as a source of unbiased 

validation of current and emerging instrumentation, protocols, and data interpretation algorithms by the 

U.S. legal process is noteworthy. 

Across all four of its focus areas, the Biomolecular Measurement Division has strong interactions 

with users and manufacturers. This two-way interchange disseminates the value and results of NIST’s 

work and has produced a good understanding of the value chain for potential standards products. Even 

junior staff are encouraged to take on leadership responsibilities in working with consortia of stakeholders 

and do so very effectively. There is a limit to how extensive such operations can be, since there are limits 

on staff and funding, but the choices of where to focus the division’s energies and resources are 

thoughtful and effective in terms of the opportunities for the Biomolecular Measurement Division to have 

a real impact for its customers. As the United States puts more resources into biomanufacturing, this 

would be a logical area for expansion. 

The involvement of the Biomolecular Measurement Division with commercial partners is 

consistent with MML’s mission to support the national economy with measurement science and 

technologies. The delivery of standards is one good metric of the division’s impact on the commercial 

sector and clinical practice (as described above for proteins, genes, and viruses), but the division is doing 

much more. There are two areas of additional Biomolecular Measurement Division activity that merit 

increased support: the dissemination of products to the educational sector involved in workforce 

development (activities in this area have begun largely through participation in the National Institute for 

Innovation in Manufacturing Biopharmaceuticals and educational partnerships at IBBR) and providing 

information to researchers on the potential advantages of using NIST standards across research endeavors 
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BIOMOLECULAR MEASUREMENT DIVISION 37 

(e.g., the use of the albumin standard reference materials as calibration material for proteomic researchers 

using mass spectrometry). 

Conclusion 5-4: The current dissemination of research and development and standards to 

traditional stakeholders is very effective. Products recently developed for biomanufacturing and 

forensics can be extremely impactful in multiple communities, including some that are less aware 

of these standards and processes. The dissemination of standard reference materials made by the 

Biomolecular Measurement Division and the documentation of processes for dissemination to 

both the education community that is critical for workforce development and the forensics legal 

community could be highly impactful. 

Recommendation 5-4: The Biomolecular Measurement Division (BMD) should increase 

engagement with communities focused on workforce development and forensics analysis, 

and compile data on how often their resource materials are used. For biomanufacturing 

workforce development activities, instructional information related to using BMD 

standards and standard processes could be provided to educational and professional groups 

providing training for biomanufacturing. Dissemination of information about how often 

BMD’s published validation studies, research findings, and standard reference materials 

are used by the stakeholders in forensic activities could increase the appreciation of the 

value they provide to the legal community. 
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38 

6 

Chemical Sciences Division 

The general objective of the Chemical Sciences Division is to provide measurement services, 

which encompasses standard reference data and computational tools, reference measurement procedures, 

quality assurance programs, and a wide range of reference materials (e.g., standard reference materials). 

This includes several databases and codes that are maintained and curated by the division. Over the past 8 

years, the division has accommodated more than 4,500 technical inquiries related to standard reference 

materials, which originated from all fifty states, and 96 countries. Two additional areas with more 

restricted scope but a high level of significance include a standard reference photometer for ozone 

calibration, and the calibration of ozone and mercury vapor generators. Of the more than 1,000 standard 

reference materials generated and maintained by the National Institute of Standards and Technology 

(NIST), the Chemical Sciences Division is responsible for 76 percent of them, and handles 56 percent of 

the 29,000 standard reference material units sold annually. The large numbers of standard reference 

materials that are handled by the division are indicative of the importance of the NIST reference materials 

program, particularly within Chemical Sciences Division, whose leadership accurately describes the 

reference materials as indispensable core services to industry. 

The motivation behind these activities is the need for regulatory rigor that is stipulated by 

legislation and by industry, which needs accurate measurement in order to be competitive. The work of 

the Chemical Sciences Division can be broadly divided into two categories: the production of standard 

reference materials and data, and research and development of new measurement methods and 

technologies. The production and research and development activities occurring within the Chemical 

Sciences Division is also motivated by the need to ensure the safety of food and pharmaceutical products. 

The Chemical Sciences Division organization consists of 135 scientists and technicians, parsed 

into eight research groups. The organization has not appreciably changed compared to the past 

assessment, which was conducted in 2020. The panel believes that the fact that the organizational 

structure of the division has not changed is indicative that it is well organized to address its numerous 

functions and missions. The research groups are: Inorganic Chemical Metrology, Organic Chemical 

Metrology, Gas Sensing Metrology, Chemical Informatics, Chemical Process and Nuclear Measurements, 

Biospecimen Science, Optical Measurements, and Biochemical and Exposure Science. 

The majority of the Chemical Sciences Division is situated at the Gaithersburg, Maryland, 

campus of NIST. There are, however, significant facilities at the Hollings Marine Laboratory (in 

partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration [NOAA]), the Center for Marine 

Debris Research (together with Hawaii Pacific University), and the NIST Synchrotron Science Group (at 

Brookhaven National Laboratory). 

ASSESSMENT OF TECHNICAL PROGRAMS 

The research conducted by the staff of the Chemical Sciences Division is of consistently high 

quality, at least as good as that done by other institutions in the United States and worldwide, and, in 

some cases, better. The uniqueness of the division’s missions and research, and the diverse range of the 

measurement science conducted, make a direct comparison with other institutions difficult. The division’s 

work is driven by stakeholder needs and industrial and academic stakeholders make extensive use of the 
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CHEMICAL SCIENCES DIVISION 39 

reference data, standard reference materials, measurement protocols, and instrumentation produced or 

curated by the division. The division actively benchmarks its work against other leading international 

metrology institutes to ensure the quality of its work. The breadth of the division’s work is challenging, 

but it has been able to achieve accuracy and precision in metrology that enable industry and other 

research institutions to conduct their functions. 

Accomplishments 

Inorganic Chemical Metrology Group 

The Inorganic Chemical Metrology Group provides a wide range of measurement services that 

encompass reference measurement procedures, quality assurance programs, and reference materials. A 

particularly noteworthy example of the group’s activities is the work of the ozone measurement group, 

which is an excellent example of a unique, long-term research program that enables accurate ozone 

measurement by domestic and international extramural research groups. The group fabricates ozone 

generators coupled with spectrophotometers that enable calibration of secondary instruments. A network 

of 12 standard reference photometers is maintained, and 64 of these instruments have been deployed 

worldwide. It is worthwhile noting that this level of demand is insufficient for an instrument manufacturer 

to enter the market, however, the environmental community is dependent on these devices for ozone 

calibration (note that the Central Calibration Laboratory for ozone resides in the Gas Sensing Group). The 

research enables specification of National Ambient Air Quality Standards for ozone. Ozone measurement 

performance is benchmarked versus the Bureau International des Poids et Mesures, which is an 

international standards organization. The production of standard reference materials for air toxics, notably 

mercury, is also notable. 

Organic Chemical Metrology 

The Organic Chemical Metrology Group is focused on providing primary standard reference 

materials, quality assurance programs, and reference methods and tools that are critical for maintaining 

quality for food and nutrition products, clinical diagnostics, natural products, dietary supplements, 

environmental contaminants, and forensics. The group leverages its research via collaborations with other 

federal agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency, Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. 

Department of Agriculture, Food and Drug Administration, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 

National Institutes of Health, and a large number of non-governmental organizations that participate in 

the group’s quality assurance programs. A key objective is to enable stakeholders to make accurate 

chemical measurements that are needed for label requirements, regulatory limits, and product quality. 

The production of creatinine standards in frozen human serum affords an impactful example, 

owing to the critical need for these standards by clinical and academic laboratories and manufacturers of 

in vitro diagnostic devices. This is important because creatinine concentration is an indicator of kidney 

function. Another noteworthy example is the generation of standard reference materials for perfluoro and 

polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) which are critical for accurate measurement in environmental and 

biological samples. PFAS are important because they have been linked to adverse health effects involving 

metabolism, fertility, fetal growth, cancers, and immune system function and are a huge emerging 

pollutant problem for the United States (Fenton et al. 2021). The division also operates a cannabis 

laboratory, which is becoming increasingly important as more states legalize the drug. 

Chemical Informatics Group 

The Chemical Informatics Group’s objective is to use computational tools to study complex 

systems such as fluid behavior and CO2 adsorption. The group also maintains stable isotope and trace 
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40 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

element databases, and a library of materials, both of which are accessible to stakeholders with interests in 

food safety and environmental chemistry. 

This group has demonstrated computational methods that could enable future collaboration with 

bench scientists, directly supporting experimental work. For example, the group has compiled libraries of 

X-ray absorption near-edge spectroscopy data for arsenic analysis, which directly support food safety. 

Research in organizing and comparing two-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance data generated from 

monoclonal antibody characterization enables differentiation of oxidized samples, a significant 

contribution because of the importance of monoclonal antibody standards. Libraries of prompt gamma 

activation analysis spectra facilitate identification of a wide range of materials including coal and coke, 

oils, concrete, and forensic glass samples. 

Molecular simulation and computation research including the Free Energy and Advanced 

Sampling Simulation Toolkit is an example of deploying a simulation capability to the extramural user 

community, which has resulted in impact that extends beyond NIST researchers. Simulations of 

monoclonal antibody solutions for the purpose of predicting physical properties are noteworthy, given 

that monoclonal antibody-based products account for 5 of the 10 top pharmaceuticals worldwide. The 

NIST Adsorption Database is also curated by the Chemical Informatics Group, which is applicable to CO2

capture and adsorption modeling that supports the climate strategic focus. 

Gas Sensing Metrology Group 

The objectives of the Gas Sensing Metrology Group are to (1) certify and disseminate gaseous 

standard reference materials, and (2) provide high quality SI-traceable gas measurements. The research 

conducted by this group provides benchmarks important for compliance with U.S. and state regulations 

related to environmental regulation, climate change issues, and fair trade issues. They are responsible for 

68 standard reference materials, and the NIST Traceable Reference Material Program for Gas Standards. 

The group provides ozone, mercury, and monoterpene gas reference materials. These activities 

are motivated by a number of domestic stakeholders that include the Environmental Protection Agency, 

the California Air Resource Board, NOAA, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and the 

U.S. specialty gas industry. A notable research emphasis is the development of a breath biomarker 

reference material, which has the potential to benefit both forensic and medical applications. Research to 

quantify CO2 adsorption to cylinder walls holds the potential to further improve accuracy. 

Chemical Process and Nuclear Methods Group 

The objective of the Chemical Process and Nuclear Methods Group is to provide metrology of 

chemical and physical transformations, with specific emphasis in heterogeneous catalysis, particle 

metrology, CO2 removal and conversion, and elemental analysis using neutron activation conducted by 

the NIST Synchrotron Science Group, located at Brookhaven National Laboratory and part of MML’s 

Materials Science and Engineering Division. The Chemical Process and Nuclear Methods Group’s 

research emphasizes measurement of rate constants for atmospherically relevant reactions, CO2

conversion reactions on surfaces, and the advancement of the measurement science of nanoplastics in 

water. The neutron activation research focuses on characterizing standard reference materials, specifically 

glass standard reference materials needed by the forensic science community. However, the reactor was 

shut down in 2021 following an incident and was back up to full operation at the time this report was 

drafted. 

Optical Measurements Group 

The Optical Measurements Group is focused on developing optical measurement methods with 

the intent to maintain the SI traceability of field instruments used by practitioners. The group’s research 
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CHEMICAL SCIENCES DIVISION 41 

emphasizes remote sensing of natural and anthropogenic species, emission monitoring, carbon cycle 

research, and atmospheric radiative transfer. Experimentally, the group pursues development of an 

ensemble of advanced laser-based spectroscopic measurement techniques. An overarching goal is to 

improve greenhouse gas sensing by removing physical artifacts and complex calibration chains. 

Applications include SI-traceable isotopic ratios, specifically 13C/12C ratios of standard reference 

materials, and development of calibration-free 14CO2 concentration using bench-top cavity ringdown 

spectroscopy instrumentation. These techniques may be relevant to future regulations and are currently 

being used by industry stakeholders to verify claims of sustainable or “green” carbon sourcing. Methane 

emissions monitoring is also an area of significant research. 

Biospecimen Science Group 

Another important research capability is the NIST Biorepository and Cryogenic Reference 

Material Production Facility, which is situated in the Hollings Marine Laboratory and staffed by the 

Biospecimen Science Group. The group develops methods for generating cryogenic standard reference 

materials, and approaches for preserving those standards using advanced cryogenic storage technology to 

ensure stability and reproducibility. The standard reference materials support food quality and safety, and 

also environmental protection activities. The group is unique in its expertise, and standard curation 

capability and has unique laboratory capabilities. 

Biochemical and Exposure Sciences Group 

The Biochemical and Exposure Sciences Group maintains a capability both at the Hollings 

Marine Laboratory in Charleston, South Carolina, and at the Center for Marine Debris Research in Oahu, 

Hawaii. The Biological Responses subgroup, at the Hollings Marine Laboratory, is focused on 

understanding proteomic and metabolomic responses, a subject of interest to both governmental and 

industrial stakeholders. Challenges in the “omics” areas are the lack of standard reference materials for 

many proteins and metabolites that are important for identifying environmentally induced alterations in 

proteins and metabolites. This group is developing standard reference materials that are related to human 

health, including blood, urine, liver, and stool materials. Along with the standard reference materials, the 

omics groups are developing best practices for reporting proteomic and metabolomic responses. 

The Plastic Pollution Measurements group is situated at the Hawaii Pacific University Center for 

Marine Debris Research. This group is involved with characterizing the growing volume of waste plastics 

in the oceans, emphasizing characterization of plastic micro- and nanoparticles. The group works to 

standardize measurement methods, and to produce plastics reference materials. These efforts enable 

identification of derelict fishing gear and monitoring plastics ingestion in seabirds, turtles, and fish. The 

group has cultivated a large number of academic, other government, and industrial partners with its 

research of polymer weathering, along with microplastics fate and transport. 

Challenges and Opportunities 

The following items represent opportunities to improve the quality of the technical programs and 

the ability of the organization to reach its stated technical objectives. 

Safety 

Several safety-related challenges were noted that are rooted in communication, facilities, and 

funding issues. Issues derived from facility problems are noted below in the “Budget, Facilities, 

Equipment, and Human Resources” section. There are several actions that would positively bear on the 
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42 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

Chemical Sciences Division’s safety posture. Placing placards outside of each laboratory specifying the 

laboratory’s hazards and the required safety behaviors and personal protective equipment requirements 

would increase safety visibility. Facility issues such as roof leaks, and equipment shortcomings, are 

increasing safety hazards. While some of these issues are intractable to MML because they are addressed 

by other parts of NIST, any efforts that MML can make, such as with gas sensors and alarms, would 

improve the situation. Another step that could improve the safety environment would be to collaborate 

with MML’s industrial partners to help strengthen MML’s safety program with things like root cause 

investigations and a near miss database. 

Static Resources and the Increasing Demand for Standard Reference Materials 

The development of new standard reference materials relies on the same staff, instrumentation, 

and facility resources that are needed for maintaining existing standard reference materials, resulting in 

difficulty in meeting the needs of both activities. The consequence is that staff members are 

oversubscribed. There may be opportunities to clarify prioritization of activities in order to balance 

incoming requests for new standard reference materials with maintenance of existing standard reference 

materials. 

The pricing of the standard reference materials in some cases may not be commensurate with the 

cost of starting materials, instrumentation, and PhD staff time that are needed for production and technical 

support. Funding challenges result in a need to emphasize standard reference material production, which 

generates a revenue stream. However, production of existing standard reference materials impedes 

development of new standard reference materials that will be needed in the future. Working with the 

Office of Reference Materials to appropriately price materials may alleviate some prioritization conflicts. 

Workflow Modernization 

Workflow modernization could have a huge impact on the organizational resources and technical 

delivery on program objectives. More efficient, digitally enabled work processes could free significant 

time for staff to address new research. This is especially true considering that production of standard 

reference materials follows standard and repeatable workflows, making them a straightforward choice for 

data automation. 

The committee noted success in the Biochemical and Exposure Sciences Group with a staff 

member whose research interests migrated into the data science and engineering space to build the “data 

plumbing” for the high-volume omics labs. It was indicated that this staff member is doing a rotation in 

the Office of Data and Informatics as a part of a rotational effort to transfer data engineering skills and 

culture throughout MML as well as showcasing the value of data engineering to the organization. 

Replicating the success of the Biochemical and Exposure Sciences Group “data plumbing” effort may 

well improve staff productivity and increase data stewardship skills across the Chemical Sciences 

Division. 

NIST Center for Neutron Research Shut Down 

An ongoing challenge is that the nuclear reactor that provides the neutron beamlines for the NIST 

Center for Neutron Research has not been available for research since February 2021. It was shut down 

following an incident in the reactor. It was restarted in March 2023, and is operating at low power for 

testing and training. However, the center plans to shut it down again in 2024 to upgrade the reactor. 
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CHEMICAL SCIENCES DIVISION 43 

Data and Chemical Informatics Group Alignment 

The alignment of the Data and Chemical Informatics Group with the other Chemical Sciences 

Division groups having more direct program objectives (e.g., those delivering metrology expertise or 

standard reference materials, and standard reference data) is somewhat obscure. A closer alignment of the 

group with the bench chemists, who have clear alignment to program objectives, may be beneficial. A 

clearer understanding of whether the Data and Chemical Informatics Group is meant to support NIST 

metrology research or outside research is needed to appropriately manage the group’s portfolio. 

Another potentially valuable function of the Data and Chemical Informatics Group would be to 

act as a focal point for Chemical Sciences Division-generated data, that could enable strategic 

development of data infrastructure in support of the on-going program areas. Prior MML assessment 

reports recommended increasing staff training to build a culture of “data as an asset,” but it does not 

appear that much progress has been made. In alignment with the leadership directive that the Data and 

Chemical Informatics group is to prioritize the support of MML researchers, implementing improved data 

extraction, transform, and load practices could be a very impactful activity. Note many researchers do not 

understand the value that the modeling team could bring to a program. 

Conclusion 6-1: Enhanced benefits from the Data and Chemical Informatics Group may be 

realized by reviewing its alignment with the missions and objectives found in other areas of the 

Chemical Sciences Division. Clear delineation of intramural collaborative research versus 

independent research efforts may help clarify management of the group’s research portfolio. 

Further benefit could emerge from a more intentional communication of the capabilities and 

functions of the Data and Chemical Informatics Group to the broader Chemical Sciences 

Division and Material Measurement Laboratory community. 

ASSESSMENT OF SCIENTIFIC EXPERTISE 

Accomplishments 

In many of the research areas being pursued within the Chemical Sciences Division, the scientific 

expertise of the staff is on a par or better than other laboratories, either domestic or internationally. 

Frequently, the division’s staff constitute a nearly singular repository of expertise in several technical 

areas, that is, other research institutions rely on expertise within the Chemical Sciences Division, and 

accordingly have not replicated it. Generally, the division’s scientific expertise is finely tuned to its 

technical programs. 

An example of staff expertise is found in the group conducting primary ozone measurement and 

instrumentation fabrication for national metrology institutes across the globe. Additionally, Chemical 

Sciences Division expertise was recognized and called on by NOAA to generate marine samples and 

called on by ASTM International1

 to develop methods for measuring CO2 in concrete. The division’s 

scientific expertise is strengthened by ongoing interactions with Bureau International des Poids et 

Mesures and other national metrology institutes. This ensures and builds the credibility of the Chemical 

Sciences Division staff among peer organizations worldwide. The panel endorses these interactions and 

continuing opportunities to maintain engagement with these organizations (i.e., support interactions, 

provide time for leadership roles, and travel support). 

The publication rate of the Chemical Sciences Division staff is appropriate for the size of the 

organization, as noted in the “Effective of Dissemination Efforts” section. 

The extremely broad scope of the Chemical Sciences Division’s technical programs require 

expertise and capability across many subdisciplines, which presents a staffing challenge for the division. 

1

 Formerly known as the American Society for Testing and Materials. 
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44 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

This challenge can be addressed by intramural collaboration (i.e., with other MML groups), and by 

identifying extramural collaborators to fill gaps in expertise critical to an application area. The committee 

observed that the Chemical Sciences Division is adept at implementing this collaborative approach. An 

example of such an extramural collaboration partnership involved the need to develop methods for the 

improved microanalysis of glass, which emerged from the forensics community. The Chemical Sciences 

Division combined its in-house expertise in neutron activation analysis with fabrication expertise at 

Corning Glass to produce unique glass standards that have been used to calibrate instrumentation at local 

forensics laboratories, of sufficient quality to be admissible to courts of law. 

Challenges and Opportunities 

In multiple areas, the demand for standard reference materials and standard reference data is so 

great that staff lack the time to pursue improvements in production efficiency, measurement capabilities, 

or research. The Chemical Sciences Division leadership noted that the maintenance of hundreds of 

standard reference materials and measurement services results in “far too many tasks for too few staff,” 

an assertion backed by observations. The situation would normally motivate addition of new scientistand technician-level staff; however, this solution is not easily implemented on account of budget 

constraints noted below. Without such changes, the ability of Chemical Sciences Division staff to remain 

ahead of the metrology needs of industry and provide timely research and materials may be compromised. 

The division has responded by cross training staff, which helps address staff redundancy vulnerability, but 

this is unlikely to overcome growing research capacity limitations. 

Finding 6-1: The broad range of standard reference materials and standard reference data 

products, and the high volume of demand for those products, is close to exceeding the capacity of 

the staff to meet those demands. This leads to an over-extended span of research and lack of 

functional redundancy for many of the activities the staff undertake. 

Recommendation 6-1: The Chemical Sciences Division should look for ways to add new 

scientist- and technician-level staff to continue to service the existing array of standard 

reference materials and free up staff resources to pursue development of new standard 

reference materials. In addition, the division should continue to emphasize staff cross 

training to ensure functional redundancy. The Chemical Sciences Division should continue 

to prioritize internal and external collaboration as a solution to maintaining the significant 

breadth and depth of expertise. 

BUDGET, FACILITIES, EQUIPMENT, AND HUMAN RESOURCES 

In fiscal year 2023 the Chemical Sciences Division’s budget was $35.561 million, comprising 

$23, 402 million from appropriations, $3.645 million from reimbursable work for other federal agencies, 

and $8.514 million from services such as providing standard reference materials and a working capital 

fund. It has 134 staff, comprising 94 scientists, 4 technicians, 6 support staff, and 30 associates. 

Accomplishments 

Chemical Sciences Division staff are enthusiastic, well informed in their metrology 

subdisciplines, and passionate about NIST’s purpose. These observations were manifest in a high level of 

motivation toward further the metrology research and a remarkable customer service attitude. Work was 

always clearly aligned to a valued motivation that they could clearly articulate. 

Staff displayed the ability to quickly pivot to respond to emergent urgent needs aligned with their 

expertise (e.g., Mpox [see below] and PFAS). This was reported to be exciting and motivating to the 
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CHEMICAL SCIENCES DIVISION 45 

researchers, although these activities did put pressure on standard reference material production which 

often fell behind schedule as a result of responding to emergent needs. 

The Chemical Sciences Division’s support of NIST’s diversity and inclusion principles is 

evidenced by things such as when the Biospecimen Science Group worked with local indigenous groups 

in Alaska and the Pacific Islands to gather samples in accordance with cultural guidelines. 

Challenges and Opportunities 

Budget 

The essentially flat MML budget has challenged the organization in program execution. 

Increasing labor costs resulting from merit and cost of living adjustments increase the fraction of the 

budget allocated for labor, and decrease the fraction of the budget available for instrument refreshment 

and repair, and facility maintenance and modification. In addition, budgetary constraints limit the ability 

of Chemical Sciences Division leadership to hire staff and, in the longer term, to conduct significant 

succession planning. 

Insufficient funding has impacted the capabilities needed to advance many of the different 

required technologies for existing MML missions and newer research areas like omics, chip 

manufacturing, biomaterials, PFAS, and microplastics. This problem was particularly apparent in the 

Inorganic Chemical Metrology Group, which relies on funding from sales of reference materials, 

requiring the group to prioritize standard reference material production and thus limiting the ability of the 

group to address new challenges. 

It was noted that efforts on Mpox characterization were not explicitly funded, but nevertheless 

were required as part of the Chemical Sciences Division’s research scope. The division addressed the 

problem by moving resources and funding from other programs to the Mpox effort, which is unlikely to 

be a sustainable long-term approach. 

Finding 6-2: Static funding levels have adversely impacted the ability of the Chemical Sciences 

Division to execute its mission owing to three factors: staff, whose costs have increased as a 

result of cost-of-living increases; instrument maintenance and refresh; and facility upkeep. 

Mission sustainability at current funding levels is likely to be problematic. 

StaffSpan of Control and Adjustment to New Work Norms 

The Chemical Sciences Division’s PhD staff are heavily involved with and sometimes entirely 

responsible for operational production of standard reference materials and other samples. These 

operations activities, both sample production and continued technical service to customers, preclude their 

ability to conduct research, outreach, and global leadership activities. 

These challenges are consistent with the decrease in numbers of staff; as of the writing of this 

report in 2023, the Chemical Sciences Division had 135 staff members, which is a 20 percent decrease 

compared to 2020, when there were 170. The staff includes 35 associates, which consist of guest 

researchers from industry and academia, postdoctoral fellows, and students. Within the division, the 

fraction of associates appeared to be less than that for MML overall. A specific example is provided by 

the Organic Chemical Metrology Group, which is challenged by the need for additional staff; in several 

important program functions, the group relies on a single staff member. Two examples of research that 

was deprioritized because of the demands of standard reference material production include the 

development of a standard reference material for CO2 in seawater, and a breath standard of volatile 

organic compounds for medical diagnostics. 

The limited staffing does not just affect the ability of the Chemical Sciences Division to conduct 

new research. In some cases, even production of mission-critical standard reference materials and other 
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46 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

samples is conducted by a single individual or using a single instrument. This presents a significant risk to 

the ability of the division to fulfill its current mission. The real-world commercial implications of this risk 

cannot be underestimated. 

In a second illustrative example of razor thin staffing, a single staff researcher oversees the 

standards that enable quality assurance testing of infant formula for essentially all of the western world. 

Without these standards, industry suppliers cannot safely release infant formula to the public. Those 

efforts are in direct competition with responsiveness needed for the development of methods and 

standards for PFAS in food. Both of these high-profile high-importance endeavors rely on a single expert 

on staff with the skills to work on both areas. Additionally, the Gas Sensing Metrology Group previously 

had 4–5 people who were trained and skilled in making gas standards; now there is a single expert to 

complete this production. The commerce that depends on NIST would be adversely impacted by a supply 

shock caused by certification requirements, which are in turn dependent on NIST standards and methods 

that are reliant on a very small number of NIST staff. 

StaffRebalancing 

There may be opportunities for rebalancing staff so that technician-level personnel are conducting 

the bulk of the operational standard reference material production, which has the potential to improve cost 

efficiency, and would provide opportunities for the PhD staff to expand research and development 

activities. Cross-training of personnel and replication of unique facilities together with instrument 

investments could result in a more resilient and sustainable supply of standard reference materials, 

standard reference data, and other critical products. 

Demands on the staff are exacerbated by the fact that National Research Council postdoctoral 

classes are shrinking, although this may be a transient phenomenon related to the COVID-19 pandemic 

that will rectify once MML staff are able to resume attendance at scientific meetings. 

Another challenge is posed by the fact that some skill sets cannot be recruited. For example, 

metrology, standard reference materials, and standard reference data research are relatively unique to 

NIST and need to be taught to new NIST staff once onboard. This requires duplicating staff for some 

functions and teaching new staff unique skills; however, the budgetary constraints are not compatible 

with this approach. 

Negotiating the new work environment may be challenging as a result of the need to achieve 

balance between the need to bring staff back to campus for certain types of work, reconditioning 

workspaces, and establishing a hybrid environment that encompasses both in-person work and telework. 

Lastly, in the culture of the laboratory, standard reference material and standard reference data 

production operations have not historically been esteemed as highly as have the more basic measurement 

research and development activities, in part because the latter present more opportunity for publications 

and patents. However, there has been a noteworthy evolution in culture regarding the perceived hierarchy 

between standard reference material production and research within Chemical Sciences Division. The two 

objectives are now viewed as having more equal importance, as indicated by discussions with early career 

staff. Chemical Sciences Division leadership noted that promotion criteria were adjusted to reflect the 

equal importance of the two objectives. In addition to recognition, both production and research staff 

indicated a comparable sense of purpose and value. Maintaining this progress will be even more 

important if Recommendation 6-1 is pursued. 

Instrumentation—Maintaining and Augmenting State of the Art 

The ability of the staff to execute Chemical Sciences Division missions is increasingly impacted 

by dated instrumentation, which results from advances in the state of the art of instrumentation leaving 

current generations behind, and difficulties stemming from instrument upkeep. The committee observed 

several instances where instrument control and data acquisition were performed by computers using 
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CHEMICAL SCIENCES DIVISION 47 

operating systems that are no longer supported. This poses a risk to research functions that are relying on 

the outdated equipment, and likely poses barriers to the data availability across the Chemical Sciences 

Division. A specific example was the rebuild of an instrument that provides the certified measurements 

for the pH standards. The rebuild took 1.5 years, in part because the instrument was being operated using 

a year 2000-vintage computer, and exacerbated by the lack of staffing in the laboratory. The consequence 

was significant inefficiency owing to an instrument that needs to be replaced rather than repaired. 

A second notable example of dated instruments is the nuclear magnetic resonance, mass, and 

optical spectrometers that are heavily relied on by the Organic Chemical Metrology group. Several 

instruments are no longer cutting edge, which will eventually erode the ability of the group in making 

state-of-the-art measurements. State-of-the-art analytical instrumentation is also an ongoing need for the 

Biochemical and Exposure Science Group focused on Chemical Metrology for Omics. 

The problems are exacerbated by difficulty refreshing instrumentation, which is related to the 

high cost of investment in cutting-edge scientific equipment and maintenance. The staff noted that these 

problems are also aggravated by the business processes at NIST, particularly a slow and cumbersome 

procurement process. 

Like most laboratory institutions that house state-of-the-art instrumentation, there is a historical 

culture of individual ownership of high-end equipment. This is understandable since it is desirable to have 

a single point of contact for cutting-edge spectrometers and microscopes. However, productivity can be 

impeded by an “ownership” culture that is uncomfortable with sharing facilities. The division is working 

on instilling a philosophy of broad access to instrumentation and facilities while ensuring their proper 

operation and maintenance. 

All of the challenges discussed above will be exacerbated as competition between the needs of 

the existing program portfolio and scope of anticipated new work emerging from the CHIPS and Science 

Act of 2022. 

Facilities 

Chemical Sciences Division leadership noted an ongoing need for more laboratory space, an 

observation consistent with the division’s increasing scope of research. Lack of space availability 

constrains efforts to expand the division’s scope of work in research and standards. This is true both in 

Gaithersburg and in the Hollings Laboratory. The Biospecimen Science Group in particular is challenged 

by constraints on availability of storage space for its biorepository. All of the laboratory areas that were 

toured were fully used and did not have the capacity to readily take on more work. Creative approaches 

for increasing laboratory space may be needed. 

The division’s leadership noted that problems with the physical laboratory facility continue to 

adversely affect the ability of the staff to successfully execute their diverse missions. Specifically 

mentioned were environmental controls, and areas where the roof is leaking. Facility repairs and 

renovations are slow and expensive. Aging laboratory facilities are continuing to display points of failure, 

which in some instances is impacting production and research activities. 

In several instances the degradation and disrepair of laboratory facilities have led to the potential 

for compromised safety. For example, the oxygen depletion sensor in the gas sensing laboratory has not 

functioned for multiple years; the staff creatively installed a work-around system which does alarm 

locally in the event of an uncontrolled gas release. However, the work-around system doesn’t notify site 

security. A second example is in the cylinder storage room, which has a ceiling leak that has persisted for 

several years, causing valves to corrode and covers to stick on the gas cylinders. Potential safety hazards 

include gas leaks and upset cylinders resulting from the need for augmented force to overcome cap and 

valve seizure resulting from corrosion. The problem also has the potential to destroy inventory and 

invalidate calibrations. 

The information gathering for this assessment concluded that NIST’s buildings and infrastructure 

are outdated, to the extent that a normal level of maintenance is inadequate to keep facilities functional. 
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48 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

Problems with facilities are exerting a negative impact on the ability of staff to meet mission objectives. 

In addition, the inventory of critical standard reference materials is put at risk by facilities conditions that 

compromise their quality. When analytical measurements require controlled temperature and humidity, 

generation of valid measurement data can be compromised, resulting in significant delays in projects. 

Laboratory procurement processes were cited by staff as an administrative impediment. A 

specific example involved the procurement of creatinine, a required ingredient in at least two standard 

reference materials (creatinine, and creatinine in frozen human serum) that are prepared up to 3 years in 

advance of anticipated inventory depletion. Lack of administrative support staff for purchasing 

necessitated involvement of scientific staff. The combination of a slow procurement process and a bad lot 

of creatinine from a supplier resulted in the inventory of the standard reference material being exhausted, 

with subsequent complaints from industry customers. The problem impacted both industry stakeholders 

and the research agenda of the scientific staff.

EFFECTIVENESS OF DISSEMINATION EFFORTS 

Accomplishments 

The Chemical Sciences Division uses a variety of approaches for disseminating information and 

technology transfer. The committee believes that with regards to the stakeholders, the dissemination 

approaches are effective. The Chemical Sciences Division leadership is keenly attuned to the use of the 

division’s products and employs a number of measurement and modeling tools that enable evaluation of 

the accuracy and precision of standard reference data, and the fidelity of standard reference materials. The 

division aggressively monitors analytical performance in the measurement of component concentrations 

in gas mixtures, organic, and inorganic species in many matrices. Accuracy and precision are compared 

with results from a number of other national metrology institutes. These comparisons provide invaluable 

benchmarking, a basis for confidence in the standard reference material and standard reference data 

products NIST generates. 

Publications 

As noted above, the publication rate of the Chemical Sciences Division staff is appropriate for the 

size of the organization. From the beginning of 2022 through approximately the midpoint of 2023, the 

Division generated 97 publications and 242 conference or seminar publications. This level of productivity 

is noteworthy given that research and the resulting publications must be balanced together with the 

production of data, standards, materials, and quality control programs that the division also produces. 

The Chemical Sciences Division provides excellent support for publication opportunities to 

maintain and enhance reputation of the staff and the Division, to disseminate information products, and to 

build staff expertise, particularly among more junior staff members and postdocs. It is very important that 

this support be continued. 

Outreach 

The Chemical Sciences Division exhibits good support for staff outreach activities to the 

technical community, which is impactful for communicating data and standards products to the 

stakeholder communities, and to anticipate future needs. Examples include conference attendance—which 

had been on hold during the pandemic but is now becoming a routine activity for the scientific staff—and 

organizing workshops, specifically for planning and coordination. Other activities might be described as 

workforce building efforts, which involves training of regulatory employees. Another commendable 

observation is the Biospecimen Science Group report on best practices for biobanking. These actions 

increase the impact of each research project. 
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CHEMICAL SCIENCES DIVISION 49 

A noteworthy example is seen in the gas sensing group, which is pursuing transfer of some 

standards productions out of NIST to the specialty gas industry. This action would diversify the supply of 

these standard reference materials and would reduce the need for their production within the Chemical 

Sciences Division. If successful, the transfer process will be a model for moving the production of other 

standard reference materials from the Chemical Sciences Division to outside stakeholders, which would 

free up staff and facilities needed for generating new data and standard reference materials. Similarly, the 

Biochemical and Exposure Science Group on Oahu has a strong partnership with Hawaii Pacific 

University, which serves as a vetted recipient for Chemical Sciences Division technology once 

development is complete. 

Chemical Sciences Division support for industry workshops serves as an effective dissemination 

strategy. For example, staff from the neutron activation group led several workshops per year and 

initiated a strong collaboration with NAATBatt, an international battery manufacturer organization. These 

and other forms of industry engagement are critical to support NIST’s mission by listening well enough to 

anticipate the measurement needs of the future. 

Challenges and Opportunities 

Universities and other government agencies accounted for well over half of the Chemical 

Sciences Division collaborations featured by leadership during the assessment, suggesting that research 

originating from industry is funneled through academic and government entities. This could mean that in 

many cases, MML may be one layer removed from direct industry partners, which could impede its 

understanding of and alignment with stakeholder needs, limit Chemical Sciences Division’s ability to 

transfer standard reference material production out to industry and obscure the size of Chemical Sciences 

Division’s impact on industrial commercialization organizations. If possible, more direct partnerships 

with industry could provide better visibility into the needs of industry stakeholders and increase Chemical 

Sciences Division’s impact. 

Research in the application of machine learning to Chemical Sciences Division’s work is 

highlighted in its publications. However, it is unclear how this research is generalized to platform-level 

tools, and how it is more broadly promoted. An example is the Free Energy and Advanced Sampling 

Simulation Toolkit for Monte Carlo simulations, which is recognized by industry. The socialization of 

this toolkit could serve as a template for how to make software products more broadly available. 

There is an opportunity for expanding the use of impact metrics, to both advocate for MML as 

well as recognize achievements of their staff. Several leaders noted that depending on where a standard 

reference material falls in the supply chain, it may have few sales but high significance (e.g., a standard 

reference material that has low demand, but is critical for maintaining accurate measurement for 

pharmaceutical or food products). 

REFERENCE 

Fenton, S.E., A. Ducatman, A. Boobis, et al. 2021. “Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substance Toxicity and 

Human Health Review: Current State of Knowledge and Strategies for Informing Future 

Research.” Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 40(3):606–630. 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

50 

7 

Materials Measurement Science Division 

The mission of the Materials Measurement Science Division is to strengthen the personal safety 

of American consumers and the economic security of the nation. The division develops purposeful 

solutions to critical, uniquely challenging materials science problems. It leverages an inspired and diverse 

workforce to conduct rigorous metrology-focused research. 

The division is organized into nine groups: the division office and eight technical groups, which 

are structured around scientific, engineering, and programmatic expertise. The nine groups are the 

Materials Measurement Science Division headquarters, the Microscopy and Microanalysis Research 

Group, the Nano Materials Research Group, the Data and Artificial Intelligence-Driven Materials Science 

Group, the Surface and Trace Chemical Analysis Group, the Synchrotron Science Group, the Materials 

Structure and Data Group, the Nanomechanical Properties Group, and the Security Technologies Group. 

Collaboration between groups is common and often required to fulfill the division’s mission, 

reach program milestones, and address stakeholder needs. Furthermore, based on the panel’s 

observations, at least two of the groups function as central capabilities, leveraged by a wide range of 

programs: the Data and Artificial Intelligence-Driven Materials Science Group and the Synchrotron 

Science Group. 

In addition to the formal group structure, the Materials Measurement Science Division has 

identified a range of core competencies and capabilities. While an explicit mapping of the core 

competencies and capabilities to the groups was not discussed, it appears that some of the core 

competencies and capabilities have a center of mass in a particular group, while others span a wide range 

of groups. 

The division’s research portfolio is organized into six focus areas, each with distinct goals: 

1. Safety and Security—to deliver test methods, measurements, and standards to various 

stakeholder communities for problems ranging from trace detection to impact mitigation. 

2. Forensics and Public Health—to develop and facilitate the implementation of scientifically 

valid, robust measurement tools for the chemical characterization of synthetic drugs. 

3. Micro- and Nano-plastics—to provide the U.S. regulatory agencies a standardized platform 

for the quantification of micro- and nano-size plastic particles for assessing potential risk and 

exposure of these emerging contaminants. 

4. Semiconductors—to develop standardized, quantitative tools for the assessment of the threedimensional distribution, morphology, and size features in real, complex semiconductor 

devices. 

5. Climate Mitigation—to develop an autonomous sorbent materials foundry for the rapid 

evaluation of materials for direct air capture of carbon dioxide. 

6. Ceramic Additive Manufacturing—to facilitate the advancement of standards through 

industry-partnered engagements. 

The division’s research activities were presented in terms of these focus areas, along with three 

special topics: Super-Resolution Microscopy, Artificial Intelligence and Data Science, and the Material 

Measurement Laboratory’s (MML’s) partnership facility at Brookhaven National Laboratory. 
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MATERIALS MEASUREMENT SCIENCE DIVISION 51 

Accordingly, the assessment of technical work below is organized along the lines of these focus areas and 

special topics. 

The Materials Measurement Science Division has 92 federal employees and 49 associates (i.e., 

contractors and guest scientists). Most of the personnel are located at the National Institute of Standards 

and Technology (NIST) campus in Gaithersburg, Maryland. Seven of the federal employees and four of 

the associates in the division are stationed at the National Synchrotron Light Source II facility at 

Brookhaven National Laboratory in Upton, New York. The division receives approximately 25 percent of 

its funding from other federal agencies or external sources. These external funding sources are nonpermanent and usually tied to specific deliverables. 

ASSESSMENT OF TECHNICAL PROGRAMS 

Accomplishments 

Safety and Security 

The division’s work in the Safety and Security Focus Area provides the necessary measurement 

science to address technical problems related to the nation’s safety and security. Work in this focus area 

generally falls into three categories: improving national security, enhancing public safety, and advancing 

personal protection for law enforcement and first responders. The work in this focus area leverages a 

range of Materials Measurement Science Division core competencies and capabilities including 

multiscale measurements of physical, mechanical, and transport properties for engineered materials and 

atomic and nanoscale metrology for structure, chemistry, and composition. Research is focused on a 

range of challenges including trace contraband detection, through-barrier imaging, threat detection, riot 

gear evaluation and standards, ballistic and stab-resistant body armor, blunt trauma and concussion 

prevention, nanomedicine, micro- and nano-plastics and microfibers, mask efficiency measurements, and 

the Rapid Drug Analysis and Research program. 

Forensics and Public Health 

The Forensics and Public Health Focus Area supports local, state, and federal partners to address 

the critical measurement challenges surrounding forensic chemistry by developing implementable 

solutions through collaborative research. Work in this focus area generally falls into four categories: 

sample handling and preparation, sample analysis, data analysis and interpretation, and topics that are 

beyond traditional forensics, such as novel types of evidence. The work in this focus area relies heavily 

on a range of advanced individual and combined characterization platforms, including gas and liquid 

chromatography, mass spectrometry, infrared and Raman spectroscopy, and electron microscopy and 

spectroscopy. Research is focused on a range of challenges including identifying and quantifying 

background material and chemical compositions (e.g., the baseline or natural concentration of a material 

or chemical in the environment), modeling the handling of evidence, expanding screening capabilities for 

illicit materials, analysis of novel materials, rethinking forensic workflows, developing new forensic 

algorithms and software, spectral databases, physical standards, the Rapid Drug Analysis and Research 

program, the Rapid Emerging Drug Deployment project, and evaluating and establishing new types of 

evidence. 

Micro- and Nano-Plastics 

Work in this focus area generally falls into three categories: test material production; detection, 

identification, and abundance of micro- and nano-plastics; and sampling, separation, and characterization 

of micro- and nano-plastics. Advanced separation and spectroscopic characterization methodologies are 
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52 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

used, along with machine learning tools to facilitate the rapid analysis of complex data. The staff in this 

focus area are working to develop methods for size-based separations of micro- and nano-plastics from 

complex matrices, chemical characterization protocols for micro- and nano-plastic, and test materials for 

the quantification of micro- and nano-plastics. 

Semiconductors 

Work in this focus area generally falls into three categories: three-dimensional structural and 

chemical imaging, nanomechanical property measurements, and thermal property measurements. The 

work in this focus area uses a wide range of advanced measurement capabilities including electron 

microscopy and spectroscopy; X-ray spectroscopy, scattering, and diffraction; and scanning probe 

microscopy. The staff in this focus area are working with the U.S. semiconductor industry to identify and 

solve metrology needs and challenges based on techniques such as scanning transmission electron 

microscopy, atom probes, nanocalorimetry, nanoscale strain measurements, thermal property 

measurements, intermittent-contact resonance atomic force microscopy, beamline-based measurements 

(e.g., with Brookhaven National Laboratory), and modeling techniques to complement the above. With 

the passage of the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022, the strategic importance of this focus area is likely to 

grow substantially. 

Climate Mitigation 

Work in this focus area falls into three categories: advanced material for carbon capture, catalysis 

for CO2 conversion, and chemical aspects of carbon sequestration (e.g., carbonation of cement). The 

purpose of the work in this focus area is to provide benchmark data, measurement science, and standards 

to address the global climate crisis. This work relies heavily on X-ray and neutron metrology, nanoscale 

metrology and fabrication, accelerated material science and data analysis tools, and measurement 

standards and services. Current efforts include development of an X-ray testbed for breakthrough catalyst 

measurements (for CO2 conversion, but this appears to be, in fact, a very general framework), 

development methods and data to facilitate material discovery (for materials that would directly capture 

CO2 from the air), and measurements of carbonation reactions in sequestration materials (e.g., cement). 

Ceramic Additive Manufacturing 

The Materials Measurement Science Division found a lack of standards and metrology focused 

on ceramic additive manufacturing and established this focus area to address that lack. Work falls into a 

range of categories: computational tools to simulate the entire manufacturing process, feedstock 

characterization, feedstock data, standards for part characterization, and measurements to enable postprocessing (e.g., binder burnout and sintering). This work relies on a range of capabilities, including 

scanning probe microscopy, rheometry, X-ray and neutron scattering and diffraction, computation and 

modeling, and additive manufacturing platforms such as photopolymerization and direct-ink writing. 

Current efforts are focused on feedstock metrology, product property characterization and standards, insitu synchrotron-based characterization, and microstructure and rheology measurement and correlations. 

Data and Artificial Intelligence–Driven Materials Science Group 

This group develops methods, algorithms, data, and tools to accelerate the discovery, 

development, commercialization, and circularity (i.e., the reuse, recycling, or sustainability) of 

industrially relevant materials. The group works across a range of focus areas, including climate 

mitigation and semiconductors, and it partners with the Synchrotron Group (discussed below) to enable 
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MATERIALS MEASUREMENT SCIENCE DIVISION 53 

high-throughput measurement and advanced modeling. Core competencies and capabilities include 

autonomous and artificial intelligence–driven systems and data and protocols. The group is involved in 

more than a dozen projects both inside of the Materials Measurement Science Division and MML, and 

beyond. 

Brookhaven National Laboratory MML Partnership Facility (Synchrotron Science Group) 

In this special topic, the Synchrotron Science Group per se was not the primary focus; rather, the 

presentation highlighted the vast MML capabilities at Brookhaven National Laboratory, such as X-ray 

absorption spectroscopy, X-Ray diffraction, hard X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, resonant soft X-ray 

scattering, microcalorimetry, near edge X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy, vector potential 

photoelectron microscopy, and the Large Area Rapid Imaging Analytical Tool. It was clear that this 

facility provides foundational support across the Materials Measurement Science Division focus areas and 

NIST more broadly. 

Opportunities and Challenges 

The quality of the technical work going on in the Materials Measurement Science Division is 

second to none. The panel approved of the general strategy of combining multiple measurement 

platforms, sometimes with a machine learning platform, to facilitate complex material measurements and 

allow for rapid and high-throughput measurements. In all focus areas, there was a very clear focus on 

metrology, measurement needs and challenges, stakeholder and customer needs, and standards. The focus 

area, core competency, and capabilities matrix structure were helpful when trying to understand the 

breadth of work and how the division articulates its impact. 

MML largely has a flat base budget. At various times throughout the review it was noted that it 

can be challenging for division leaders to manage or balance its sustained base business research, as 

funded by Congress, with new, invariably temporary, federal initiatives that require an all hands on deck 

approach (e.g., the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022), and with efforts funded by external sources. This 

challenge creates a tension between the desire to maintain, develop, and grow core competencies and 

capabilities, and the need to deliver results on transient, albeit important, emergent research efforts. 

Conclusion 7-1: With a largely flat base budget, growing into new areas while maintaining, 

developing, and growing the Materials Measurement Science Division’s core competencies and 

capabilities is a challenge. Managers and focus area leads are compelled to choose to either 

secure temporary external funding to enable transient growth or focus on research connected to 

the base funding. Major federal initiatives (e.g., the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022) further 

complicate this dynamic, as such initiatives often result in substantial funding increases, but 

usually in a limited focus area and over a limited period of time. 

While the budget dynamics discussed above are in the context of MML, the general challenge of 

balancing capability development and growth, delivering results on base business efforts, and responding 

to critical emergent initiatives is typical of large research organizations. The type of matrix framework 

used by the Materials Measurement Science Division has been used successfully to manage research 

portfolios across a range of industries. In short, the focus area structure of the division can be used as a 

framework to prioritize research funding (e.g., one focus area might see an increase in funding at the 

expense of other focus areas), and in response to these changes, the core competency and capability 

resources (i.e., federal employees, associates, and capital) can be adjusted and shifted in response to the 

shift in focus area priorities. For example, with the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022, one could imagine 

the semiconductors focus area growing (i.e., in funding), perhaps at the expense of other division focus 

areas, followed by a redeployment of researchers and capital to work on programs in the semiconductors 
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54 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

focus area. The simplest implementation of this model often rests on the structure of the organization 

being roughly aligned with its core competencies and capabilities. It was not apparent in the course of this 

review that the division is using its matrix model to balance the demands of its base, ongoing research, 

and critical emergent initiatives. 

Recommendation 7-1: The Materials Measurement Science Division should consider 

leveraging its focus area and core competency and capabilities matrix structure to manage 

the challenge of balancing ongoing base work with the needs of critical emergent initiatives, 

such as the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022. 

ASSESSMENT OF SCIENTIFIC EXPERTISE 

Accomplishments 

The scientific expertise of the Materials Measurement Science Division is extensive, and an 

exhaustive accounting of such expertise here is unnecessary. A general accounting of scientific expertise 

was provided above, in the “Accomplishments” subsection of the “Assessment of Technical Programs” 

section. 

In short, the overwhelming majority of the necessary expertise needed to advance the work 

reviewed was available in the Materials Measurement Science Division. In cases where specific expertise 

was needed that resided outside of the division, concerted, targeted collaborations were established to 

advance the research. For example, the effort to develop an X-ray testbed for breakthrough catalyst 

measurements requires a novel sensor; the Materials Measurement Science Division is partnering with the 

Physical Measurement Laboratory to design and build this sensor. 

Opportunities and Challenges 

While the overwhelming majority of the necessary expertise needed to progress the work 

reviewed was available and being leveraged, there were a few examples where important expertise 

appears to be minimal or absent. While a required expertise might not be part of the Materials 

Measurement Science Division’s core competencies and capabilities, at a minimum, leveraging it, 

perhaps from other parts of NIST or with partners outside of NIST, could ensure the technical success of 

the associated programs. 

For example, in the Climate Mitigation Focus Area, significant weight is given to motivating 

factors such as energy intensity and CO2 accounting, yet it appears as if a life-cycle assessment or a 

techno-economic analysis has not been completed, likely owing to a lack of expertise on the research 

team. Life-cycle assessment or techno-economic analysis can provide clear motivation for specific 

research areas and elucidate otherwise unappreciated technical challenges. Furthermore, each of the three 

programs that were presented as part of the Climate Mitigation Focus Area appeared to lack expertise in 

the associated chemistry (e.g., catalysis, active materials and separations, and sustainable cement). The 

long-term impact of the work in this focus area could be limited by these apparent omissions. 

Recommendation 7-2: The Materials Measurement Science Division should develop or 

leverage outside expertise in life-cycle assessment and techno-economic analysis in order to 

guide and focus its research in the climate mitigation focus area. Likewise, where complex 

measurement complements complex chemistry (e.g., catalysis, active materials and 

separations, and sustainable cement), the division should support a more substantial effort 

in the corresponding chemistries or leverage outside expertise to do so. This could include 

having a world-class catalyst chemist and metal-organic framework expert working side by 

side with the division’s materials measurement scientists. 
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MATERIALS MEASUREMENT SCIENCE DIVISION 55 

BUDGET, FACILITIES, EQUIPMENT, AND HUMAN RESOURCES 

In fiscal year 2023, the Materials Measurement Science Division’s budget was $37.165 million, 

comprising $27.434 million from appropriations, $8.879 million from reimbursable work for other federal 

agencies, and $852,000 from providing services such as standard reference materials and a working 

capital fund. It receives approximately 25 percent of its funding from other federal agencies or external 

sources, and 75 percent of its funding from Congress as core or base funding. It has 136 total staff, 

comprising 81 scientists, 3 technicians, 6 support staff, 1 fellow, and 45 associates. 

Accomplishments 

Overall, the Materials Measurement Science Division staff exhibited an extraordinary ability to 

execute technically excellent work in less-than-optimal conditions. The sentiment communicated by the 

management, focus area leads, and staff was that everyone works hard to deliver results, despite the 

constraints that will be discussed below. While this division continues to produce impressive and cuttingedge work, its continued ability to do so is threatened by issues noted below in the “Opportunities and 

Challenges” section. 

The division has a great deal of precision measurement and material science equipment, and this 

equipment is leveraged for much of the research portfolio. Nearly all programs presented rely on the 

internal discovery and development of measurement methods to deliver value to stakeholders. The 

division’s facilities and equipment at Brookhaven National Laboratory were nothing short of 

extraordinary. The breadth and depth of capabilities at the Brookhaven National Laboratory MML 

Partnership Facility are second to none. 

The Materials Measurement Science Division has 92 federal employees and 49 associates (i.e., 

contractors and guest scientists). Most of the division’s personnel are located at the NIST campus in 

Gaithersburg, Maryland. Seven of the federal employees and four of the associates in the division are 

stationed at Brookhaven National Laboratory in Upton, New York. The National Research Council 

Research Associateship Program continues to be one of the premiere postdoc programs in materials 

science, and the program continues to attract world-class talent. The staff at all levels appeared to be 

excited about their work and dedicated to NIST’s mission. 

Opportunities and Challenges 

While the work in the Materials Measurement Science Division is currently state of the art, there 

is a risk that the quality and output of work could be diminished unless care is taken to manage aspects of 

funding, facilities, equipment, and human resources. 

Materials Measurement Science Division staff mentioned that some equipment, while functional 

and locally modified in order to maintain relevance, is dated and in need of replacement. Notable 

examples are associated with the Safety and Security Focus Area (e.g., large geometry secondary ion 

mass spectrometer) and the Semiconductor Focus Area (e.g., electron microscopes). 

Materials Measurement Science Division staff noted, and this was strongly supported by 

discussions with postdoc and early career employees, that the time frame to complete facilities work (e.g., 

repairs and upgrades) can be very long, often disrupting the flow and delivery of—and even the ability to 

conduct—critical research. A notable example is the process to update facilities in the Advanced 

Measurement Laboratory—to address known flooding and water issues to enable the delivery and 

installation of new equipment required for work funded by the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022. Given the 

relatively short time frame associated with the funding in this act, this is concerning, to say the least. 

Division staff also noted, and this was strongly supported by discussions with postdoc and early 

career employees, that a general lack of technician support means that principal investigators often spend 
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56 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

considerable time in the laboratory performing routine operations, often at the expense of advancing 

nonroutine and complex aspects of research. 

Postdoc and early career staff noted that the NIST Human Resources office has been 

exceptionally slow and at times unresponsive. There are accounts of Human Resources not sending offer 

letters to new hires and not processing paperwork in a timely manner so that new employees are left in a 

period of limbo, without pay or benefits or even certainty of employment. This dynamic can clearly affect 

productivity directly, and it also produces considerable anxiety and distraction amongst the staff, thus 

affecting productivity indirectly. This is exacerbated by the reported de facto process of requiring 

approximately two term appointments before permanent employment is considered. 

As mentioned above in the “Opportunities and Challenges” subsection of the “Assessment of 

Technical Programs” section, owing to a largely flat base budget, there is a persistent tension between the 

desire to maintain, develop, and grow core competencies and capabilities, and the need to deliver results 

on transient, albeit important, emergent research efforts. Conclusion 7-1 and Recommendation 7-1 

presented there are relevant here as well. 

Recommendation 7-3: The Materials Measurement Science Division should consider 

reallocating budget and staff support to facilitate refurbishment of the division facilities; 

purchasing of new equipment; increasing the number of technicians, especially in strategic 

areas or in areas where considerable routine laboratory work is required; and improving 

the response time and bandwidth of formal Human Resources activities. 

Finding 7-1: Postdoc and early career staff noted that the uncertainty associated with the 

transition from postdoc to permanent employment at the National Institute of Standards and 

Technology can be a source of anxiety and distraction. 

 

Recommendation 7-4: Materials Measurement Science Division management and postdoc 

advisors should consider a standard message about the chances and processes of 

transitioning from a postdoc to a permanent staff member to minimize the uncertainty 

around this process. 

While the Materials Measurement Science Division has a central artificial intelligence and data 

group (Data and Artificial Intelligence-Driven Materials Science Group), it does not appear to have a 

central data infrastructure, such as curated or managed data repositories. Rather, it appears that data are 

managed by individual programs or projects. A central Materials Measurement Science Division or 

MML-curated or managed data repository could improve collaboration between teams and groups, 

increase productivity (e.g., speed up the time between data acquisition and analysis), and provide broader 

access to data for ad hoc use across program teams, NIST divisions, and external users. 

Recommendation 7-5: The Materials Measurement Science Division should consider, 

perhaps in collaboration with other divisions in the Material Measurement Laboratory, 

establishing a managed data repository, or at least a common data management plan, to 

aggregate the division’s data; facilitate sharing across program teams, National Institute of 

Standards and Technology divisions, and external users; and facilitate data analysis. 

EFFECTIVENESS OF DISSEMINATION EFFORTS 

Accomplishments 

The read-ahead materials, along with the presentations from the Materials Measurement Science 

Division staff, illustrated numerous examples of recognized and effective dissemination efforts since the 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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MATERIALS MEASUREMENT SCIENCE DIVISION 57 

previous assessment, such as 445 publications, 157 standards activities, 67 customer engagements, and a 

range of external recognition (e.g., the International Excellence Fellowship, granted by the Karlsruhe 

Institute of Technology) and Department of Commerce and NIST named awards (e.g., Bronze, Silver, and 

Gold medals, among many other internal awards). 

As mentioned above, the Materials Measurement Science Division has a very clear customer 

focus, and about 25 percent of its budget is from external funding sources such as customers. These 

interactions are an acknowledged mechanism for dissemination of results. The division’s dissemination 

efforts appear to be robust and fit for purpose. 

Opportunities and Challenges 

Generally speaking, the processes and avenues used to disseminate results were impressive. The 

programs appear to have strong connections to stakeholders, and publishing of results in various formats 

(e.g., research publications, standards, tutorials) is widely practiced. The only additional aspect worth 

considering is building stronger connections with instrument manufacturers. For example, the 

semiconductors focus area struggled to quantify program impacts owing to the confidentiality of the work 

of their stakeholders, customers, and partners, such as chip manufacturers. In short, the intellectual 

property concerns of organizations such as chip manufacturers mean that the division has received limited 

feedback on the utility of its work. Other efforts appeared to have a strong connection to the measurement 

practitioners of a given sector, but limited connections to instrument manufacturers. In both cases, there 

was a lack of direct interaction with measurement equipment manufacturers and vendors. Working to 

develop measurements and standards that are successfully implemented by measurement equipment 

manufacturers and vendors could increase the impact of the Materials Measurement Science Division’s 

work in a clear and quantitative way. 

Finding 7-2: There is a lack of direct interaction with measurement equipment manufacturers and 

vendors. 

Recommendation 7-6: Where appropriate, the Materials Measurement Science Division’s 

program staff should partner with measurement equipment manufacturers and vendors to 

facilitate the development and implementation of National Institute of Standards and 

Technology measurements and standards; this could improve the impact of a range of 

programs and help identify the quantitative impact of the division’s work. 
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58 

8 

Materials Science and Engineering Division 

The Materials Science and Engineering Division is dedicated to the research and development of 

materials measurement science, standards, technology, and data. It supports the National Institute of 

Standards and Technology (NIST) Material Measurement Laboratory’s (MML’s) mission in advanced 

manufacturing, including the Materials Genome Initiative 2.0, additive manufacturing, and 

biomanufacturing. The division also has programs in advanced electronics, the circular economy, climate, 

and the environment. Many of the topics are cross-cutting programs, and some programs are shared with 

other laboratories of NIST. 

The division is made up of six groups. During this assessment, each group presented an overview 

of selected programs to the panelists. The six groups are the Polymers and Complex Fluids Group, 

Functional Polymers Group, Polymer Processing Group, Functional Nanostructured Materials Group, 

Mechanical Performance Group, and Thermodynamics and Kinetics Group. 

The division also hosted two laboratory tours and a forum with postdoctoral fellows and early 

career researchers. 

The division leads or collaborates with internal and external stakeholders on diverse programs 

important to the innovation and competitiveness of the nation’s manufacturing. A few notable programs 

include the Center for Hierarchical Materials Design, Center for Theoretical and Computational Materials 

Science, NIST Center for Automotive Lightweighting, and Additive Manufacturing Benchmarks. 

The division has 161 staff members at the time of this assessment; these include 60 permanent 

staff, 21 term employees, 20 postdoctoral fellows, and 60 associates. In 2020, there were 151 staff, 

indicating the total staff count has increased by 10 over the past 3 years. The division’s staff represents 

about 19 percent of the total MML staff. The division’s budget for 2023 was about $30 million, which is 

flat compared to 2020 when MML was last assessed. The average annual funding per full-time employee 

was about $186,000 in 2023. 

The division’s impact is closely connected to its collaboration with industry, government 

agencies, academic partners, standard organizations, and the dissemination of its research. The division 

holds an outstanding publication record, which includes 375 archival journals, 34 database publications, 

16 NIST reports, 14 conference papers, and 6 book chapters since the past assessment. The division also 

has strong engagement with customers. It had 16 cooperative research and development agreements, 

hosted 2 consortia, and led or participated in 24 workshops in the past 3 years. The division’s 

dissemination includes data, open-source software, and active participation in 96 standard committees 

with more than 21 leadership positions. 

The scientific accomplishments and services of the division’s researchers have been recognized 

by NIST and the Department of Commerce as well as by peers in professional societies. These awards 

include the Arthur S. Flemming Award, the NIST William P. Slichter Award, National Academy of 

Sciences Kavli Fellow, Microscopy Today Innovation Award, and fellowship of the American Physical 

Society, ASM International, and the Society of Rheology. 
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MATERIALS SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING DIVISION 59 

ASSESSMENT OF TECHNICAL PROGRAMS 

The division determines the scope and the priorities of its research programs annually, with 

guidance from the Visiting Committee on Advanced Technology. One overarching division theme is 

leveraging its strength and core competences to advance science and technology in materials science, 

measurement technology, standards, and data to enhance U.S. manufacturing competitiveness in 

industries such as automobile, aviation, chemical, biotechnology, defense, pharmaceutical, and 

semiconductor. The division recruits and retains top-notch researchers and the quality of research is 

outstanding. 

The Materials Science and Engineering Division supports the nation’s need to design, develop, 

manufacture, and use materials. As such, the division interacts extensively with some of the leading 

players (with an aggregate 2022 annual revenue of more than $2 trillion) in industry. The division has had 

outstanding engagements with stakeholders in the semiconductor, and additive and automotive 

manufacturing industries, as well as the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. However, stakeholder 

engagement was not as clear in some other areas. The long-term impact of the division’s programs on the 

nation’s economy and innovations was not adequately documented and reported. 

Researchers in the division developed unique multimodal capabilities to probe material 

composition, structures, and properties or functionalities simultaneously with wide ranges of spatial and 

temporal scales, coupled with modeling and simulation, to gain knowledge and provide insights for 

industrial applications. Some of the examples are highlighted below. The programs discussed below cut 

across the divisions research groups and involve collaboration with other parts of NIST and stakeholders 

outside of NIST. 

Accomplishments and Challenges in Selected Programs 

Advanced Manufacturing 

The Materials Science and Engineering Division has a strong advanced manufacturing program, 

aimed at revitalizing the nation’s manufacturing capabilities and the associated infrastructure. Advanced 

manufacturing is a cross-cutting theme within the division. It includes additive manufacturing with metals 

and polymers, advanced composites, the NIST Center for Automotive Lightweighting, biomanufacturing, 

and the nSoft consortium. The division leads a NIST-wide effort on additive manufacturing 

benchmarking to create a comprehensive benchmark database to validate numerical models over the full 

range of additive manufacturing processes. 

As with other NIST programs, the division has engaged key external and internal stakeholders in 

advanced manufacturing to maximize its impact. External industrial partners are major players in 

manufacturing sectors such as automobile, aviation, biotechnology, chemical, defense, and 

pharmaceutical. Examples of these companies include 3M, Amgen, Boeing, Dow, Ford, General Motors, 

PPG, and Raytheon. 

The division capitalizes on its strength in developing multimodal measurement techniques—

many proprietary—to elucidate relationships between material composition, processing, structure, and 

properties or performance. These unique capabilities allow simultaneous spatial and temporal 

measurements of structure and performance over large swaths of time and space. 

When division researchers encountered unavoidable challenges over the past 3 years, they rose to 

the occasion. For example, when some NIST facilities were closed during the COVID-19 pandemic, 

researchers in the division developed a mobile multimodal measurement module and shipped it around 

the world to maintain research momentum. 
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60 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

Advanced Electronic Materials 

NIST has a long history of research on semiconductor technology and electronic materials. It is a 

recognized national center of excellence and is entrusted to administer the $50 billion CHIPS and Science 

Act of 2022. The Materials Science and Engineering Division will be a key part of this NIST effort. The 

division has a track record of fruitful collaborations with major players and key consortia in the 

semiconductor industry to develop technology roadmaps, spur innovations, and advance semiconductor 

measurements and manufacturing technologies. The external stakeholders include companies such as 

IBM, Intel, Honeywell, KLA, and the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company; and consortia 

like the Semiconductor Research Corporation. 

The division has a strong program in semiconductor lithography in X-ray-based dimensional 

metrology and photoresist materials. The metrology technology, called CDSAXS, employs X-rays to 

nondestructively measure high aspect-ratio, nano-scale critical features on 300-mm wafers, a feat that had 

been elusive to traditional semiconductor metrology methods. This exemplary technology has been 

adopted for manufacturing leading-edge three-dimensional memory products worldwide. The current 

focus is on providing the industry with standard reference materials for this measurement technology. 

This program’s collaborators encompass semiconductor industry giants, including those who produce 

electronics products and those who create materials, equipment, process lines, and characterization tools 

for manufacturing electronics products. 

Another focus area in semiconductor lithography is materials measurements technology for 

advanced photoresist materials. This work dates to foundational work at NIST in the early 2000s and has 

become increasingly important as the industry moves to extreme ultraviolet lithography for manufacturing 

the 5 nm node of electronic products and beyond. The division has been working on chemically specific 

direct measurements of nanoscale lateral interfaces that have greater relevance for new photoresist 

materials in extreme ultraviolet lithography. 

Additionally, the division has an active program in electrochemical deposition of electrical 

conductors for the semiconductor industry. Researchers in the division demonstrated copper conformation 

super filling, which is important for wafer fabrications and advanced packaging. 

Finally, the division pioneered research on biological ways to sort and place semiconducting 

carbon nanotubes as a potential future transistor technology to extend Moore’s Law. Recent work on 

DNA templated dense carbon nanotube arrays is an important step toward future high-density, highperformance, and energy-efficient electronics. 

The CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 investment is expected to significantly boost the division’s 

advanced electronic materials research in the coming years. 

Sustainability 

The division’s sustainability work is focused on three areas: (1) the circular economy of plastics, 

(2) polymer membranes for clean water, and (3) carbon dioxide (CO2) capture. 

The division partnered with major polyolefins manufacturers to advance measurement science 

through the synthesis of plastics with systematic variations of polymer sequence, chemistry, and chain 

architectures. This work led to a curated data and analysis framework of correlated measurements for 

post-consumer plastic identification and sorting facilities. 

In a project focused on clean water, the division partnered with industry stakeholders to develop 

and advance integrated measurement platforms to characterize the key structural, thermodynamic, and 

kinetic properties of polymer membranes and sorbents that govern water and small molecule transport. 

This work led to design cues for water membranes with controlled chemistry, structure, and thickness; 

and standard testing protocols for the industry. 
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MATERIALS SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING DIVISION 61 

In the CO2 capture project, the division endeavors to achieve CO2 capture and the energy 

efficient, selective, and high-throughput conversion of CO2 into chemical feedstocks and other specialty 

products. 

While the plastics and CO2 research quality is outstanding, the programs’ long-term impacts are 

not adequately documented and reported. 

 

Recommendation 8-1: The Materials Science and Engineering Division should develop 

more coordinated technical and stakeholder engagement plans for its effort in carbon 

dioxide capture and the circular economy of plastics and track the long-term impacts of the 

division’s programs on the nation’s economy and related innovations. 

Data Science and Data Infrastructure 

The Materials Science and Engineering Division collects, stores, analyzes, and transmits data in 

the course of all of its research, measurement, standards-making, and dissemination activities. Data 

science is an integral and increasingly important part of the division’s work to meet its mission. Within 

MML, the Office of Data and Informatics is a dedicated, service-oriented data resource for physical 

sciences with domain expertise in biological, chemical, and materials sciences, specializing in large and 

information-rich data sets. 

The division’s efforts in data science are highlighted in three areas: (1) the Materials Genome 

Initiative 2.0; (2) Additive Manufacturing Benchmarking—a NIST-wide effort to create a comprehensive 

benchmark database for additive manufacturing; and (3) the NIST Center for Automotive Lightweighting 

data management system. In addition, the Center for Theoretical and Computational Materials Science 

provides a scientist-run, flexible production environment and testing ground for the development of new 

scientific software tools, computational workflows, and data management. This high-performance 

computing center hosts computers for both a shared public cluster (comprising approximately 70 compute 

nodes and 100 TB of data storage) and several private high-performance computing systems and clusters. 

The Materials Genome Initiative 2.0 is an evolution from the Materials Genome Initiative 1.0. It 

focuses on data and informatics, laboratory automation, high-throughput computing, and artificial 

intelligence and machine learning methods. The goal is to accelerate materials discoveries and 

innovations by harnessing the power of artificial intelligence and machine learning. 

The Center for Hierarchical Materials Design (ChiMad) is an extension and integral part of the 

Materials Genome Initiative. It developed broad research and outreach programs that involve participants 

from universities and NIST, and from automotive, aerospace, semiconductor, and polymer industries. It 

has made tremendous progress by integrating traditional computational materials tools with artificial 

intelligence and machine learning to accelerate material discovery and the technology deployment cycles. 

Since its inception, the center has published more than 600 papers and supported 14 dedicated NIST 

postdocs. 

The center’s active collaboration with industry has led to tangible results. For example, its 

researchers designed a new printable die-cast steel to enable Tesla Gigacasting and has transferred 

computational tools and data management approaches to major companies such as Intel and 3M. The 

center’s researchers have also pioneered tools for the inverse design of sustainable plastics and nontoxic 

additives—tools that are highly sought after by industrial partners such as 3M, PPG, Solvay, and Apple in 

their efforts to transition into sustainable, fully recoverable materials cycles of use and reuse. 

The Center for Hierarchical Materials Design has produced many fruitful outcomes and is coming 

to a natural end. The division’s programs associated with the center will be redirected to other NIST 

priorities. 

The Additive Manufacturing Benchmarking program aims to create a comprehensive benchmark 

data set to validate numerical models in additive manufacturing. This NIST-wide program, running since 

2015, has 51 NIST staff and associates from 10 NIST divisions. This program adopted a challenge 
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62 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

approach to validate additive manufacturing models for specific additive manufacturing scenarios. It 

collects all of the relevant measurement data and metadata for a given scenario and makes it available to 

challenge participants—modelers—on a predetermined schedule. The challenge participants present the 

modeling results to the community at regularly scheduled conferences. In 2022, 34 challenge problems 

were posed. The Additive Manufacturing Benchmarking program received 138 submissions from the 

additive manufacturing modeling community and gave out 41 awards based on a set of predetermined 

model quality metrics. One data-related challenge in this program is that data collection, storage, analysis, 

and movement are handled by multiple platforms and are fragmented. 

The NIST Center for Automotive Lightweighting aims to improve fuel economy and electric 

vehicle range while maintaining safety in the U.S. automotive industry by incorporating advanced 

lightweight materials into automobile designs. It develops foundational measurements, test methods, and 

standards for characterizing the material properties and behavior of automotive sheet materials under 

complex and real-life use conditions. This center is the largest and second-longest-tenured project in the 

division with strong partnership in the automotive industry. External partners include Ford, General 

Motors, and their suppliers. The center collects data from many test platforms with operating systems 

spanning several decades. It also has substantial modeling efforts. The NIST Center for Automotive 

Lightweighting faces similar data management challenges to the Additive Manufacturing Bench program, 

but on a larger scale. Not all of the experimental measurement systems have a consolidated and 

automated data infrastructure. This fragmented data infrastructure, unfortunately, leads to discrete 

ineffective experimental data infrastructure throughout this program (and the division). 

One encouraging effort by the NIST Center for Automotive Lightweighting was to consolidate 

the vastly different operating systems of all of its measurement equipment into a virtual machine. This 

virtual machine approach not only unified the measurement equipment operating systems but also 

afforded a unified infrastructure for data management infrastructure, use, and security. The virtual 

machine approach as a best practice would be useful throughout the Materials Science and Engineering 

Division. 

A large number of the Materials Science and Engineering Division’s projects involve 

computational work and they often result in the development of many and different computational 

methods, varying from conventional finite element, thermodynamic methods to a density function theorybased comprehensive materials information system such as JARVIS. Although the computational works 

in the division are impressive, most of them are done as a part of individual projects. As a result, the 

computational data does not seem to be managed in a centralized platform. 

Recommendation 8-2: The Materials Science and Engineering Division should launch an 

initiative to unify its computational systems, data formats, and data transmission protocols 

into a single, uniform platform for more efficient and effective data curation, storage, 

processing, transmission, and security management. This data science initiative could be 

applied to machine learning deployment and expand capabilities in laboratory automation, 

high-throughput computation, and artificial intelligence and machine learning methods. 

ASSESSMENT OF SCIENTIFIC EXPERTISE 

The Materials Science and Engineering Division’s staff members are leading technical experts in 

their respective fields. These experts are passionate about addressing some of the nation’s pressing 

challenges including manufacturing resurgence, sustainability, climate, and infrastructure. However, the 

skill set in machine learning or artificial intelligence is not adequate to support the division’s needs to 

capitalize on the growing, diverse data sets and the division’s overall goals in artificial intelligence, 

machine learning, and future initiatives in lab automation. 
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MATERIALS SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING DIVISION 63 

Recommendation 8-3: The Materials Science and Engineering Division should hire more 

scientists skilled in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and data science to build 

internal capabilities and capitalize on the growing, diverse sets of data the division has 

handled. 

BUDGET, FACILITIES, EQUIPMENT, AND HUMAN RESOURCES 

In fiscal year 2023 the budget for the Materials Science and Engineering Division was $28.410 

million, comprising $27.035 million from appropriations, $1.242 million from reimbursable work for 

other federal agencies, and $132,000 from providing services such as standard reference materials and a 

working capital fund. The division has maintained a steady funding and staffing level to meet its key 

mission and deliverables as outlined in the Introduction, provided that the division is able to complement 

its current staff with scientists with expertise in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and data science. 

The division has established a few new facilities such as the state-of-the-art materials measurement 

laboratory where the in situ fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy equipment is housed. It also 

acquired new tools and capabilities such as the 300 MHz solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance 

spectrometer, the environmental transmission electron microscope, and the broad beam ion mill in recent 

years. It has strived to upgrade equipment or build its own tools. However, many of the buildings, 

facilities, and tools are several decades old. The maintenance, restoration, and modernization of facilities 

and capabilities have not kept up with the increasingly important role the division needs to play. 

Moreover, it took an unusually long time (more than 6 months) to receive approval for tools and 

capabilities. A more detailed assessment of NIST’s facilities can be found in the 2023 National 

Academies report Technical Assessment of the Capital Facility Needs of the National Institute of 

Standards and Technology (NASEM 2023). 

The division in general ascribes to proper safety procedures and practices. However, observations 

made during the laboratory tours and meetings suggest areas for improvement. For instance, it appeared 

that a researcher who typically wears prescription glasses does not universally use laboratory safety 

glasses that meet today’s laboratory safety standards. Generally, it did not appear to the panel for it to be 

customary for researchers entering into a laboratory area to immediately don safety glasses upon entering 

a laboratory setting. On one occasion, an organic chemical odor was detected upon entering into a 

laboratory setting, which suggests the need for critical facilities improvements coupled with added 

researcher training and awareness of laboratory and experimental standard operating procedures. In a 

similar vein, some exhaust systems appeared to have been installed without regard to current 

recommendations for materials to be used with snorkels that will be handling toxic or flammable organic 

solvents. Furthermore, to PhD-level researchers, the career path as a safety representative is not clear 

although the workload and the responsibilities of a safety representative are enormous. The reward system 

did not appear to align with the responsibilities of safety representatives. This misalignment does not 

encourage PhD scientists to serve as safety representatives in the division. Given the extensive Materials 

Science and Engineering Division relationships with industrial partners that were apparent during the 

assessment, the division would be advised to consider working with their industry partners to develop 

laboratory safety initiatives and programs to build a safety culture that aims for continuous improvement. 

EFFECTIVENESS OF DISSEMINATION EFFORTS 

The Materials Science and Engineering Division has a track record of engaging key stakeholders, 

including major industry players, for broad dissemination of knowledge and standards, to identify 

pressing national challenges, to formulate industry roadmaps, and to establish collaboration strategies. 

In the past 3 years, the division has published 375 archival journals, 34 database publications, 16 

NIST reports, 14 conference papers, and 6 book chapters. The division had strong engagements with key 

stakeholders as evidenced by 16 cooperative research and development agreements and hosting two 
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64 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

consortia (nSoft and Additive Manufacturing-Bench). It led or participated in 24 workshops in the past 3 

years. Its researchers served on 96 standard committees and held 21 leadership positions in these 

organizations. Its engagements with leading players in the industry and standard organizations are broad, 

deep, and impactful. However, the division does not seem to track the long-term impacts of its work. 

Recommendation 8-4: The Materials Science and Engineering Division should develop a 

plan to track the long-term, quantitative impact of its key programs and industrial 

engagements. 

REFERENCE 

NASEM (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine). 2023. Technical Assessment of 

the Capital Facility Needs of the National Institute of Standards and Technology. Washington, 

DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/26684. 
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65 

9 

Office of Data and Informatics 

The Office of Data and Informatics is effectively meeting its mission to provide leadership and

expertise to meet the data challenges and opportunities for the rest of the Material Measurement 

Laboratory (MML) and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) research data 

infrastructure. Its mission also includes providing services to MML and to NIST through its expertise, 

guidance, and the resources it offers in order to enhance the discoverability, usability, and interoperability 

of data collected by other NIST laboratories and occasionally, outside sources. The office is similarly 

meeting this portion of its mission through programs that it offers, including creating data infrastructure 

workflows, modern and robust data repositories, and thought leadership for the use and dissemination of 

research data beyond the federal government (i.e., the Research Data Framework). There is potential for 

expansion and replication of these initiatives throughout MML and the rest of NIST. 

Overall, the capabilities within the Office of Data and Informatics to increase the usability, 

interoperability, and discoverability of NIST’s and MML’s outputs are absolutely vital to meeting NIST’s 

mission 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” and 

MML’s mission to “conduct measurement science research to benefit industries based in the chemical, 

biological and material sciences.” Furthermore, these critical goals can only continue to be met if the 

initiatives and projects of the office are widely implemented across MML. Fortunately, this imperative is 

achievable owing to the foundations that have been laid over the past decade by the staff at the Office of 

Data and Informatics. Nevertheless, it will take concerted effort and planning to apply the lessons, tools, 

and workflows more broadly. 

ASSESSMENT OF TECHNICAL PROGRAMS 

The Office of Data and Informatics has a team that can bring consideration of experimental 

metadata early into every division. Experimental metadata describes the conditions under which the data 

were collected and allows later investigators to use that data for additional research or verification. This 

skill and perspective are too easily overlooked in common practice because many of the benefits are 

realized only in hindsight, by future users or projects or by external community members when accessing 

and making use of the results of past work. The fact that the benefits of high-quality metadata are being 

considered and implemented in the projects that this office spearheads will help to improve future reuse 

and may also improve research practice through the improved data management practices. These efforts 

benefit the wider scientific community and the nation because the data outputs from MML’s work are 

preserved, curated, and disseminated allowing for others to reuse them and to increase the transparency, 

credibility, and impact of MML. This is enhanced by the consideration given to openness and 

transparency, which require technical skills to manage and to create workflows that enable both. 

A major success has been the data pipeline created through the NexusLIMS1

 infrastructure. This 

networked system automatically captures scientific data as it is generated throughout the electron 

microscopy working groups and automatically applies relevant metadata. This benefits individual 

1

 A LIMS is a laboratory information management system. 
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66 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

researchers, who are better able to access, store, manage, analyze, and retrieve the original experimental 

data. Colleagues and supervisors can see and support the research as it progresses and as results are 

generated. The automatic addition of important metadata and tags about the equipment, its settings, and 

the context in which the images were created addresses key shortcomings that affect reproducibility in 

scientific settings. The benefits to society grow exponentially as it feeds into a truly FAIR2

 pipeline that 

eventually allows for public discoverability through NIST’s Public Data Repository, which allows for 

human and machine-readable data access. 

This office’s staff possess expertise in assessing technical solutions to determine if the reuse, 

modification, or creation of new custom tools is required. Prior to creating new software or workflows, 

the staff effectively evaluates commercial and open-source solutions for the degree of fit and an overall 

cost-benefit analysis. They possess the capability to create novel solutions that are effective and valuable 

where suitable commercial and open-source solutions do not exist. 

The Materials Science and Engineering Division, with the support of the Office of Data and 

Informatics effectively uses virtual machines to increase the longevity of aging equipment that is 

controlled by computers running on obsolete operating systems (e.g., Windows XP or 2000). This 

increases and extends the return on investment that was made in the equipment in the first place. 

The Office of Data and Informatics in collaboration with world experts helped to create the 

Research Data Framework. This framework is a useful tool for researchers, librarians, research support 

staff, and external stakeholders such as data repositories and scientific publishers because it provides 

specific recommendations for practices at each stage of the research process. Success in implementing 

this organizational infrastructure is establishing NIST’s credibility and leadership in data information 

practices. 

Recommendation 9-1: The Material Measurement Laboratory should periodically and 

frequently engage with industry and academia through activities such as workshops, 

meetings, conferences, and roundtables to standardize data management frameworks that 

fully support U.S. science advancement and industry competitiveness via open tools and 

instruments alike. 

Recommendation 9-2: The Material Measurement Laboratory should disseminate broadly 

the Materials Science and Engineering Division’s protocols for the use of virtual machines 

to increase the longevity of aging equipment controlled by obsolete computers, effectively 

empowering industry, academia, and government laboratories to extend the return on 

capital equipment investments. 

ASSESSMENT OF SCIENTIFIC EXPERTISE 

The Office of Data and Informatics has 23 total staff, comprising 14 scientists, 2 support staff, 

and 7 contract staff. Building, maintaining, and growing the capability to properly structure useful data 

repositories requires sufficient scientific expertise. This understanding is particularly important to be able 

to appropriately incorporate the needs of a broad technical community. These diverse communities at 

MML comprise fundamental and applied sciences like chemistry, physics, biology, materials, and 

engineering. The Office of Data and Informatics meets these requirements with a strong core team 

possessing scientific backgrounds in astrophysics, biology, and materials. Their ability to leverage other 

resources is exemplified through internal and external collaborations like their engagement with faculty 

from the University of North Florida. This relationship afforded a recent paper in Nature (Hanisch et al. 

2022), in which staff from and peers of the Office of Data and Informatics call for machine readable units 

2

 FAIR is a set of principles to ensure that data are findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable; see 

GOFAIR, “FAIR Principles,” https://www.go-fair.org/fair-principles, for more information. 
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OFFICE OF DATA AND INFORMATICS 67 

of measurement and stands out as evidence of the strength and potential impacts these collaborations can 

have on the Office of Data and Informatics’ ability to affect the NIST brand in a very positive manner. 

The importance of incorporating internal scientific domain expertise from within MML into the 

Office of Data and Informatics is demonstrated from the significant impact made by a fully embedded 

material scientist who has extensive knowledge of electron microscopy. This inclusion of technical 

knowledge into the office’s work provides the team with deep knowledge of the data requirements when 

using this critical tool for MML. Similarly, the epidemiological modeling work presented is another 

example of the impact domain experts have on the division’s work as it grows its collaborations in dataintensive methodologies applied to biology (e.g., collaboration with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory). 

Despite these first-rate examples of collaborative efforts, a potential challenge in maintaining the 

necessary scientific breadth is conspicuously shallow, in some cases being only one person deep. For 

example, a significant capability gap would occur immediately within the Office of Data and Informatics 

if their only materials scientist were to pursue other career opportunities. 

A home-grown capability described by the division’s staff, and mentioned in several other 

assessment groups, was the development of virtual machines. This clever construct allows MML 

researchers to maintain instruments running proprietary software necessary for using equipment with 

proper security and technical support even after their original computers or operating systems are 

obsolete. This enables and extends the data capture that is instrumental for the Office of Data and 

Informatics. It is worth noting that the individual who built this capability is not officially a member of 

the office’s staff. This situation demonstrates the team’s ability to leverage resources available throughout 

MML and represents a kernel of an idea to scale up the office in a low-cost fashion while providing a 

significant opportunity for NIST’s postdoctoral cohort as described below. 

One possibility to bring additional resources to the Office of Data and Informatics in a way that 

will increase its sphere of influence and improve its ability to maintain the needed scientific breadth, is to 

develop a model that would create sustainable connections to the various laboratories. A hybrid of the two 

models described in the last two paragraphs would afford a sustainable solution: namely, 6-month 

rotations of postdocs from other groups through the office. It is possible that non-Office of Data and 

Informatics groups may find this idea to be a distraction to the postdoctoral cohort. However, this model 

would bring about several other tangible and impactful benefits to both the Office of Data and Informatics 

and postdocs such as: 

 Providing more resources to work on data infrastructure without adding to the total number of 

Office of Data and Informatics staff, an important consideration owing to budgetary 

constraints. 

 Creating and expanding a continuous stream of fresh domain knowledge from various MML 

groups into the office because the rotating postdocs would bring new perspectives from the 

various divisions in MML. 

 Growing professional networks that could be leveraged during and after the postdocs’ time at 

NIST. 

 Expanding training opportunities for postdocs providing them with fungible skills such as 

data science; this would enrich the learning experience while postdocs are at NIST while 

providing a concrete benefit to MML and NIST through the additional expertise that it would 

provide. 

 Embedding a data-driven culture into all of the divisions and research groups that participate 

in this model, encouraging the broader and faster adoption of a data mindset at NIST. 

 Increasing publication opportunities because work with the Office of Data and Informatics 

would be published in a wider range of journals than those typically targeted by most MML 

researchers. 
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68 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

Conclusion 9-1: Embedding outside team members, such as postdocs from other groups rotating 

through the Office of Data and Informatics, to work on projects would benefit the divisions for 

which those researchers work. This would allow for technical expertise to be embedded with the 

workflow expertise in the office so that solutions for the MML divisions would be more 

specifically tailored to the language, tools, and other nuances of those divisions. 

BUDGET, FACILITIES, EQUIPMENT, AND HUMAN RESOURCES 

The Office of Data and Informatics has a budget in fiscal year 2023 of $5.615 million, with 

$4.825 million coming from appropriations and $790,000 coming from providing standards reference data 

services. It has 23 staff, comprising 14 scientists, 2 support staff, and 7 contract staff. 

MML’s creation of the Office of Data and Informatics laboratory with world experts who are 

truly committed to data governance, FAIR data practices, and are regarded as leaders in scientific data 

management, is commendable. These experts are in a unique position to lead U.S. industry, government, 

and academic laboratories in establishing standardized best-in-class data practices. However, their impact 

could be increased if they were in a position to apply their expertise into additional laboratories within 

MML, or indeed across NIST where data infrastructure is also likely needed (though not directly assessed 

during this review process). As mentioned in previous sections on technical expertise, the Office of Data 

and Informatics is able to expand the useful life of existing equipment through the use of virtual machines 

and is able to increase research efficiency through the creation of high-quality data workflows. This 

efficiency gain has long term benefits for other laboratories that implement them by conducting more 

research on the same budget, although it requires an upfront investment to establish. A key example of 

this is the NexusLIMS that connects electron microscopy equipment to a centralized data management 

system. The investment that was made to create this system is worth replicating in additional research 

groups throughout MML. 

Recommendation 9-3: To facilitate the deployment and adoption of state-of-the-art data 

practices in the Material Measurement Laboratory (MML) and across National Institute of 

Standards and Technology (NIST), the Office of Data and Informatics and MML should: 

 Institute a laboratory-wide policy requiring researchers to use automated datahandling workflows such as those demonstrated in NexusLIMS, and that output 

data that is easily disseminated through the Public Data Repository with rich metadata. This will help to ensure that research data generated by MML comply with 

the FAIR principles of being findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable. All 

MML researchers should also use the Public Data Repository so that their data are 

readily available internally and externally. 

 Embed laboratory research personnel within the Office of Data and Informatics as a 

sabbatical or special assignment in order to spread awareness of the data workflows 

that they have developed and to help to generate new use cases for them under 

different laboratory conditions. 

 Strengthen collaborations with the Information Technology Laboratory to help 

develop state of the art data practices and disseminate them across NIST. 

EFFECTIVENESS OF DISSEMINATION EFFORTS 

The Office of Data and Informatics has evidenced a true commitment to its mission to be the 

premier, pioneering resource specializing in the large and information-rich data sets now common in 

many disciplines focusing on researchers and institutions in the life and physical sciences (i.e., biological, 

chemical, and materials sciences), areas that data science and informatics can support. The office’s 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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OFFICE OF DATA AND INFORMATICS 69 

research and implementation programs are driven by stakeholder needs both from within MML and from 

external constituencies such as users of the external-facing data repositories and patterns in the Research 

Data Framework, discussed in more detail below. As such, the NIST Public Data Repository3

 has been an 

innovative and effective mechanism for NIST researchers to disseminate their efforts since it allows 

others to explore or reuse data and the related tools and resources supporting science, engineering, and 

technology. Researchers in NIST labs communicated their excitement about how easy it is now to make 

their data public. This demonstrates that the Office of Data and Informatics does not solely provide 

service to other MML entities but across all of NIST. The NIST Public Data Repository includes fields 

for data set metrics that display usage statistics on total file downloads, total data set downloads, total 

bytes downloaded, total unique users, and last downloaded. Nine of 10 randomly selected data sets had 

only “Metrics not available” for the resource. The reader does not know if metrics cannot be counted for 

that data set (perhaps because it is hosted externally) or if there has been no usage of that data set. 

Recommendation 9-4: The Material Measurement Laboratory should enter more 

information in the NIST Public Data Repository field to explain why data set metrics are 

not available where that is the case. 

The NIST Alloy Data4

 application and the Metals Alloy User Interface are two examples of the 

quality and depth of the data in this public repository. In the past 3 years, the growth of data sets (now 

more than 30,000) and of the amount of data stored (now more than 20 TB) is a testament to the value of 

the repository to NIST scientists and to the public. Similarly, the Office of Data and Informatics has taken 

the leadership to create an open-source code repository, the NIST Opensource Contributions Portal.5

 This 

is a well-used hub for NIST open-source projects and has a full catalog that is updated regularly as 

repositories are added or modified. Its features include private or restricted access that enable data sharing 

with appropriate protections. 

A new achievement has been the launch of the Research Data Framework version 1.5, which 

provides the research community with a structured approach to develop a customizable strategy for the 

management of research data. The State University of New York system’s use of this framework is a 

testament to the awareness of and trust that large institutions have put in the NIST-led framework. 

The Research Data Framework can become the data framework to guide NIST as a premier 

research organization in standards. Any other research and development organizations (in academia, 

industry, government, or other public or private institutes) can also rely on this framework as they become 

digitized and data centric. Its adoption will help standardize fragmented efforts, agree on a common data 

vocabulary, and provide necessary data governance and roles. 

The Office of Data and Informatics’ outreach includes working closely with world-class 

organizations on data science and engineering. For example, together with the Research Data Alliance, an 

external association of governments and researchers that promote best practices in data management, they 

now provide tools for data discovery within the Materials Resource Registry by using and providing a 

materials science metadata schema (Medina-Smith et al. 2021). Staff from this office are also active in the 

FAIR Digital Objects Forum Steering Group, the Committee on Data of the International Science Council 

Task Group, the Certified Information Privacy Manager Expert Group, and many others. 

The Office of Data and Informatics has also taken leadership in the area of data models, tools, 

and infrastructure at the national level. As such, they are active in CENDI6

 focusing on improving the 

productivity of U.S. federal research and development efforts through collaborative agency participation, 

in the Department of Commerce Data Governance Board, and in the National Science Foundation 

Materials Research Data Alliance. 

3

 See NIST, “Science Data Portal,” https://data.nist.gov, for more information. 4

 See NIST, “NIST Alloy Data,” https://www.nist.gov/mml/acmd/trc/nist-alloy-data, for more information. 5

 See the NIST Opensource Portal website at https://code.nist.gov for more information. 6

 See the CENDI website at https://www.cendi.gov for more information. 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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70 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

The Office of Data and Informatics also fosters strong collaborations with academia, notably with 

the NUANCE Center at Northwestern University, Johns Hopkins University, the City University of New 

York, and the University of Pennsylvania. 

This office’s staff have made efforts to include the private sector, for example, in 2023, in 3 

conferences and 15 workshops. These efforts go beyond industry presence at meetings and could also 

include funded projects with lead companies within particular chemical or materials industrial sectors to 

adopt and implement standardized data repositories, tools, and approaches. Such projects can help to 

ensure the true adoption of data repositories or data management practices demonstrated by the Office of 

Data and Informatics. Efforts toward data standardization by equipment manufacturers and vendors of 

data solutions can be catalyzed by the Office of Data and Informatics’ leadership. The basis of centralized 

data engineering, infrastructure, analytics methodologies, and tools have already been developed by 

office. 

The Office of Data and Informatics has developed a common ecosystem for data management 

and sharing that has already been shown to be successful with the electron microscopy community in 

various sites and divisions as well with the additive manufacturing community. This ecosystem can be 

generalized to all MML divisions. This ecosystem can also be applied to any research organization in the 

physical sciences whether in industry, academia, or government. 

Understanding the need for inspiring the next generation of data savvy researchers, the Office of 

Data and Informatics has created a NIST Educational STEM Resource Registry,7

 or NEST-R, which is 

used by students and teachers and serves as an additional mechanism for creating awareness of the work 

done in MML and at NIST more broadly. 

The Office of Data and Informatics collects metrics that measure the use of all of the above 

programs. These metrics show an increase in their use in the past years. It also indicates that the adoption 

is limited. This could be enhanced by conducting use analysis jointly with key stakeholders. 

Conclusion 9-2: The Office of Data and Informatics is positioned as a national and an 

international leader in data infrastructure and standardization because of its commitment to 

enabling open data, efficient data workflows, and because of its work with equipment 

manufacturers and vendors of data solutions. The office has already piloted and successfully 

demonstrated the usefulness of centralized data engineering, infrastructure, analytics 

methodologies, and tools. 

Conclusion 9-3: The Office of Data and Informatics’ efforts to inspire the next generation of 

physical scientists to be data natives is commendable. The office does this through the National 

Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Educational STEM Resource Registry or NEST-R 

while simultaneously creating awareness of the work done at the Material Measurement 

Laboratory and at NIST more broadly. The office is also uniquely positioned to offer NEST-R to 

all of the scientific community. 

Recommendation 9-5: The Material Measurement Laboratory should strengthen its 

commitment to the Office of Data and Informatics by establishing clear data governance 

and data policies. It should establish the National Institute of Standards and Technology 

(NIST) Public Data Repository as the place to publish all open-source projects and take 

advantage of its restricted access functionality for any NIST confidential or internal project. 

Recommendation 9-6: The Material Measurement Laboratory managers and researchers 

should adopt the materials science schema developed jointly with the Research Data 

Alliance. 

7

 For more information, see the NIST Educational STEM Resource Registry (NEST-R) website at 

https://nestr.nist.gov. 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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OFFICE OF DATA AND INFORMATICS 71 

Recommendation 9-7: The Office of Data and Informatics should collect and make more 

visible the usage metrics to measure the impact of its repositories. Numbers that report 

access, download, and reuse (although that is the hardest to measure) would showcase how 

data and teaching materials are used in and out of government. 

REFERENCES 

Hanisch, R., S. Chalk, R. Coulon, et al. 2022. “Stop Squandering Data: Make Units of Measurement 

Machine-Readable.” Nature 605(7909):222–224. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-022-01233-w. 

Medina-Smith, A., C.A. Becker, R.L. Plante, et al. 2021. “A Controlled Vocabulary and Metadata 

Schema for Materials Science Data Discovery.” Data Science Journal 20:18. 

https://doi.org/10.5334/dsj-2021-018.
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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72 

10 

Office of Reference Materials 

The Office of Reference Materials in the Material Measurement Laboratory (MML) serves a 

significant and prominent role in translation of measurement science at the National Institute of Standards 

and Technology (NIST) to stakeholders. The office’s administrative activities include managing business 

operations, administrative oversight, product sales, and technical support for the NIST Standard 

Reference Material program. Through its responsibility for managing working capital and standards 

development funding, the office has strong influence in selecting and resourcing the technical work that is 

developed and disseminated. 

The office is actively pursuing a modernization approach for their operations as part of its 

Measurement Services Modernization Strategy. Part of this effort involves close coordination with the 

Statistical Engineering Division to improve experimental design at an early stage of study. At the other 

end of the supply chain, the office is seeking to extend its distribution model by partnering with 

organizations possessing skills that complement its core capabilities. This strategic approach is designed 

to enhance the office’s efficiency while allocating resources to alternative, high value-added activities. 

The Office of Reference Materials effectively translates measurement services to a broad set of 

stakeholders and is the leading national metrology institute in doing so. Meeting that responsibility for 

more than 100 years has realized a portfolio of products that is dominated by legacy products; these 

products are impactful and touch many domains and many users. This office is presently in the position of 

maintaining this legacy catalog, with most of its resources devoted to that. The legacy catalog being 

maintained by the office has led to a product portfolio that appears to be balanced in a way that 

jeopardizes NIST’s ability to support emerging needs and the industries of the future. 

The Office of Reference Materials is fiscally incentivized by sales of units, with the legacy 

commodity products dominating the list of the highest-selling products, with only one recently developed 

product among the top 15 sellers. Revenue distribution is strongly skewed to the highest-selling products, 

with 4 percent of the catalog generating 50 percent of the office’s annual revenue. The product portfolio is 

managed using the relative demand for each product, a fairly passive approach. It is not clear that this 

commodity sales-driven approach to product portfolio management is sufficiently active to best translate 

NIST measurement science to stakeholders. 

The top grossing product in the past year has in fact been one of the newest and most innovative 

offerings, RM 8671 NISTmAb, Humanized IgG1κ Monoclonal Antibody. This is a commendable 

situation that shows the excellence that NIST is able to project to emerging industries, the impact of new 

product offerings, and their revenue potential. 

ASSESSMENT OF TECHNICAL PROGRAMS 

The Office of Reference Materials ships approximately 30,000 units from a catalog of 1,100 

products, generating approximately $22 million in revenue. Accomplishing this within the confines of the 

laboratory is no small feat and speaks to the immense capability of the personnel that manage and 

implement the tasks. 

This office functions as a stand-alone e-commerce business operating within the framework of a 

federal agency. This presents unique business, staffing, and technical constraints that are different from 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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OFFICE OF REFERENCE MATERIALS 73 

other units within MML. The Office of Reference Materials is well aware of the nature of these 

challenges and has taken steps to address them, as mentioned above, in the development of service 

modification. This suggests the need to implement an enhanced portfolio governance process. 

The portfolio of Office of Reference Materials products is not currently actively managed, in 

large part because there is no immediate need to do so. However, portfolio optimization would free 

resources (personnel, facilities, and dollars) for increasing the long-term value of the portfolio for U.S. 

industrial growth. In fiscal year (FY) 2023, renewals of existing products represent 81 percent of the 

investment for the future, leaving less than 20 percent for the difficult yet essential work of prosecuting 

new projects. 

Portfolio optimization requires having insight into the value capture potential of the products in 

the catalog in light of the stakeholder value delivered. Active management of the portfolio would enable 

strategic decision-making across the whole of the catalog, both currently and in the future, as opposed to 

managing the portfolio on a program-by-program basis. Careful consideration of the entire portfolio 

would take the form of evaluating both the value proposition to the clients and the value capture potential 

for NIST. In that manner, all stakeholders can be served effectively. Value capture potential may take the 

form of understanding the economics of the offering, including opportunity cost, working capital and 

equipment requirements, resource allocation in preparation, sales effort, and opportunities for growth. 

Value proposition seeks to understand the offering in terms of the next best alternative to the customer 

base, with a keen eye toward looking at the relative value capture potential versus the value delivered 

relative to replacement options. For offerings with high value capture potential, active sales efforts would 

be advantageous. For those with low value capture or poor value propositions, exit or upgrade strategies 

would be implemented. 

Recommendation 10-1: The Office of Reference Materials should develop and implement a 

portfolio management process based on the articulated measurement services 

modernization strategy. The full portfolio of products should be considered critically and 

monitored on a periodic basis for (1) each offering’s utility and impact, (2) the resource 

commitment needed to maintain the product, and (3) effectiveness and performance of 

translation. Each existing product should have a maintenance and sustaining plan, and a 

plan to either perpetuate or discontinue products through transition to alternative products 

or obsolescence. A plan should be developed for every new product proposed or being 

developed that includes projection of these characteristics, with emphasis on life-cycle 

analysis, value proposition for stakeholders and value capture for the National Institute of 

Standards and Technology. 

PORTFOLIO OF SCIENTIFIC EXPERTISE 

The portfolio of expertise of the Office of Reference Materials is aligned with its mission as a 

stand-alone business unit and does not lend itself to direct comparison to other MML divisions. Of the 31 

staff members, 12 are scientists, 7 are technicians, and 12 provide administrative or other program 

support. The scientific and technical staff collaborate with peers in the research divisions to produce and 

document existing standard reference materials and perform the necessary research and measurements to 

create new standard reference material products as they are needed by industrial customers. 

BUDGET, FACILITIES, EQUIPMENT, AND HUMAN RESOURCES 

In FY 2023 the budget for the Office of Reference Materials was $12.332 million. Of this, $1.170 

million was appropriated by Congress and $11.161 million came from services and a working capital 

fund. For comparison, in FY 2020 the numbers were $9.471 million, with $870,000 appropriated and 

$8.601 million coming from services and a working capital fund. This represents approximately an 8.5 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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74 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

percent increase. This predominantly fee-based funding model incentivizes commodity in favor of 

innovation. The fee-based budget gives rise to facilities that are optimized for the wrong things, and there 

is insufficient investment in maintaining them to be safe and of high integrity. The office has 31 staff, 

comprising 12 scientists, 7 technicians, 10 administrative personnel, 1 support person, and 1 associate. 

The Office of Reference Materials relies on the analytical and research facilities in other divisions 

outside of MML to make appropriate measurements in support of mission delivery. It has facilities and 

equipment that enable standard reference materials preparation, packaging, and shipping. The office is 

allocated a 20,000-square foot building for storage, sample preparation, and shipping operations. Some 

products require controlled temperatures while stored, and the office maintains close to sixty –80°C 

freezers, seven walk-in –20°C freezers, and four walk-in 4°C refrigerators. Much of the infrastructure, 

both buildings and equipment, has exceeded its expected life, leading to the potential that time is spent 

inefficiently compensating for the reduced capabilities of old equipment and facilities compared to the 

capabilities of state-of-the-art equipment, which could greatly enhance work efficiency. 

Many of the Office of Reference Materials’ backend activities, such as order fulfillment, 

warehousing, and shipping, can be accomplished better by outside vendors who have both the experience 

and automation to reduce errors and increase efficiency. Outsourcing selected tasks can provide more 

time for value-added work by Office of Reference Materials staff and create products with updated 

capabilities without the need for expensive capital equipment, some of which will not be used on a regular 

basis within ORM. 

Recommendation 10-2: The Office of Reference Materials (ORM) should benchmark its tasks 

and the capabilities required to accomplish them against best-of-class capabilities that exist 

in the private sector. Tasks that are deemed to be better done by outside vendors should be 

targeted for outsourcing and staffing within ORM should be reallocated accordingly. 

Aged infrastructure and equipment can have an impact on the safety mentality of the staff. While 

it is not necessarily true that modern buildings lead to positive safety performance, it is often true that old 

facilities in disrepair result in poor safety awareness. The laboratory tour indicated that the Office of 

Reference Materials runs the risk of safety incidents in the near future as a result of a perception that the 

risks in those facilities are minimal. This attitude allows the persistence of unsafe conditions that form the 

base of the safety pyramid and can ultimately result in injury or even fatality. 

Unsafe conditions also have the potential to impact performance of the products. As facilities 

degrade, the organization may not recognize the risk of microbes and other contaminants can have on the 

packaging and integrity of the products. The importance of management involvement in fostering a safety 

culture is discussed in more detail in Chapter 2. Safety and excellence go together. 

Key Recommendation 2: Safety is as much a line management responsibility as an 

individual one. Leaders should recognize that every task can be done safely, and every task 

has inherent risks. That attitude needs to be transmitted down the line in order for each 

individual to take responsibility for maintaining the safety of their environment and the 

environments of those around them. The Office of Reference Materials should maintain 

statistics of leading indicators of safety risks and facilities dangers that represent the base of 

the safety pyramid. These statistics should be socialized within the organization in such a 

way that the safety environment is uplifted, ultimately resulting in a revised safety culture. 

It may be desirable to enlist an experienced industrial partner who can bring a fresh 

perspective on the safety risks as a way of providing an unbiased and fresh pair of eyes to 

the situation. 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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OFFICE OF REFERENCE MATERIALS 75 

EFFECTIVENESS OF DISSEMINATION OF OUTPUTS 

Dissemination of NIST work is the essence of the Office of Reference Materials; however, it 

appears that there is no dissemination of their portfolio management and performance outside of informal 

internal assessment. There have been reports on the dissemination function and aspirations in the past.1

Such reporting on a periodic basis would serve both NIST planning and inform key NIST stakeholders. In 

years past, NIST published SRM Spotlight,2 a newsletter with the goal of providing information about the 

offerings and new reference materials. 

Such tools are an opportunity to disseminate the portfolio and engage stakeholders in best taking 

advantage of NIST measurement science tools. Feedback and dialog with stakeholders triggered by this 

marketing approach can lead to a virtuous cycle that encourages active and responsive management of the 

portfolio, with leading indicators and market knowledge supporting decision-making. 

Recommendation 10-3: The Office of Reference Materials (ORM) has done an excellent job 

in managing and distributing product stock, however the marketing effort that leads to 

sales most often relies on an outside-in approach, in which a potential customer makes a 

request for a standard. As part of the input for Recommendation 10-1, ORM should initiate 

an inside-out marketing effort to determine the current value add of each offering in the 

standard reference material catalogue. This active marketing can increase uptake of 

languishing products, and at the same time reveal products in the portfolio of limited value 

proposition. This effort would be expected to increase ORM revenue. 

REFERENCES 

Gills, T.E., S. Dittman, J.R. Rumble, Jr., C.S. Brickenkamp, G.L. Harris, and N.M. Trahey. 2001. “NIST 

Mechanisms for Disseminating Measurements.” Journal of Research of the National Institute of 

Standards and Technology 106(1):315–340. 

Montgomery, R.R., ed. 2011. SRM Spotlight. March. https://www.nist.gov/publications/srm-spotlight-1.

1

 See, for example, Gills et al. (2001). 

2

 See, for example, Montgomery (2011). 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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76 

11 

Material Measurement Laboratory’s Responses to the Findings 

and Recommendations of the Fiscal Year 2020 Assessment 

Report 

This chapter presents the Material Measurement Laboratory’s (MML’s) responses to the findings 

and recommendations made in the previous review by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, 

and Medicine in An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of 

Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2020 (NASEM 2021; hereafter “the FY 2020 Assessment.”). The 

sections below are verbatim MML’s responses (NIST 2023). The panel recognizes and appreciates the 

actions taken by MML in response to the FY 2020 Assessment. 

Across the MML divisions, the FY 2020 Assessment found the following common core 

attributes: a high technical quality of the research, excellence of the scientific staff, strong customer 

outreach and scientific collaboration, and strong publication and dissemination activities. It was clear that 

MML digested the FY 2020 Assessment and enacted real change in response. The panel concluded that 

MML is in high demand by external stakeholders, its relevant technologies are leading edge and 

dynamically changing, and there is competition for individuals with the expertise required of its staff. 

MML therefore faces challenges with respect to achieving an effective balance between maintaining its 

success in ongoing efforts and initiating new efforts that represent appropriate investment of MML 

resources in niches that will produce the best impact. These include appropriately allocating the resources 

of its staff, who are stretched thin in several areas; utilizing MML’s network of former postdocs as brand 

ambassadors; devising succession plans in anticipation of staff who will leave; maintaining an equipment 

infrastructure by applying make/buy/borrow/share strategies that provide state-of-the-art capabilities 

within cost constraints; and ensuring that the mission priorities of MML scientists and the National 

Institute of Standards and Technology’s (NIST’s) administrative and legal staff are aligned with respect to 

purchasing of equipment and other resources. Detailed responses to the FY 2020 Assessment 

recommendations can be found below. 

OFFICE OF REFERENCE MATERIALS 

Recommendation 3-1: The Office of Reference Materials (ORM) should plan and host a series of 

topic-focused workshops with participation from industry, academia, and other government 

organizations to benchmark and identify state-of-the-art business practices, ecommerce 

tools/platforms, marketing and sales operations, packaging, and other areas critical to its 

operations. As part of such an undertaking, ORM should assess the appropriateness and feasibility 

of outsourcing portions of its operations or the expanded use of public-private partnerships to 

increase efficiency of its operations including standard reference material fabrication, storage 

(inventory control), packaging, and other critical operations. 

MML Response to Recommendation 3-1: 

ORM has licensed non-exclusive distribution agreements with Laboratory of the Government 

Chemist (LGC) and Millipore Sigma. LGC is the private business arm of the UK national 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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MML’S RESPONSES TO THE FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE 2020 ASSESSMENT 77 

metrology laboratory. Millipore/Sigma is one of the largest for-profit certified reference material 

producers (Our relationship prior to 2020 was limited to distribution of our products through their 

supply chain. Currently (FY 2022) nearly 21% of our sales are handled by these two businesses, 

up from 11% approximately 7 years ago. As of 2020, ORM has been in discussions to increase our 

utilization of the capabilities of each of these two CRM producers. We are providing them with 

advanced marketing materials for new and renewal products and advanced information regarding 

products in our pipeline. 

We’ve met with LGC and Millipore leadership to discuss expanding our relationships. Given 

that both have significant manufacturing, packaging and certification capabilities as well as secure 

supply chains (from warehouse to customer) it behooves ORM to learn and partner with these 

entities. Currently NIST (ORM) makes no distinction between selling to an end user, a licensed 

distributor, or a reseller. This was never a problem for our “20th” century products, i.e., cements, 

metals, organic solutions and industrial materials. Now however our portfolio is evolving to 

include protein biologics, health and clinical materials, and cells, all of which require exquisite 

handling and storage to ensure the integrity of our certified reference materials. In the next FY we 

will be exploring the practice of pre-positioning NIST SRM products in accredited warehouses for 

both LGC and Millipore to ensure adequate care of our products for our foreign customers. We 

anticipate prepositioning product in both the EU (Germany) and Asia (Singapore). In addition, the 

ORM director is in discussion with both regarding advanced packaging, processing and 

distribution of NIST products, perhaps under a co-label. The ORM director is also engaged 

internally and externally to determine the feasibility of expanding the NIST Traceable Reference 

Materials (NTRM) beyond our SRM gas program. Implementation of this program could ensure 

adequate supply of our products to our stakeholders, expand upon the offerings of our SRM 

program, and relieve our laboratorians of time-consuming support work related to SRM support 

(i.e., stability monitoring, homogeneity assessment etc.). 

Workshop on Digital NIST in September 2022. Over 450 participants were in attendance at 

this virtual conference. Included were discussions on digital reference material certificates. 

Worked with industry, academia and government to gauge interest in developing a digital 

alternative to the current SRM paper and PDF certificates. A white paper was published and 

efforts are underway to implement these new certificates. This will be a much more technically 

challenging task than creating digital calibration certificates as SRMS have many more and 

different measurands and SRM certificates have a diversity of formats. 

E-commerce. ORM IT team implemented and transitioned all measurement services from 

custom in-house software business systems to the NIST store front. Now all measurement services 

are on one common platform serviced and aided by ORM’s implementation of Sales Force 

customer relationship management system. 

Development of Research Grade Test Materials Concept. Originally developed from a 

strategic plan eight years ago to fully realized in FY22 to improve evaluation of candidate 

materials for RM/SRM development. ORM is currently developing the infrastructure to assist in 

all phases of implementation of the RGTM process to include support for SDS authoring, shipping 

and packaging expertise, and ecommerce implementation (document retention) to support in 

excess of 20 interlaboratory studies per year. Expanding service to possibly all of NIST. 

NTRM. Started discussions with external CRM producers to support joint efforts on making 

and supporting RM’s that are out of stock and/or need external manufacturing capability. 

Other NMIs. Actively engaged with NMIA and JRC Geel to discuss business models and 

share best practices. 

Recommendation 3-2: The Office of Reference Materials should develop processes and 

procedures to strategically select and prioritize the use of working capital funds toward high 

demand products, which can maximize the throughput and return value; and examine methods to 

accelerate and evaluate the development of these new standard reference material products. The 

evaluation can be used to further promote and/or incentivize the MML division-level SRM 

development. 
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78 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

MML Response to Recommendation 3-2: 

ORM has modified our process for evaluation of service development projects. We utilize the 

RGTM process that includes an interlaboratory study to gauge stakeholder interest and 

engagement and feedback on proposed projects. With regard to ongoing production projects, we 

do, in collaboration with the participating division, prioritize development and renewal of high 

demand SRM’s over less in-demand products, to maximize our ROI from the WCF. 

Recommendation 3-3: The Office of Reference Materials (ORM) should conduct informational 

symposia and workshops to better communicate the vital role that ORM plays in the mission of 

NIST and to highlight success stories. The office should also provide more systematic evaluation 

feedback and greater incentives for MML division staff to more effectively and efficiently develop 

new standard reference materials that are aligned with the needs of industry. 

MML Response to Recommendation 3-3: 

In FY 22 the ORM director gave three internal talks on education and improvement for SD 

projects and the new RGTM process to MML specific and NIST general audiences. In FY 21 the 

ORM director gave four division level internal talks to discuss the “Guide to SRM Development” 

and the impact of several of our newer products. The ORM director and staff regularly meet one 

on one and in groups to discuss all aspects of measurement service development from origination 

of ideas to funding, to stakeholder engagement and outreach. Beginning in April of FY 23 ORM 

will host SD projects presentations to the NIST audience to encourage participation from those 

unfamiliar with SRMs and to share the very excellent science and metrology of the supported 

projects. 

OFFICE OF DATA AND INFORMATICS 

Recommendation 4-1: The Material Measurement Laboratory management should promote the 

concept of “data as an asset” and its associated culture within the Laboratory. With that 

understanding, management can be expected to advocate and support its adoption throughout the 

organization, resulting in increased professionalism within NIST, higher quality of output by 

NIST, increased impact of NIST products on the STEM world, and public perception of NIST as a 

leader. 

MML Response to Recommendation 4-1: 

Since the 2020 NASEM assessment, MML has developed complementary efforts aimed at 

leveraging Data as an Asset, driven initially by elements of the MML strategic plan for Next 

Generation Data. These efforts included establishment of Laboratory Information Management 

Systems (LIMS), a data infrastructure development and deployment effort referred to as Data 

Plumbing, and work to support development of sound Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine 

Learning (ML) tools. 

In 2020, led by the Office of Data and Informatics (ODI), MML assembled a team of 

representatives from across MML to establish a LIMS Community of Interest (COI). This team 

prioritized projects from each division, which were used to develop and prototype LIMS 

capabilities. These projects factored in lessons learned from early LIMS adopters such as MML’s 

NIST Center for Automotive Lightweighting. In recent years, this effort has produced several 

successful and hi-impact LIMS, including the NexusLIMS which serves electron microscopy 

facilities across MML and NIST. To spread LIMS further, core shared services and infrastructure 

and specialized tools for research were developed, supported in large part by the Data Plumbing 

effort, discussed next. These capabilities, and related best practices, were developed in 

consultation with research subject matter experts and Data Science experts from both within and 

outside of NIST. In 2021, the MML LIMS COI published a roadmap for MML that serves as a 

key guide to ongoing development of LIMS capacity. 
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MML’S RESPONSES TO THE FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE 2020 ASSESSMENT 79 

The Data Plumbing effort has been highly successful establishing infrastructure needed to 

automate and orchestrate data movement from instruments laboratories, through local network 

storage to newly deployed centralized storage. In partnership with the NIST Office of Information 

Systems Management, MML purchased a modern EMC Isilon 1.25 Petabyte storage array for 

centralized storage of research data. This highly redundant, highly available storage ensures that 

MML’s valuable data is both protected and accessible. This new enterprise class storage array 

provides key capabilities for MML researchers to store and access large datasets from across the 

NIST network and to integrate data for machine learning and other advanced analyses. In addition, 

the Data Plumbing project has deployed infrastructure to automate data transfers from laboratory 

instruments to central storage. Data files are stored in a structure that identifies originating 

instrument, creation date, and in some cases instrument operator. Files are read-only to preserve 

data integrity and are broadly accessible to NIST researchers. Storing data in a secure, defined, 

broadly accessible location is seen as the foundation for all future data management efforts. To 

date, approximately 95 instruments have been “plumbed” for automated data transfer. 

Deployment of AI/ML capabilities have been widespread across NIST, and research data is 

the critical component to the development of algorithms and validation of solutions. To leverage 

its own data, MML Established the MML AI/ML working group, which has identified data and 

code assets to benchmark and demonstrate AI/ML in the research mission space. 

In addition, the MML ODI continues to work with the NIST Special Programs Office and 

NIST Library services to provide Data Management Planning tooling and Data Publication 

services critical to establishing data as an asset for the organization. More details are specified in 

Division 641 NASEM report chapter. It is notable the MML continues to lead efforts in critical 

exercises for data management planning, documentation and support across NIST. Exercises are 

underway to expand practice and use of planning tools, within the context of individual areas of 

research. 

Recommendation 4-2: The Office of Data and Informatics (ODI) should build out structures for 

enhancing divisional interactions. One concrete mechanism for this is to create tightly integrated 

multidisciplinary teams, which include ODI domain expertise as an integral part of a research 

team. The concept of “research software engineering” has been advocated as one such mechanism 

for creating research teams that can respond to the centrality of data and computation in a research 

activity. 

MML Response to Recommendation 4-2: 

ODI has made greater use of detail assignments from other divisions in MML to broaden both our 

capacity and our footprint in the laboratory. We also have less formal liaison agreements with 

MML staff from other divisions who regularly participate in group and division meetings. 

Detailees and liaison staff have joined ODI from divisions 642, 643, 646, and 647, and we have 

worked closely with 642 on the AMBench platform and 644 on the deployment of LIMS for 

biosciences. We also have close collaborations with the NIST Library (data curation and 

publication, Research Data Framework). 

Finding: Postdoctoral fellows are being used effectively in other organizational units within the 

MML, however within ODI their use is limited. This is understandable given the service-oriented 

nature of their mission. However, even within these confines, postdocs could be used effectively 

to both to advance the direct goals of ODI, but more importantly to act as agents of culture change 

across the laboratory toward an awareness of data as a product. ODI is already engaged in training 

with its programs in “software carpentry.” 

MML Response to Finding: 

Widely used methods for recruitment of postdocs at NIST are not amenable ODI. For example, the 

NRC postdoc competition does not focus on data science. We have made some efforts to build 

stronger connections with MML postdocs whose research relies on data science and AI/ML. 
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80 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

Recommendation 4-3: The “software carpentry” program should be expanded to include 

rotations of postdocs through ODI for more extensive, hands-on guidance. In addition, identifying 

postdocs in the MML divisions with an understanding of the importance of sound computational 

techniques and establishing joint mentorship programs with those divisions and ODI would be 

beneficial. 

MML Response to Recommendation 4-3: 

This is an excellent suggestion. Due to competing priorities, ODI has not yet been able to expand 

the software carpentry program. As noted in Response 4.2, ODI has expanded its efforts to interact 

with division staff in ways that include mentorship and other guidance on sound computational 

techniques. 

Recommendation 4-4: The Material Measurement Laboratory should enhance engagement with 

creation/integration of reference materials.

MML Response to Recommendation 4-4: 

Development of reference materials occurs in MML’s technical divisions, with the MML ORM 

coordinating seed funding, scale up, packaging, sales and distribution. Respectfully, is unclear 

what this recommendation suggests ODI or MML do or change with respect to reference materials 

development. 

MATERIALS SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING DIVISION 

Finding: The computational work of the Thermodynamics and Kinetics group is well ahead of 

many other entities outside of NIST. 

Recommendation 5-1: The Materials Science and Engineering Division (MSED) should consider 

investment in additional high-performance computing resources to continue the comparative 

advantage the Thermodynamics and Kinetics group holds. In making such investments, MSED 

should maintain balance with empirical approaches. 

MML Response to Recommendation 5-1: 

MSED operates the Center for Theoretical and Computational Materials Science (CTCMS), a 

high-performance computing (HPC) resource supporting computational research in MSED (and 

other MML divisions), including the efforts within the Thermodynamics and Kinetics Group. 

MSED makes annual investments of approximately $200K that largely maintain current 

capabilities as computing hardware technologies advance. MSED similarly provides 

approximately $100K annually to support another HPC resource at NIST (Raritan, operated by 

OISM on behalf of participating labs) in addition to the annual use-based charges (≈$150K). 

Beyond these annual investments, there have been a few recent targeted investments that support 

specific use cases / projects in MSED and in other MML divisions, some of which have increased 

CTCMS capabilities to provide value to other users (e.g., GPU resources, additional nodes and 

storage). Additionally, many of the MGI-supported efforts in MSED involve data repositories that 

depend on the NIST Configurable Data Curation System (CDCS) as their data infrastructure, such 

that MSED invests in contract support for the associated CDCS instances. MSED does not 

currently have the resources to invest beyond these largely maintenance level support costs. 

Strategic investment and associated NIST-level commitment is needed (and is the subject of NIST 

HPC planning efforts) to support the broader NIST community in this regard. 

These limited investments reflect the current resource constrained environment and an effort 

to balance investment needs across our portfolio, including experimental capabilities that support 

empirical approaches. Recent examples specific to the Thermodynamics and Kinetics Group 
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MML’S RESPONSES TO THE FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE 2020 ASSESSMENT 81 

include a gas-cooled vacuum furnace (replaces 20+ year old system, procurement underway), a 

lab-scale directed energy deposition (DED) additive manufacturing capability (procurements 

underway), and electron microscopy upgrades that included a broad-beam ion mill and new 

XEDS/EBSD detectors for our JEOL 7100 SEM (procurements complete). 

Recommendation 5-2: The Materials Science and Engineering Division should develop a clear 

articulation of a broad-based strategic plan of the division and state how that plan reflects the 

overarching strategic plan of the Material Measurement Laboratory. 

MML Response to Recommendation 5-2: 

MSED has developed a new strategic plan. Strategic planning activities commenced in FY2021 

following the 2020 NASEM review, culminating in a living strategic plan that is being used to 

prioritize investments during this period of intense resource constraints. This plan includes 

prioritization of scientific staff / expertise and investments in equipment, computational / data 

resources, and associated facilities. Three strategic goals were established to support state-of-theart core competencies that provide unique value and impacts for our stakeholders and for 

addressing national initiatives (Goal 1), to modernize and sustain critical measurement services 

and standards efforts (Goal 2), and to expand capabilities in lab automation, high-throughput 

computation, and AI/ML methods to seed new capabilities in support of specific stakeholder needs 

in data and informatics (Goal 3). These goals support NIST Strategic Goal 1: Position NIST to 

Advance U.S. Science and Innovation, NIST Strategic Goal 2: Maximize NIST’s Stakeholder 

Impact through High-Value Service Delivery as well as several current Administration initiatives. 

In terms of the 2015 MML Strategic Plan, MSED Goal 1 aligns with MML Goal 1: Measurement 

Science Excellence; MSED Goal 2 aligns with MML Goal 2: Measurement Service Excellence; 

and MSED Goal 3 aligns with MML Goal 3: Data Science and Data Management Capabilities. 

Additionally, MSED Goal 1 supports MML Goal 4: Strategic Partnering and Customer 

Engagement. 

Recommendation 5-3: The Material Measurement Laboratory (MML) should evaluate how it 

budgets new equipment purchases and how this figure into the resource management in its 

divisions. The MML should further remain aware of the damage to equipment due to flooding and 

other problems with buildings and facilities. 

MML Response to Recommendation 5-3: 

MML to respond and may consider including the following information. Due to continued 

resource limitations brought on by increasing labor costs, overhead rates, renovation costs, 

equipment maintenance costs, etc., MSED has chosen to reduce its division overhead rate to a 

level just above the minimum required based on the Invested Equipment (IE) loan model that is 

part of the NIST WCF. That minimum level supports only a very limited set of annual equipment 

purchases and is often needed to upgrade or replace aging equipment across the division. 

Likewise, MML’s IE allocation is very limited relative to the needs across the lab. 

MML Leadership has helped influence NIST-level changes to WCF / OH policies / management of 

high-dollar (shared) equipment needed to enable some new equipment purchases. While more movement is 

needed from NIST, MML was successful in arguing that purchases made with other agency funds be 

treated to a much lower OH rate. 

Recommendation 5-4: The Material Measurement Laboratory should increase its activities aimed 

at communicating its accomplishments to its customers, collaborators, and audiences. This should 

include greater effort at highlighting results from the primary work of the laboratory. This could 

be accomplished using forms of media such as YouTube and improving the effectiveness of the 

NIST website by adding specific examples of unique and transformative contributions. 
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82 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

MML Response to Recommendation 5-4: 

MSED has limited resources and capabilities for using multiple forms of media to communicate 

research achievements. We have focused efforts on revamping our external website over the past 

year, working within the constraints of Drupal, which governs the available webpage formats. 

MSED has also partnered on several occasions with NIST PAO to highlight division research 

efforts. Links to recent examples are found on our external webpage and include: 

 Spotlight: Mimicking Our Own Senses to Detect Ovarian Cancer 

 Spotlight: Blood Vessels on a Chip for Dental Research and More 

 With Fuzzy Nanoparticles, Researchers Reveal a Way to Design Tougher Ballistic Materials 

 Spotlight: The Behavior of Polymers in Our Recycled Plastics 

 Thermal MagIC: New NIST Project to Build Nano-Thermometers Could Revolutionize 

Temperature Imaging 

In-person, virtual, and hybrid workshops and meetings have been used to engage with customers and 

collaborators over the last several years. 

MATERIALS MEASUREMENT SCIENCE DIVISION 

Finding: The development, fabrication, and sale of standard reference materials and documentary 

standards are central to the mission of MMSD. MMSD has a broad client base for SRMs etc., but contacts 

are handled by other groups. 

Recommendation 6-1: The Materials Measurement Science Division (MMSD) should increase 

the degree to which it utilizes its customers for feedback on new products and information with 

regard to emerging opportunities. To this end, the Material Measurement Laboratory should utilize 

a process for obtaining feedback. MMSD should increase its interaction with the offices managing 

sales of such products at NIST. 

MML Response to Recommendation 6-1: 

MMSD has a close relationship with the Office of Reference Materials (ORM), who manages the 

inventory and sales of new physical reference materials. For example, the MMSD Division 

Quality Manager reviews all customer inquiries received by ORM [at https://shop.nist.gov] to 

determine areas where MMSD should explore new reference materials projects and/or consider 

reissuing discontinued reference materials due to customer demand. This sharing of inquiry data is 

automated through ORM’s purchase of a Salesforce CRM (customer relationship management) 

software. To this end, MMSD is planning a workshop in 2023 aimed at obtaining feedback from 

the X-ray user community on the needs and uses of various Standards Reference Materials. 

MMSD will use this information to inform future production, staffing levels, and timely 

availability of products to the community. 

Finding: In 2017, MMSD initiated a new effort focusing on the separation, characterization, and 

quantification of nanoscale soft materials (including plastics) by adopting previously developed 

methods and by investigating new approaches. 

Finding: The shift in emphasis toward nanoscale soft materials is an excellent area for growth but 

may require new equipment and expertise, because the group was previously focused primarily on 

hard materials. 

Finding: The group name for the Materials for Energy and Sustainable Development Group 

seems to be outdated. While there is research on energy materials, the increasing focus of the 

group appears to be in the area of high-throughput materials, materials data, and autonomous 

materials science. 
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MML’S RESPONSES TO THE FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE 2020 ASSESSMENT 83 

Recommendation 6-2: The Materials Measurement Science Division should evaluate whether to 

move some of the work of the Materials for Energy and Sustainable Development group (e.g., Xray Metrology) to another group (e.g., Materials Structure and Data Group) and refocus the former 

group’s efforts on materials data and artificial intelligence approaches. 

MML Response to Recommendation 6-2: 

In 2021, MMSD began a reorganization process to better support the programmatic focus areas. 

Researchers working on the X-ray Metrology project are now a part of the ‘Nanomechanical 

Properties Group’ where they continue to collaborate and coordinate the production of X-ray 

Metrology related SRMs. The Data and AI-Driven Materials Science Group (formerly known as 

the Materials for Energy and Sustainable Development Group) has realigned to conduct research, 

develop, and disseminates measurement science, data, models, workflows, and technologies 

pertaining to AI-driven materials science and data infrastructure operations related to materials 

and measurement science. 

Recommendation 6-3: The Materials Measurement Science Division should conduct additional 

intra-divisional collaboration, which might be exploited to add fundamental understanding for the 

benefit of the research component of the work going forward. 

MML Response to Recommendation 6-3: 

Since 2020, MMSD has identified six focus areas representing the division programmatic 

priorities. The focus area goals leverage core competencies across groups thereby promoting the 

assembly of diverse and agile research teams within the division. 

Further recognizing the importance of supporting intra-division collaboration, the division has 

begun removing operational and/or cultural barriers to collaborative science. As a catalyst for 

more impactful intra-division collaboration, the division has had numerous cross-group/divisionwide discussions and technical “showcases” targeted our priority programs towards elevating all 

staffs’ awareness of resources and technical efforts within the division. 

Recommendation 6-4: The management of the Materials Measurement Science Division will 

need to continue to evaluate and understand the impact of the change in staff numbers and 

redistribution of workloads. Specifically, there needs to be a shared understanding of the division 

mission that justifies staff numbers. 

MML Response to Recommendation 6-4: 

The Division is constantly evaluating the impact of staff numbers on programmatic focus and 

impact. We have recently adopted a “single point of failure” analysis for several projects, which 

involves understanding what research efforts or relationships would be substantially impaired 

should a single staff member cease their activity, and continually evaluate staff motivation, 

engagement, and growth through the life of a given project. Since the beginning of the global 

pandemic (early 2020), the Division Office has held Division-wide meetings twice a month to 

communicate the Division’s mission, purpose, core competencies, and focus areas. The Division 

also strives for transparency about new hires, promotions, and equipment upgrades/purchases to 

help reinforce communication about Division priorities. 

Finding: The MMSD has the lowest female/male ratio compared with other divisions in the 

Material Measurement Laboratory. 

Recommendation 6-5: The Materials Measurement Science Division (MMSD) should examine 

ways to recruit and retain greater numbers of female scientific staff. MMSD staff should all work 

to enhance the visibility of NIST as a career option through technical meeting/society activities 
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84 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

and university interactions. All team members should ensure inclusiveness and assist with career 

development of the diverse workforce, including the careers of associates and post docs. 

MML Response to Recommendation 6-5: 

Hiring: Since 2020, MMSD has implemented MML’s best hiring practices aimed at increasing 

transparency and fairness in the hiring process thus promoting a more diverse pool of qualified 

applicants. Two management vacancy positions (Deputy Division Chief and Group Leader) were 

competed, attracting strong diverse candidates. The selection process included input from diverse 

sources such as management, technical, and administrative staff. This process resulted in two 

female applicants being identified as best qualified for the needs of the organization and now serve 

in the Division management team. 

Promotions: Since 2020, three female scientists were promoted to ZP V, the highest pay band 

level for NIST in recognition of their outstanding technical leadership and impact in their field. 

Recruitment: MMSD launched the MMSD Academic Showcase Seminar aimed at inviting 

guest academic speakers to exchange ideas, identify areas of potential collaboration, and promote 

MMSD’s programs to future NRC/post-doctoral candidates. Furthermore, MMSD now utilizes 

LinkedIn to promote the division and its staff scientific achievements to a broad audience and 

LinkedIn Recruiter as a tool to attract a diverse applicant pool to opportunities within the division. 

Retain: MMSD has recommitted its internal efforts to have an engaged and inclusive work 

environment. In 2022, MMSD held a ‘People‘ off-site where all staff, including associates and 

post-docs were invited to participate, provide feedback, and develop a strategic plan on how to 

improve the division. Initiatives such as improved onboarding for incoming staff, internal events 

that promote staff engagement and launching an informal mentoring group for early career staff 

are being led by two internal working groups. 

Finding: MMSD recognizes the need for sustainable funding for higher-cost instrumentation (>$2 

million) as a division priority. The Synchrotron Science Group has recently developed beam lines 

at NSLS-II supported by division funds. NIST policies that add cost to purchases increases the 

burden. Other needs are to address aging buildings and facility requirements for special 

instrumentation. (See Recommendation 5-3.) 

Finding: The work of the MMSD is extremely dependent on access to state-of-the-art 

instrumentation. There were areas in which current new technologies are needed as a group moves 

into exciting new areas such as soft materials. Other instrumentation is aging and will need 

replacement in the near future (e.g., 3D atom probe instrumentation and electron microscopes). 

NIST extensively uses national user facilities beyond MMSD, particularly when instrument 

development is not a part of the project. 

Recommendation 6-6: The Materials Measurement Science Division should prioritize the 

division’s needs for upgrading/replacement of equipment.

MML Response to Recommendation 6-6: 

The Materials Measurement Science Division is continually assessing all resources, including 

equipment, instrumentation, facilities, and personnel. There is a formal assessment at the 

beginning of each fiscal year, with a subsequent prioritization and process for funding 

consideration. Prioritization is based on many factors, including, but not limited to, strengthening 

the Division’s core competencies, growing programmatic focus areas, and succession planning. 

Where possible, the Division attempts to leverage the servicing of existing and purchase of new 

instrumentation and throughout both the Division, MML, and NIST. For example, the Division 

shares several electron microscopy service contracts with other MML Divisions and another 

Laboratory. More recently, the Division has purchased several new instruments through a costsharing relationship with other Divisions and the MML Lab Office. Such equipment purchases 

would have otherwise proved insurmountable for our Division alone, but MML staff and 

management are always seeking ways to collaborate, and the MML Lab Office has remained quite 

supportive for our programmatic needs. 
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MML’S RESPONSES TO THE FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE 2020 ASSESSMENT 85 

BIOSYSTEMS AND BIOMATERIALS DIVISION 

Finding: BBD has built an exceptionally strong network of collaborators and stakeholders 

comprised of government entities, academic institutions, and industry, which has allowed for 

strong technical programs and scientific capability. The challenge will be to continue to build 

these assets sustainably and further to enable agility as U.S. economic factors shift. 

Recommendation 7-1: The Biosystems and Biomaterials Division (BBD) should (1) with 

creativity, develop a business strategy that focuses on BBD’s unique products that may include 

licensing and further consortia for use of BBD products, services, and expertise; (2) strategically 

place BBD postdoctoral fellows into industry, academia, and other government positions to 

improve connectivity with outside current and future collaborators and stakeholders; (3) hire or 

contract with a communications person with YouTube and other media expertise to reach 

individuals who are searching for BBD-type expertise, products, and research services; and (4) 

determine how to connect with quality and manufacturing personnel at small and medium-sized 

companies in targeted industries. Emphasizing NIST BBD leadership, with thoughtfulness and 

quantification, in BBD program areas should be addressed by BBD leadership and staff to further 

enhance leadership with collaborators and stakeholders. 

MML Response to Recommendation 7-1: 

(1) Since the 2020 panel review, the BBD has established two new NIST-led consortia, the 

Rapid Microbial Testing Methods Consortium (launched in June 2020) and the Flow Cytometry 

Standards Consortium (launched in Dec. 2020) that leverage NIST technology and standards 

expertise to address critical pre-competitive needs of the Regenerative Medicine and Advanced 

Therapies (RMAT) stakeholder community. As of December 2022, we have established over 170 

formal agreements (CRADAs, MTAs, etc.) with companies and other organizations to collaborate 

on joint research, technology, and standards development projects that advance BBD’s core 

capabilities, technologies, and measurement science expertise. 

(2) We collaborate closely with industry, other federal agencies, and academic labs to enable 

novel and robust technologies and tools to support stakeholder needs. We leverage the strategic 

placement of our postdocs in outside labs to transfer NIST knowledge and expertise in 

measurement science, standards, and technology development. Some recent examples include: 

 One NIST postdoctoral fellow in engineering biology used his NIST experience to launch 

a position as a senior scientist in protein engineering with Absci in Portland, Oregon. 

 One NIST postdoctoral fellow in engineering biology transitioned from NIST to a 

successful consulting position for DARPA’s Biological Technologies Office with Booze 

Allen Hamilton. 

(3) We have been working closely with communications experts (e.g., science writers, social 

media writer/editors, graphic designers) in the NIST Public Affairs Office and leveraging their 

expertise and tools to develop news articles, podcasts, blog posts, graphics/artwork, and tweets to 

inform the public and NIST stakeholders about BBD’s technical outputs such as high impact 

publications, standards, workshops, and product releases. Recent examples of high-performing 

content include: 

 News article on implementing systems thinking/data in training the regenerative medicine 

workforce (January 12, 2023). LinkedIn 

 News article related to the updated human genome (March 31, 2022). Facebook, Twitter, 

LinkedIn, Reddit. 

 New article related to the development of biological computers that could potentially 

persist inside cells. (March 23, 2022). Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Reddit. 

 Feature-style post about taking a closer look at the human gut’s interactions with 

nanoplastics (January 18, 2022). Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram. 

(4) Our Consortia are designed to be inclusive, including small and medium size companies. 

Examples include Slinshot Biosciences, Spherotech, and BioLegend, Inc. We continue technical 
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86 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

expertise to the NIST Manufacturing Extension Program (MEP) program, a program dedicated to 

serving small and medium-sized businesses. 

Recommendation 7-2: The Biosystems and Biomaterials Division should improve awareness of 

its products and capabilities, especially within small to medium-size enterprises and companies 

that are not currently stakeholders because they are in different industries (e.g., agriculture). 

MML Response to Recommendation 7-2: 

Our multidisciplinary team of scientists and engineers develop foundational measurement science 

and capabilities that serve a number of applications and different sectors of the bioeconomy. Our 

programs are designed to be agile and address the most pressing needs in various emerging 

industrial applications. For example, we have recently recruited a postdoc to our Engineering 

Biology Program, who brings expertise in culturing environmental microbes, such as those found 

in soil. She is transferring protocols and knowledge on measuring differential gene expression in 

microbes exposed to environmental pollutants, through RNA sequencing including the 

bioinformatics pipeline for the associated data. Another recent postdoc recruit brings expertise in 

yeast microbiology, especially engineering GPCR protein sensors for therapeutic applications. He 

also brings experience with ML/AI tools for protein engineering and library design for directed 

evolution. The NIST Genome Editing Consortium is focused on addressing the measurements and 

standards needed to increase confidence and lower the risk of utilizing genome editing 

technologies in research and commercial products mainly in the advanced therapies sector. 

However, the measurements and standards developed are applicable to other sectors such as 

agriculture. 

Recommendation 7-3: The Material Measurement Laboratory should evaluate whether the square 

footage assigned the Biosystems and Biomaterials Division is commensurate with the division’s 

current size and mission.

MML Response to Recommendation 7-3: 

Since the 2020 Panel review, the BBD has established multiple measurement capabilities to 

support the National priority areas of Engineering Biology, Microbiome, and RMAT. Additional 

space is urgently needed to continue to grow these emerging programs, but our laboratory spaces 

in buildings 227 and 224 are at full capacity. To address our pressing space needs, we have been 

working closely with MML leadership to identify space currently occupied by the ADA in 

building 224. As of January 2023, MML has agreed to provide 5 additional laboratory modules to 

help alleviate our pressing microbial program space needs in the short term. Access to additional 

space will also improve laboratory safety by reducing unnecessary exposure to potential hazards 

due to overcrowding and clutter (e.g., tripping hazards and storing heavy items high up) and 

providing sufficient bench space to safely work in the labs and ensure our laboratories are aligned 

with our Quality Management System. We continue to work with MML to initiate formal 

evaluation to determine whether the square footage assigned the BBD is commensurate with the 

division’s current size and mission. 

Recommendation 7-4: The Biosystems and Biomaterials Division should provide additional 

resources in thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, colloidal science, virology, immunology, 

microbiology, and bioinformatics in a manner commensurate with the increasing importance of 

these specialties. 

MML Response to Recommendation 7-4: 

Since the 2020 panel review, the BBD has established new programs in virology (e.g., viral and 

non-viral vectors), immunology (e.g., serology and neutralization assays for SARS-CoV-2), 

microbiology (e.g., Mpox Research Grade Test Material 10223), and bioinformatics (e.g., genomic 

cybersecurity, LIMS/data infrastructure for managing data/metadata in collaboration with 
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NASA/JPL). We were able to obtain additional funding to expand into adjacent disciplines related 

to material science and have strengthened partnership with other parts of NIST with deep domain 

expertise in thermodynamics, and colloidal science. 

Recommendation 7-5: The Biosystems and Biomaterials Division should analyze underserved 

minority representation among its staff and develop an action plan to address findings both from 

such study and from NIST’s equity disparity studies. 

MML Response to Recommendation 7-5: 

BBD is actively contributing to the broader NIST DEIA efforts. We consider underserved 

minority representation in our hiring practices. Through a partnership with Morgan State 

University, we provide paid internship opportunities to two graduate students. We have asked 

appropriate NIST offices with the proper authority to collect data related the BBD’s ethnic and 

diversity composition so that we can conduct analysis and develop appropriate action plans. 

Recommendation 7-6: The Biosystems and Biomaterials Division should develop a plan for 

outplacing long-tenured postdoctoral fellows into synergistic positions in industry, academia, or 

government. This plan should include an assessment of what shortfall, if any, this might create in 

its staffing plans. 

MML Response to Recommendation 7-6: 

The BBD did not have any long-tenured postdoctoral fellows at the time of the 2020 review or 

during the current review period. The BBD benefits greatly from the contributions of our postdocs 

in terms of carrying out our mission, building alliances and bridges to other organizations, and 

mentoring students. We greatly support the career goals of each of our postdocs and in addition to 

the research and training opportunities that are available to them at NIST, they have the 

opportunity to meet and connect with NIST stakeholders through workshops, consortia, and other 

collaborative efforts that are relevant to their research and future career goals. For example, we 

have joined the Global Biofoundry Alliance (GBA), where we placed a postdoc, who was 

engineering protein sensors with our automated workflows. This provided the necessary 

experience for the postdoc and enabled him to take a position with the bio foundry at the 

Concordia Genome Foundry at Concordia University in Montreal, Canada. 

Recommendation 7-7: The Biosystems and Biomaterials Division leadership should implement 

cross-training of staff with intent during each year to mitigate the effects of loss of key staff and 

ensure continuity. 

MML Response to Recommendation 7-7: 

We work to ensure that protocols important to our workflows are shared across the BBD (e.g., 

between technicians and from postdocs to technicians), to help guard against the loss of this 

knowledge in the Division. Our staff have also implemented electronic resources (e-notebooks, 

LIMS) that are shared across the groups and Division, to ensure access to protocols, data, and 

metadata associated with measurements and laboratory operations. 

BIOMOLECULAR MEASUREMENT DIVISION 

Finding: The applications of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) have now 

permeated the science and engineering fields, enabling discoveries and insights not previously 

possible. Indeed, these methods have now become common and indispensable components of 

virtually all analytical or measurement methods. The list of BMD applications includes MS 

spectra/databases, NMR library contours, retention index analyses, forensics, and others. An 
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88 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

AI/ML expert would likely provide novel insights into the embedding of these methods 

throughout the division as well as playing an educational role. 

Recommendation 8-1: The Biological Measurement Division (BMD) should evaluate its 

portfolio of expertise of staff with expertise in artificial intelligence and machine learning as 

applied to the measurement tools specifically in BMD. BMD might want to consider a joint hire 

with another division to leverage additional expertise and resources, or develop a more centralized 

collaboration model (i.e., community of practice) to make enhanced use of AI/ML expertise. 

MML Response to Recommendation 8-1: 

The BMD has taken several steps to address this recommendation. First, the BMD evaluated its 

portfolio of staff expertise and projects in AI/ML. It was found that the BMD’s activities in 

AI/ML fall into two broad categories: 1) the application of AI/ML approaches to advance 

biomolecular measurement science and tools, and 2) the development of reference materials and 

test data sets to advance AI/ML approaches applied to biomolecular measurement systems. 

Second, the BMD formed an AI/ML working group with a representative from each group to 

provide updates on AI/ML related projects in the division, exchange ideas, and to promote 

collaborations. A BMD staff member also represented MML on the NIST AI Community of 

Interest group, which helped the division to stay abreast of AI/ML activities and expertise across 

NIST and to raise the visibility of the BMD’s activities. Third, the BMD actively sought to 

leverage expertise and resources both inside and outside of NIST to expand its portfolio of 

AI/ML-related projects. Examples of new collaborative AI/ML-related projects are given below. 

A new collaboration between scientists in the BMD’s Mass Spectrometry Data Center Group, 

the Biosystems and Biomaterials Division, and NIST’s Information Technology Laboratory (ITL) 

was initiated to use and develop artificial intelligence and other machine learning methods for a 

new class of genomics Standard Reference Materials and proteomics Standard Reference Data. 

The project was funded by ITL through a Use-Inspired proposal competition. The Mass 

Spectrometry Data Center Group developed neural networks to predict peptide spectra from their 

sequences and potential modifications. The models were trained on well-characterized NIST mass 

spectral libraries using over one million MS2 peptide spectra. The models were able to predict 

spectra and to evaluate over the collision energy range over which predictions are valid. One paper 

has been submitted on the topic of using AI predictions to improve mass spectral library 

searching. Two additional papers are in preparation, one on spectral prediction of proteins with 

post-translational modifications, and another on creating reliable mass spectral datasets for AI. 

The Bioprocess Measurements Group collaborates with researchers from the University of 

Colorado, the FDA, and Ursa Analytics, Inc. in the development of convolutional neural networks 

(CNNs) to analyze flow imaging microscopic images of protein particles. The presence of protein 

particles in formulated protein therapeutics and their potential impact on safety and efficacy are of 

great concern to the biopharmaceutical industry and regulators. A resulting publication 

demonstrates that CNN analysis of microscopy images was able to determine distinguishing 

“fingerprint” features for different preparations and materials and that NIST particle reference 

materials can be used as a repeatable, quantitative control for image acquisition and analysis. The 

approach is promising for quality control applications such as the detection of manufacturing 

deviations (DOI: 10.1007/s11095-021-03130-9). 

The Biomolecular Structure and Function Group collaborates with researchers from ITL, 

Brown University, George Mason University, and the University of Pennsylvania to develop ML 

methods for analyzing cryo-electron microscopy images of mRNA-Lipid Nanoparticle (LNP) 

structures. The structures of mRNA-LNP vaccines and therapeutics are complex containing a 

range of diameters, water-filled pockets of different sizes with RNA present or absent in cores or 

pockets. Cryo-EM is a promising tool for characterizing this heterogeneity; however, the tracing 

of large numbers of LNPs by hand is intractable and simple algorithms for finding particles 

perform poorly due to low contrast. Two approaches are being evaluated: 1) the training of ML 

models on manually-annotated micrographs using “Cellpose”, a deep-learning segmentation 

method designed for segmenting cells and 2) “U-net”, which uses simulated images. 
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The BMD machine learning portfolio also includes collaborations between NMR 

spectroscopy groups at IBBR, computational scientists in ITL, and collaborators at the Network 

for Advanced NMR, sited jointly at UCONN, UGA, and UW. Nearly all interpretation of 

biomolecular NMR in two dimensions and higher is performed by interactive inspection of 2D 

contour plots by experts, and identifying peaks is a required step in most every NMR workflow, 

both for biomolecular data and small molecules. The goal of this project has been to use machine 

learning and other methods to build a system that can identify and characterize peaks as 

effectively as a human analyst can. The method must be able to identify partially resolved peaks, 

discriminate true signals from artifacts, and make high-quality decisions about whether two peaks 

are related. In a first approach, a UNET convolutional neural network architecture has been used 

to identify peaks in contour plot images via segmentation. The project benefits from the nature of 

NMR data, which allows realistic training spectra to be constructed completely synthetically from 

mathematical models, or semi-synthetically, by combining individual signals from measured 

spectra. 

Finding: The majority of BMD’s application areas are human based, that is forensics, 

biotherapeutics, Chimeric antigen receptor T cells (CAR T cells), and so forth. Significant 

opportunities may be present in areas beyond that applied to humans; these include agriculture, 

veterinary science, biocatalysis, and environmental and marine research areas. 

Recommendation 8-2: The Biological Measurement Division (BMD) should develop a strategy 

to assess agriculture, veterinary science, biocatalysis, and environmental and marine research areas 

as possible opportunities for growth and sources of additional collaborations and funding. 

MML Response to Recommendation 8-2: 

Since the Panel’s recommendation in 2020, the BMD has initiated several projects in other 

biotechnology sector areas: 

The development of LC/MS approaches to screen and identifying plastic degrading enzymes. This 

project was supported by a new NIST Circular Economy Initiative. 

The development of a mass spectral library of plasticisers in high volume, commodity 

polymers with applications towards plastics recycling – a project also supported by the Circular 

Economy Initiative. 

In collaboration with the Chemical Sciences Division, the development of tree nut reference 

materials — hazelnut and almond flours — that will help ensure accurate and consistent results for 

test kits that regulators and food manufacturers can use to detect tree nut allergens. 

In direct response to this recommendation, the BMD has also taken several actions to develop 

a programmatic strategy to assess measurements and standards needs of other biotechnology 

sectors so that we are positioned for future collaborations, funding opportunities, and growth. 

First, we have been engaging stakeholders to learn and assess current and emerging measurement 

and standards needs in these other sectors. We have found BioMade, a Manufacturing Innovation 

Institute (MII) founded in Oct. 2020, to be a useful resource. BioMade’s goal is to advance 

sustainable and reliable bioindustrial manufacturing technologies for a wide array of products 

including chemicals, detergents, polymers, electronic films, fabrics, agricultural products (e.g., 

feedstock), crop protection solutions, food additives, fragrances, and flavors. Interactions with 

BioMade have been facilitated through the detail of a BMD staff member in NIST’s Advanced 

Manufacturing National Program Office which coordinates Manufacturing USA, the network of 

MIIs across the country that includes the biotechnology MIIs NIIMBL, BioMade and the 

ARMI/BioFab. Second, BMD management team and staff have also attended numerous 

conferences and workshops that have dealt with biotechnology applications for industrial 

chemistry, agricultural, energy, or climate including a recent Oct. 2022 NASEM workshop 

“Successes and Challenges in Biomanufacturing”. Third, we have played an active role in internal 

MML/NIST and interagency discussions on expanding the NIST biotechnology and 

biomanufacturing programs to advance key societal goals outlined by the Administration’s recent 

Executive Order “Advancing Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Innovation for a Sustainable, 

Safe, and Secure American Bioeconomy”: (https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-
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90 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

room/presidential-actions/2022/09/12/executive-order-on-advancing-biotechnology-andbiomanufacturing-innovation-for-a-sustainable-safe-and-secure-american-bioeconomy/). 

Through these interactions and discussions we see the BMD and NIST playing important 

roles in providing measurement science and standards to support a wide array of emerging 

biomanufacturing technologies and products. Most biotechnology processes involve an upstream, 

cell culture operation where process analytical technologies (PAT) are used to generate real time 

data for monitoring and predicting process trajectories and ensuring the quality of products. 

Biomanufacturing facilities of the future will use PAT data combined with advanced, big data 

analytics including AI/ML to achieve consistent quality, higher yields, lower costs, and reduced 

waste – important goals for all bio-based production. Critical to the implementation of PAT will 

be the availability of robust measurement technologies with understood measurement uncertainty, 

the development of new measurement technologies, and platform standards to drive adoption of 

new manufacturing technologies. The BMD has initiated several efforts in upstream process 

measurement including the use of dielectric measurements for measuring live cell concentration, 

the use of NMR for on-line measurements of cell metabolites, and the use of LC/MS methods for 

at-line measurements of product attributes. These measurement approaches are general and 

applicable to any biomanufacturing process. 

CHEMICAL SCIENCES DIVISION 

Recommendation 9-1: The Chemical Sciences Division (CSD) should consider administrative 

changes to give greater definition to connectivity among the Division’s scientists, including 

binning the teams in CSD to make commonalities with other groups more apparent; and, as 

warranted, splitting larger divisions and aggregating the groups into new divisions where 

similarities are strongest. 

MML Response to Recommendation 9-1: 

One of the strengths of the Chemical Sciences Division is the connection and interactions between 

members from different groups to provide metrological support to NIST stakeholders in the 

chemical sciences. The strength of these collaborations and synergies have significantly increased 

in recent years given the multidisciplinary nature of some of the grand challenge problems tackled 

by the Division. As an example, members from the Organic Chemical Metrology Group, 

Chemical Informatics Group, and the Biochemical and Exposure Science Group (in Charleston, 

SC) have been working together with scientists from the Engineering Laboratory in the 

development of a metrological framework aimed at the identification, characterization, and 

quantitation of PFAS in water, firefighter gear, sea food, and marine organisms. 

Finding: The appropriated funds out of general taxpayer revenues (the STRS is one such account) 

is for the purposes of performing research and preparing and maintaining standards. Bureaucratic 

processes can unnecessarily impede mission progress. Cost-benefit analysis that values time 

devoted to research can elucidate this. A survey of how staff spend their time could assist 

management in quantifying this loss. 

Recommendation 9-2: The Chemical Sciences Division should evaluate its portfolio to determine 

the fit to Material Measurement Laboratory’s (MML’s) strategy with a view toward adoption of a 

“steady state” economic model in which new costs are paid for by pruning existing operations. 

Alternatively, MML could adopt a “pay as you go” model in which they would add new programs, 

instrumentation, employees, and so forth as new funds become available, or by intentionally 

pursuing external funding in strategic areas. 

MML Response to Recommendation 9-2: 

For the most part, the Chemical Sciences Division does not have control over the allocation of 

NIST appropriated STRS funds. Once the STRS has been allocated to the Division, the proper 
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MML’S RESPONSES TO THE FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE 2020 ASSESSMENT 91 

resources are dedicated in support of the programs and technical activities within the groups based 

on a diverse set of drivers, including stakeholder needs, NIST mission, MML mission, and 

Division mission. In addition, the research and measurement service delivery needs are also driven 

by the following focus areas: 

 Develop and maintain state-of-the-art chemical measurement capabilities. 

 Generate, gather, curate and disseminate critically evaluated data. 

 Develop, implement and validate accurate theoretical models and reliable chemical 

informatic tools. 

 Conduct research concerning the qualitative and quantitative determination of chemical 

composition. 

 Provide measurement service delivery activities based on focus area needs. 

 Disseminate tools for measurement traceability and quality assurance (such as reference 

materials and other services). 

 Demonstrate international comparability of U.S. standards for chemical measurements. 

In recent years, the Division has been working with MML management to delineate a plan 

leading to a more sustainable and forward-looking funding model to support the development of 

our SRM programs and to modernize the Division’s measurement services. NIST management has 

taken the suggestions of this plan and have included or are planning on including a line item in 

future NIST budgets to address these issues. Additionally, the Division management and the staff 

have been extremely active (and successful) at procuring additional funding from other agencies to 

support work in impactful programs that requires the technical excellence and expertise provided 

by the Division in Chemical Metrology. 

Recommendation 9-3: The MML should create an instrumentation strategic plan as a useful 

mechanism to define the current status of instruments via a census (item, age, location, status, 

responsible person, availability) and prioritization of new instrumentation, as well as identify 

internal and external support (funds). The MML should also consider developing a plan for 

maintenance and eventual instrument replacement (where needed) as well as a means of relocating 

or repurposing underutilized resources. 

MML Response to Recommendation 9-3: 

The Division has appointed Kevin Huncik, from the Biochemical and Exposure Science Group, 

the Division Instrumentation Officer. One of his duties is to maintain a list of the instrumentation 

around the Division (including information regarding location, age, users, programs associated 

with the instruments, etc.), and advice the Division Chief in matters of repairs, maintenance, and 

acquisition of instruments. 

Recommendation 9-4: The Chemical Sciences Division (CSD) should remain in contact with 

postdoctoral (NRC and Associate) and other categories of associates who have left CSD as a way 

of collecting input on emerging areas of concern, problems of note, and feedback on the adoption 

and implementation of CSD and Material Measurement Laboratory efforts. 

MML Response to Recommendation 9-4: 

In addition to exit interviews, CSD is actively keeping contact (whenever possible) with 

postdoctoral fellows that find employment outside NIST. In addition to help the Division obtain 

invaluable input regarding new opportunities, these interactions have also provided CSD a very 

efficient vehicle to reach out to other young scientists that might be willing to come and work in 

our division. 
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92 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

APPLIED CHEMICALS AND MATERIALS DIVISION 

Recommendation 10-1: The Applied Chemicals and Materials Division should create a capital 

equipment replacement plan that considers also the requirements for space and ongoing 

maintenance. 

MML Response to Recommendation 10-1: 

The ever-present need for investing in new capabilities requiring substantial capital equipment, 

replacing aging capital equipment where capabilities are still needed and the ongoing need to 

maintain capital equipment via service contracts requires financial resources that are beyond those 

strictly available within the Applied Chemical and Materials Division (ACMD). Accordingly, 

ACMD uses a multifaceted approach to addressing this need. First, at NIST, each division can 

have an Invested Equipment account which is roughly analogous to a capped home equity loan 

which can be used in the present for purchases and then paid back in the future. In addition, we 

can, and do, partner with the MML Lab Office to share costs on major equipment purchases and 

maintenance contracts. For example, in FY22, the Lab Office financed the purchase of a new 

Focused Ion Beam (FIB) tool to be located in MML Boulder lab space that will broadly support 

ACMD materials research. Much of the maintenance contracts expenses that ACMD incurs are 

associated with microscopy equipment in the NIST-Boulder Precision Imaging Facility (PIF). 

Increasing concern in recent years about these costs (as well as issues with user access) have 

resulted in a reorganization of PIF management where it is being organizationally incorporated 

into the Boulder Microfabrication Facility (BMF), an entity which reports directly to the Physical 

Measurement Laboratory (PML) Director. This new PIF subunit is now co-lead by one PML and 

one MML scientist to ensure access and operational concerns of both user groups are addressed. 

Further, the equipment maintenance costs are now handled at the Laboratory level. In addition to 

the above mechanisms for financing capital equipment purchases, ACMD keeps an active eye on 

the availability of suitable equipment on the Federal Government Excess Equipment list and the 

second-hand market. This can be especially useful when an equipment capability is needed in a 

more supporting role, but does not have to be state-of-the-art. For example, in FY22, ACMD 

acquired a lightly used laboratory scale x-ray diffraction system for just the cost of shipping and 

installation. In an ideal world, such looking for bargains would not be needed, but in the real 

world where research resources are always finite, such prudent purchasing results in additional 

funds for conducting research. On the topic of obtaining sufficient suitable laboratory space to 

enable optimal performance of capital equipment, that is generally beyond the control of an 

individual division. That said, ACMD will be getting five new on-grade laboratories in Building 1 

Wing 4 once it is renovated (2024/2025) and NIST has begun the planning process to replace 

Buildings 2 and 24, which are two of the older research buildings on the Boulder campus. 

Recommendation 10-2: The Applied Chemicals and Materials Division should take steps to 

realize the true value of standard reference data and standard reference materials thereby enabling 

revenue for growth of new programs. 

MML Response to Recommendation 10-2: 

The Applied Chemicals and Materials Division (ACMD) has two primary revenue generating 

standard reference programs which are the Charpy Standard Reference Materials (SRM) and the 

Thermodynamic Research Center Standard Reference Data (SRD) products exemplified by 

ThermoDynamic Engine (TDE). As originally authorized in the 1968 Standard Reference Data 

Act and amended in the 2017 American Innovation and Competitiveness Act, prices for 

SRM/SRD products sold or licensed by NIST shall be set to reflect the cost of producing and 

selling the product. Hence, the revenue to ACMD gained through the sales of SRM and SRD can, 

at most, only cover the costs associated with those specific programs. They cannot be a source of 

revenue for the growth of new programs. That said, ACMD is continuing to modernize and 

upgrade the SRM and SRD products and business models ACMD provides. Specifically, the 

Charpy SRM program brings in ~ $3.4M per year in sales. In addition to covering the full 
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MML’S RESPONSES TO THE FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE 2020 ASSESSMENT 93 

production costs of the Charpy SRM’s, this also covers the two ACMD staff who work full time 

on the Charpy program. To improve Charpy program customer service, the viability of using 

customer-provided electronic images of post-testing Charpy reference specimens was evaluated 

and a new online/e-mail based service was added to the Charpy verification program. This has 

been highly successful and was the basis for two ACMD staff receiving the NIST 2022 Judson C. 

French award for outstanding customer service by creating a digital verification program for 

Charpy standards involving >1900 customers per year in 60 countries. The resultant everincreasing collection of post-test Charpy specimen images and associated data is now being used 

to develop an AI-based image evaluation tool with the expectation to be able to provide userinitiated on-demand evaluation and interpretation of Charpy specimen images. In general, such 

SRM capability development work is funded the NIST Standards Development (SD) program of 

the Office of Reference Materials. In short, both the current day operations and the forwardlooking improvement of the Charpy SRM Program is self-financed. For the Thermodynamic 

Research Center SRD program, the annual revenue from SRD sales, subscriptions and consortium 

memberships is ~$600K, which covers roughly half the annual cost for providing these SRD 

services. Similarly, SRD sales of REFPROP bring in about $500K/year to ACMD which again 

covers about half the cost of producing, maintaining and distributing REFPROP. Both to 

potentially increase revenue and to serve more customers (stakeholders), the TRC is currently 

working with the Office of Data and Informatics to implement sales of data extractions (ie, 

customer-defined targeted subsets of the full TRC data and model collection) as there has been a 

dramatic increase in the demand for such a service due to researcher’s interest in well curated data 

sets for training AI models. ACMD is also hiring a full-time application programmer to modernize 

the front end of both TDE and REFPROP, which will both improve their utility for customers and 

enable new sales modalities aimed at broadening the customer base for these SRD products. 

Recommendation 10-3: MML should (1) clearly define the Applied Chemicals and Materials 

Division’s (ACMD’s) mission and how ACMD aligns within the Material Measurement 

Laboratory mission; and (2) integrate teams more closely with corresponding efforts in NIST 

Gaithersburg facilities. 

MML Response to Recommendation 10-3: 

The mission of the Applied Chemicals and Materials Division (ACMD) is to characterize the 

properties and structures of industrially important fluids and materials, thereby providing a 

diverse stakeholder community with innovative measurements and models and dissemination of 

critically evaluated data, leading to improved processes and better products, as well as new and 

improved standards. This mission is very well aligned with the higher-level mission of NIST 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. 

“Applied” is part of the ACMD division name because of the ACMD focus on serving external 

stakeholders interests and needs in areas of chemical production including new greener chemical 

processes, reducing climate change through identification of alternate chemicals/processes, 

improving domestic manufacturing by advancing additive manufacturing, developing metrologies 

to advance the US semiconductor industry, developing robust breath analysis metrologies for 

public safety and human health and advancing metallurgy and metals metrology to enable meeting 

future infrastructure needs for new energy sources and/or mitigating climate change. While all but 

one ACMD staff member are located at NIST-Boulder, ACMD actively engages with NISTGaithersburg based staff and research groups to bring the best NIST resources and researchers 

together to address any specific challenge. At the present time, ACMD staff are engaged in 20 

distinct cross-campus research collaborations of which 13 are not just cross-campus, but also 

involve collaborations with NIST staff outside of MML. One such project is a joint PML/MML 

effort on Semiconductor Gas Flow Metrology which is one of the five projects selected across 

NIST to receive FY22 funding as a NIST internal CHIPS Act quick start project. ACMD’s very 

productive and increasing engagement in collaborative research with NIST-Gaithersburg stems in 

part from a 2019.
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94 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

ACMD Leadership decision to be more actively engaged with NIST-Gaithersburg. 

Accordingly, greater attention was put on ensuring that ACMD subject matter experts attended 

relevant Gaithersburg based meetings and workshops and improved teleconferencing capabilities 

were established at ACMD in Boulder pre-COVID to facilitate high-quality remote meetings. The 

broader adoption of virtual meeting technologies and practices during the work-from-home period 

(2020 – 2022) has further reduced the barriers to facile cross-campus communication. With 

business travel returning to near pre-COVID levels, ACMD is once again sending staff to 

Gaithersburg as appropriate to ensure the continuation of effective collaborations. Finally, ACMD 

provides space for five MML HQ staff based at NIST-Boulder. This arrangement further improves 

ACMD communications with the MML Lab Office and Leadership. 

Recommendation 10-4: The Applied Chemicals and Materials Division should continue to 

increase the number of high-risk projects.

MML Response to Recommendation 10-4: 

In line with the Applied Chemicals and Materials Division (ACMD), MML and NIST missions, 

ACMD maintains a balance of providing (and modernizing) external stakeholder serving services 

and high-risk high-reward research projects to advance the state-of-the-art metrology in ACMD 

research domains. At NIST, one funding source for high-risk high-reward research is the internal 

NIST Innovations in Measurement Sciences (IMS) program. Each year, only two or three new 

projects are selected for funding NIST-wide and projects generally run for five years. ACMD is 

part of three active IMS research projects, Measuring Intermolecular Interactions with ElectricAcoustic Spectroscopy (started FY21), Getting From Qubit to Mega-Qubit Quantum Computers 

with RF Calibrations (started FY21) and Metrology to Enable Hot Qubits (started FY23). The 

selection process for new FY24 projects is underway and ACMD is leading one and part of three 

proposals that are still in contention after an initial 50% down-selection, although there is still a 

long way to go before specific proposals are selected for FY24 project starts. The 2022 CHIPS Act 

is also creating opportunities for new research at NIST. More specifically, ACMD submitted 13 

new project ideas on advancing semiconductor materials metrology to the internal NIST 

Metrology R&D Program’s recent initial call for ideas. Outside of the NIST IMS and CHIPS 

programs, ACMD staff are pursuing high-risk research projects in the areas of machine learning 

for predicting thermophysical properties of mixtures; re-inventing viscosity-liquid-equilibrium 

(VLE) measurements of mixtures through both NMR and microwave methods; entropy scaling to 

predict transport (dynamic) properties from equations of state (equilibrium properties); 

development of human breath metrology (breathomics) for public safety and public health needs; 

applications of NMR to quantifying CO2 sequestration in building materials; growth and grainboundary metrology of engineered metallic bi-crystals to advance material property predictions; 

3D printing of composite materials for biological and medical applications; and applications of 

nanoscale topological features in 2D materials to biological, filtering and sensing challenges 

among others. In summary, ACMD continues to be very actively engaged in advancing the stateof-the-art in science and metrology areas within the NIST mission and our scope of expertise. 

REFERENCE 

NASEM (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine). 2021. An Assessment of the 

Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal 

Year 2020. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/26048. 

NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology). 2023. “Read-Ahead Material for NASEM 

Assessment of MML.” Received May 1 from Callie Higgins, Material Measurement Laboratory, 

NIST. 
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Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

95 

12 

Overarching Themes, Key Recommendations, and ChapterSpecific Recommendations from This Assessment 

OVERARCHING THEMES AND KEY RECOMMENDATIONS 

Adequacy of Facilities and Equipment 

As highlighted in the fiscal year (FY) 2020 National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and 

Medicine assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory (MML) (NASEM 2021) and more recently 

in the 2023 National Academies’ report Technical Assessment of the Capital Facility Needs of the 

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NASEM 2023), aging facilities and infrastructure 

present significant handicaps. Notably, the report found that NIST research staff spent from 10 to 40 

percent of their time working around facility shortcomings, with the typical reported values being 20 

percent. (NASEM 2023) As direct consequence of these limitations, at NIST generally and specific to this 

report, MML researchers are left to mitigate these limitations through repeating their work or 

implementing workarounds with limited research budgets. 

The MML laboratories in Boulder, Colorado, and Gaithersburg, Maryland, laboratories are 

negatively affected by poor temperature and humidity control, in addition to inadequate air flow in their 

laboratories, which are not compatible with state-of-the-art measurements and instrumentation. On the 

Gaithersburg campus, in 2022, aging infrastructure led to serious flooding of MML research laboratories, 

resulting in a loss of millions of dollars of equipment and lost time. The facilities are in general 

inadequate for the performance of modern materials chemistry related processes. Much of the 

infrastructure, both buildings and equipment, has exceeded its expected life, leading to time spent 

inefficiently compared to the capabilities of state-of-the-art facilities and equipment in academic and 

industry laboratories and at metrology institutes around the world. While MML research efforts are 

world-leading, aging facilities and infrastructure are such that MML is at the cusp of losing its worldleading position and its ability to continue to attract new generations of world-leading researchers. 

Key Recommendation 1: The Material Measurement Laboratory (MML) and the National 

Institute of Standards and Technology Office of Facilities and Property Management 

should work together to identify and document critical laboratory infrastructure issues. 

They should collaborate to prioritize items that need to be addressed and create a plan with 

an associated timeline to address those needs. MML should actively encourage its 

researchers to document facilities issues and all associated time lost repeating experiments, 

and the portion of the research budget spent on working around facility issues. 

The identified infrastructure issues also represent safety issues: floods can easily lead to sparks 

that can in turn initiate fires; inadequate exhaust will lead to contaminated laboratory air that can 

negatively impact research product quality and in the long term can impact the health of research staff. As 
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96 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

a whole, aged infrastructure and equipment can have an impact on the overall attitude of the staff toward 

safety. 

Safety involves an entire organization, including and particularly line management. Managers set 

the tone and monitor the progress against metrics. They participate in safety inspections. They lead 

investigations of incidents and near misses. In so doing they create the environment that ultimately grows 

into a safety culture. Safety is not a grassroots effort, and management needs to do more than establish the 

objectives; managers at all levels needs to recognize their responsibility and accountability for what 

happens at the same organizational intensity level as revenue and productivity targets. Participation in the 

Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s Voluntary Protection Programs might be a useful way 

to approach safety at MML.1

Key Recommendation 2: Safety is as much a line management responsibility as an 

individual one. Leaders should recognize that every task can be done safely, and every task 

has inherent risks. That attitude needs to be transmitted down the line in order for each 

individual to take responsibility for not only maintaining but also improving the safety of 

their environment and the environments of those around them. The Material Measurement 

Laboratory (MML) should maintain statistics of leading indicators of safety risks and 

facilities dangers that represent the base of the safety pyramid. These statistics should be 

socialized within the organization in such a way that a safe and safety-conscious 

environment is created that results in a safety culture that supports continuous 

improvement. MML should consider engaging with experienced industrial partners who 

can bring a fresh perspective on the safety risks as a way of providing an unbiased and 

fresh pair of eyes to the situation. 

Adequacy of Scientific and Technical Expertise 

MML conducts research at a very high level. It has formal arrangements with renowned 

institutions such as Brookhaven National Laboratory and the Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology 

Research, a joint institute with the University of Maryland, College Park, and the University of Maryland, 

Baltimore, two campuses of the University of Maryland system. MML has primary responsibility within 

NIST for producing and curating standard reference materials (SRM) and standard reference data (SRD). 

In addition to maintaining critical SRM and SRD, MML has developed these products in newer areas 

standards products based on biology. The balance of maintaining legacy SRM versus repurposing those 

redirecting limited resources toward producing SRM and SRD in new and emerging areas presents both a 

challenge and an opportunity. MML notes that areas of new opportunities include the bioeconomy and 

engineering biology, data science and engineering, and artificial intelligence, and the circular economy. 

The robustness of MML’s program against retirements or unforeseen departures could be 

improved. In some places there needs to be more systematic succession planning to prevent gaps from 

occurring. Cross-training to provide backup coverage in case the primary cognizant scientist leaves is a 

further way to protect against disruption. In other instances, retraining staff to take on emerging issues 

requiring different disciplinary knowledge was lacking. 

Pandemic restrictions limited onboarding and other processes that contribute to a cohesive work 

culture, which has been recognized by the MML leadership team. The lack of cohesion negatively 

impacts an organization or culture where career mentoring and professional development for the 

population of term-limited scientific appointees becomes uneven. 

Key Recommendation 3: The Material Measurement Laboratory (MML) should work with 

National Institute of Standards and Technology human resources to develop effective 

1

 More information about the Voluntary Protection Programs and how to participate can be found at 

Occupational Safety and Health Administration, “Voluntary Protection Programs,” https://www.osha.gov/vpp. 
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OVERARCHING THEMES, KEY RECOMMENDATIONS, AND CHAPTER-SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATIONS 97 

processes and procedures for hiring and career development of staff. Processes to ensure 

timely support to MML in hiring and onboarding of postdocs, term, and permanent 

employees should be developed and implemented. 

Key Recommendation 4: The Material Measurement Laboratory (MML) should require 

mentorship training for all research staff within the laboratory to ensure quality vertical 

mentorship and sponsorship in order to increase the impact of the postdoc and early career 

population both within MML and later in industry, academia, or government positions. 

MML should increase the number of employees who have formal leadership training to 

standardize mentoring and onboarding of new personnel. The training should include a 

formalization of clear mentor and mentee expectations in terms of work, in-person 

meetings, and supervision. MML should consider a standard message about the processes of 

transitioning from a postdoc or term appointee to a permanent staff member, and the 

probability thereof so as to minimize the uncertainty around this process. 

Data Management and Data Infrastructure 

Data science represents an increasingly important part of MML’s work to meet its mission. 

Within MML, the Office of Data and Informatics is a dedicated, service-oriented data resource for 

physical sciences with domain expertise in biological, chemical, and materials sciences, specializing in 

large and information-rich data sets. 

Across MML, data collection, storage, analysis, and movement appear to be handled by multiple, 

fragmented platforms, and computational data does not appear to be managed in a centralized platform. In 

addition, not all the experimental measurement systems have a consolidated and automated data 

infrastructure, which results in a fragmented data infrastructure that, unfortunately, leads to discrete, 

inefficient, and stovepiped experimental data infrastructure across MML. These observations lead to 

opportunities to unify all computational systems, data formats, and data transmission protocols into a 

single, uniform platform for more efficient and effective data curation, storage, processing, transmission, 

and security management. 

Key Recommendation 5: To the extent possible, the Material Measurement Laboratory 

should launch an initiative to unify all computational systems, data formats, and data 

transmission protocols into a single, uniform platform for more efficient and effective data 

curation, storage, processing, transmission, and security management. This data science 

initiative could be applied to machine learning deployment and expand capabilities in 

laboratory automation, high-performance computing, and artificial intelligence. Computing 

infrastructure should, to the extent possible, be updated to meet current laboratory 

standards. 

CHAPTER-SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATIONS 

In addition to the major themes and key recommendations above, the panel developed divisionand office-specific recommendations in each chapter. Some of these are unique to a given division or 

office. Others form the basis for the overarching themes of this assessment that led to the key 

recommendations. 
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Applied Chemicals and Materials Division 

Recommendation 3-1: The Applied Chemicals and Materials Division should develop a process to 

evaluate the maturity and current and future importance of ongoing projects relative to new 

opportunities to help decide which programs could be cut in effort or retired completely. 

Recommendation 3-2: The Applied Chemicals and Materials Division, and the Material 

Measurement Laboratory broadly, should have a streamlined and standardized mentoring plan 

with suitable evaluation of the mentors. 

Recommendation 3-3: To maximize outcomes from the use of external funds, the Applied 

Chemicals and Materials Division should make greater use of technicians for maintaining legacy 

projects and provide adequate staff time for new initiatives. 

Recommendation 3-4: The Applied Chemicals and Materials Division should carry out a detailed 

market assessment to assess and maximize the return on the long-term investment in generating 

and maintaining Material Measurement Laboratory’s data-based products. 

Biosystems and Biomaterials Division 

Recommendation 4-1: Owing to increasing demands on the unit resulting from new bioeconomy 

initiatives, the Material Measurement Laboratory should prioritize allocations to the Biosystems 

and Biomaterials Division within budgetary constraints to ensure adequate support and the 

Biosystems and Biomaterials Division should continue to prioritize its efforts mindful of its limited 

budget. 

Recommendation 4-2: The Material Measurement Laboratory leadership should evaluate space 

allocations to co-locate the Biosystems and Biomaterials Division in a single building with adequate 

temperature, humidity, and power control for continuous instrument function. 

Recommendation 4-3: The Biosystems and Biomaterials Division leadership should require 

mentorship training for all laboratory employees and increase the number of employees who have 

formal leadership training to standardize mentoring and onboarding of new personnel and to make 

career development opportunities more uniform. 

Biomolecular Measurement Division 

Recommendation 5-1: The Biomolecular Measurement Division should work with the Material 

Measurement Laboratory (MML) leadership and the National Institute of Standards and 

Technology’s headquarters human resources personnel to develop effective procedures for the 

hiring and career development of staff. Internally, MML should improve their mentorship of 

postdoctoral fellows to address career development planning. 

Recommendation 5-2: The Biomolecular Measurement Division (BMD) should work with Material 

Measurement Laboratory leadership and the National Institute of Standards and Technology to 

identify, as soon as possible, laboratory facilities with the level of temperature and humidity 

control, and space required by BMD to perform its work safely and at a world-class level. A move 

of BMD to the Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research could be part of this solution. 
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OVERARCHING THEMES, KEY RECOMMENDATIONS, AND CHAPTER-SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATIONS 99 

Recommendation 5-3: The Biomolecular Measurement Division should increase laboratory 

automation to support critical steps in production of standard products and processes. 

Recommendation 5-4: The Biomolecular Measurement Division (BMD) should increase 

engagement with communities focused on workforce development and forensics analysis, and 

compile data on how often their resource materials are used. For biomanufacturing workforce 

development activities, instructional information related to using BMD standards and standard 

processes could be provided to educational and professional groups providing training for 

biomanufacturing. Dissemination of information about how often BMD’s published validation 

studies, research findings, and standard reference materials are used by the stakeholders in 

forensic activities could increase the appreciation of the value they provide to the legal community. 

Chemical Sciences Division 

Recommendation 6-1: The Chemical Sciences Division should look for ways to add new scientistand technician-level staff to continue to service the existing array of standard reference materials 

(SRMs) and free up staff resources to pursue development of new SRMs. In addition, the division 

should continue to emphasize staff cross training to ensure functional redundancy. The Chemical 

Sciences Division should continue to prioritize internal and external collaboration as a solution to 

maintaining the significant breadth and depth of expertise. 

Materials Measurement Science Division 

Recommendation 7-1: The Materials Measurement Science Division should consider leveraging its 

focus area and core competency and capabilities matrix structure to manage the challenge of 

balancing ongoing base work with the needs of critical emergent initiatives, such as the CHIPS and 

Science Act of 2022. 

Recommendation 7-2: The Materials Measurement Science Division should develop or leverage 

outside expertise in life-cycle assessment and techno-economic analysis in order to guide and focus 

its research in the climate mitigation focus area. Likewise, where complex measurement 

complements complex chemistry (e.g., catalysis, active materials and separations, and sustainable 

cement), the division should support a more substantial effort in the corresponding chemistries or 

leverage outside expertise to do so. This could include having a world-class catalyst chemist and 

metal-organic framework expert working side by side with the division’s materials measurement 

scientists. 

Recommendation 7-3: The Materials Measurement Science Division should consider reallocating 

budget and staff support to facilitate refurbishment of the division facilities; purchasing of new 

equipment; increasing the number of technicians, especially in strategic areas or in areas where 

considerable routine laboratory work is required; and improving the response time and bandwidth 

of formal Human Resources activities. 

Recommendation 7-4: Materials Measurement Science Division management and postdoc advisors 

should consider a standard message about the chances and processes of transitioning from a 

postdoc to a permanent staff member to minimize the uncertainty around this process. 

Recommendation 7-5: The Materials Measurement Science Division should consider, perhaps in 

collaboration with other divisions in the Material Measurement Laboratory, establishing a 

managed data repository, or at least a common data management plan, to aggregate the division’s 
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100 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

data; facilitate sharing across program teams, National Institute of Standards and Technology 

divisions, and external users; and facilitate data analysis. 

Recommendation 7-6: Where appropriate, the Materials Measurement Science Division’s program 

staff should partner with measurement equipment manufacturers and vendors to facilitate the 

development and implementation of National Institute of Standards and Technology measurements 

and standards; this could improve the impact of a range of programs and help identify the 

quantitative impact of the Division’s work. 

Materials Science and Engineering Division 

Recommendation 8-1: The Materials Science and Engineering Division should develop more 

coordinated technical and stakeholder engagement plans for its effort in carbon dioxide capture 

and the circular economy of plastics and track the long-term impacts of the division’s programs on 

the nation’s economy and related innovations. 

Recommendation 8-2: The Materials Science and Engineering Division should launch an initiative 

to unify its computational systems, data formats, and data transmission protocols into a single, 

uniform platform for more efficient and effective data curation, storage, processing, transmission, 

and security management. This data science initiative could be applied to machine learning 

deployment and expand capabilities in laboratory automation, high-throughput computation, and 

artificial intelligence and machine learning methods. 

Recommendation 8-3: The Materials Science and Engineering Division should hire more scientists 

skilled in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and data science to build internal capabilities and 

capitalize on the growing, diverse sets of data the division has handled. 

Recommendation 8-4: The Materials Science and Engineering Division should develop a plan to 

track the long-term, quantitative impact of its key programs and industrial engagements. 

Office of Data and Informatics 

Recommendation 9-1: The Material Measurement Laboratory should periodically and frequently 

engage with industry and academia through activities such as workshops, meetings, conferences, 

and roundtables to standardize data management frameworks that fully support U.S. science 

advancement and industry competitiveness via open tools and instruments alike. 

Recommendation 9-2: The Material Measurement Laboratory should disseminate broadly the 

Materials Science and Engineering Division’s protocols for the use of virtual machines to increase 

the longevity of aging equipment controlled by obsolete computers, effectively empowering 

industry, academia, and government laboratories to extend the return on capital equipment 

investments. 

Recommendation 9-3: To facilitate the deployment and adoption of state-of-the-art data practices 

in the Material Measurement Laboratory (MML) and across National Institute of Standards and 

Technology (NIST), the Office of Data and Informatics and MML should: 

● Institute a laboratory-wide policy requiring researchers to use automated data-handling 

workflows such as those demonstrated in NexusLIMS, and that output data that is easily 

disseminated through the Public Data Repository with rich meta-data. This will help to 

ensure that research data generated by MML comply with the FAIR principles of being 
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OVERARCHING THEMES, KEY RECOMMENDATIONS, AND CHAPTER-SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATIONS 101 

findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable. All MML researchers should also use the 

Public Data Repository so that their data are readily available internally and externally. 

● Embed laboratory research personnel within the Office of Data and Informatics as a 

sabbatical or special assignment in order to spread awareness of the data workflows that 

they have developed and to help to generate new use cases for them under different 

laboratory conditions. 

● Strengthen collaborations with the Information Technology Laboratory to help develop 

state of the art data practices and disseminate them across NIST. 

Recommendation 9-4: The Material Measurement Laboratory should enter more information in 

the NIST Public Data Repository field to explain why data set metrics are not available where that 

is the case. 

Recommendation 9-5: The Material Measurement Laboratory should strengthen its commitment to 

the Office of Data and Informatics by establishing clear data governance and data policies. It 

should establish the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Public Data Repository 

as the place to publish all open-source projects and take advantage of its restricted access 

functionality for any NIST confidential or internal project. 

Recommendation 9-6: The Material Measurement Laboratory managers and researchers should 

adopt the materials science schema developed jointly with the Research Data Alliance. 

Recommendation 9-7: The Office of Data and Informatics should collect and make more visible the 

usage metrics to measure the impact of its repositories. Numbers that report access, download, and 

reuse (although that is the hardest to measure) would showcase how data and teaching materials 

are used in and out of government. 

Office of Reference Materials 

Recommendation 10-1: The Office of Reference Materials should develop and implement a 

portfolio management process based on the articulated measurement services modernization 

strategy. The full portfolio of products should be considered critically and monitored on a periodic 

basis for: (1) each offering’s utility and impact, (2) the resource commitment needed to maintain 

the product, and (3) effectiveness and performance of translation. Each existing product should 

have a maintenance and sustaining plan, and a plan to either perpetuate or discontinue products 

through transition to alternative products or obsolescence. A plan should be developed for every 

new product proposed or being developed that includes projection of these characteristics, with 

emphasis on life-cycle analysis, value proposition for stakeholders and value capture for the 

National Institute of Standards and Technology. 

Recommendation 10-2: The Office of Reference Materials (ORM) should benchmark its tasks and 

the capabilities required to accomplish them against best-of-class capabilities that exist in the 

private sector. Tasks that are deemed to be better done by outside vendors should be targeted for 

outsourcing and staffing within ORM should be reallocated accordingly. 

Recommendation 10-3: The Office of Reference Materials (ORM) has done an excellent job in 

managing and distributing product stock, however the marketing effort that leads to sales most 

often relies on an outside-in approach, in which a potential customer makes a request for a 

standard. As part of the input for Recommendation 10-1, ORM should initiate an inside-out 

marketing effort to determine the current value add of each offering in the standard reference 
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102 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

material catalog. This active marketing can increase uptake of languishing products, and at the 

same time reveal products in the portfolio of limited value proposition. This effort would be 

expected to increase ORM revenue.

REFERENCES 

NASEM (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine). 2021. An Assessment of the 

Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal 

Year 2020. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/26048. 

NASEM. 2023. Technical Assessment of the Capital Facility Needs of the National Institute of Standards 

and Technology. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. 

https://doi.org/10.17226/26684. 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

Appendixes 
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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105 

A 

Acronyms and Abbreviations 

2D two dimensional 

ACMD Applied Chemical and Materials Division 

AI artificial intelligence 

ARMI Advanced Regenerative Manufacturing Institute 

BBD Biosystems and Biomaterials Division 

BMD Biomolecular Measurement Division 

BMF Boulder Microfabrication Facility 

CAR T chimeric antigen receptor T cell 

CDCS Configurable Data Curation System 

ChiMad Center for Hierarchical Materials Design 

CMR Construction and Major Renovations 

CNN convolutional neural network 

COI community of interest 

CRADA Cooperative Research and Development Agreement 

CRF Construction of Research Facilities 

CRM certified reference material; customer relationship management 

CRISPR Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats 

cryo-EM cryo-electron microscopy 

CSD Chemical Sciences Division 

CTCMS Center for Theoretical and Computational Materials Science 

DARPA Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency 

DED directed energy deposition 

DEIA diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility 

EBSD electron backscatter diffraction 

EU European Union 

FDA Food and Drug Administration 

FIB focused ion beam 

FY fiscal year 

GBA Global Biofoundry Alliance 

GPCR G protein-coupled receptor 

HPC high-performance computing 

HQ headquarters 
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106 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

IBBR Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research 

IE invested equipment 

IMS Innovations in Measurement Sciences 

ISO International Organization for Standardization 

IT information technology 

ITL Information Technology Laboratory 

JPL Jet Propulsion Laboratory 

LC/MS liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry 

LGC Laboratory of the Government Chemist 

LIMS Laboratory Information Management Systems 

LNP lipid nanoparticle 

MEP Manufacturing Extension Program 

MGI Materials Genome Initiative 

MII Manufacturing Innovation Institute 

ML machine learning 

MML Materials Measurement Laboratory 

MMSD Materials Measurement Science Division 

MSED Materials Science and Engineering Division 

MTA material transfer agreement 

NASEM National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine 

NEST-R NIST Educational STEM Resource Registry 

NIST National Institute of Standards and Technology 

NIIMBL National Institute for Innovation in Manufacturing Biopharmaceuticals 

NMR nuclear magnetic resonance 

NOAA National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 

NRC National Research Council 

NSLS-II National Synchrotron Light Source II 

NTRM NIST traceable reference material 

ODI Office of Data and Informatics 

OFPM Office of Facilities and Property Management 

OH overhead 

OISM Office of Information Systems Management 

ORM Office of Reference Materials 

PAO Public Affairs Office 

PAT process analytical technology 

PFAS polyfluoroalkyl substance 

PIF Precision Imaging Facility (Boulder) 

PML Physical Measurement Laboratory 

R&D research and development 

REFPROP Reference Fluid Thermodynamic and Transport Properties Database 

RGTM research grade test material 

RM reference material 

RMAT Regenerative Medicine and Advanced Therapies 
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OVERARCHING THEMES, KEY RECOMMENDATIONS, AND CHAPTER-SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATIONS 107 

ROI return on investment 

SCMMR Safety, Capacity, Maintenance, and Major Repairs 

SD Standards Development (program) 

SEM scanning-electron microscopy 

SRD standard reference data 

SRM standard reference material 

SRMS 

STRS Scientific and Technical Research and Services 

TDE ThermoDynamic Engine 

TRC Thermodynamic Research Center 

UCONN University of Connecticut 

UGA University of Georgia 

UK United Kingdom 

UW University of Wisconsin 

VLE viscosity-liquid-equilibrium 

WCF Working Capital Fund 

XEDS X-ray energy dispersive spectrometer 
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108 

B

Panel Biographical Sketches 

ELSA REICHMANIS, Chair, is professor and Carl Robert Anderson Chair in Chemical Engineering in 

the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at Lehigh University. Prior to joining Lehigh, 

she was professor and Pete Silas Chair in Chemical Engineering in the School of Chemical and 

Biomolecular Engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech). She started her 

independent career at Bell Labs where she was Bell Labs Fellow and director of the Materials Research 

Department. She received her PhD and BS in chemistry from Syracuse University. Her research, at the 

interface of chemical engineering, chemistry, materials science, optics, and electronics, spans from 

fundamental concept to technology development and implementation, with particular focus on polymeric 

and nanostructured materials for advanced technologies. Dr. Reichmanis was elected to the National 

Academy of Engineering in 1995 and has participated in several National Academies of Sciences, 

Engineering, and Medicine activities. She was elected fellow of the National Academy of Inventors in 

2021; was an elected member of the Bureau of the International Union for Pure and Applied Chemistry 

(IUPAC); has been active in the American Chemical Society (ACS) throughout her career, having served 

as 2003 president of the society; and is currently a member of the board of the American Institute of 

Chemical Engineers (AIChE). She is the recipient of several awards, including the 2022 John M. 

Prausnitz AIChE Institute Lecture Award, 2018 AIChE Margaret H. Rousseau Pioneer Award for 

Lifetime Achievement by a Woman Chemical Engineer, ACS Award in the Chemistry of Materials 

(2018), ACS Award in Applied Polymer Science (1999), the IUPAC Distinguished Woman in Chemistry 

and Chemical Engineering Award (2013), the ASM International Engineering Materials Achievement 

Award (1996), and the Society of Chemical Industry’s Perkin Medal (2001). She is a fellow of the 

American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the ACS, the AIChE, the Materials 

Research Society, and the Royal Society of Chemistry. In other service, she is executive editor of the 

ACS journal Chemistry of Materials. 

ROBERT ARLEY BEVER is serving as senior scientist and forensic laboratory director at Bode 

Technology. He has 34 years of experience in directing research and operations for three accredited 

forensic and parentage testing DNA laboratories. He has 15 years of experience directing and managing 

government research contracts associated with the development and optimization of advanced molecular 

techniques for detecting and analyzing human and bacterial DNA. His current research interests are 

developing and implementing next generation sequencing for human identification and for forensic 

investigative genetic genealogy. He has provided expert testimony in more than 160 civil and criminal 

trials and has served as a subject-matter expert to the Department of Defense (DoD) and Intelligence 

Community in biodefense and forensic science. Dr. Bever is certified forensic laboratory director for the 

New York State Department of Health and is a member of the American Academy of Forensic Science 

and the American Association of Blood Banks and was a member of the American Society of 

Microbiology. He earned his PhD in microbiology from the University of Maryland and performed 

postdoctoral research in molecular pathogenesis at the Oregon Health & Science University and the 

University of Rochester School of Medicine. 

AUGUST W. BOSSE is currently senior principal scientist, hydrocarbon and materials science, at 

ExxonMobil Technology and Engineering Company. While at ExxonMobil, Dr. Bosse has had a range of 

positions, including new hydrocarbon products program leader, section head of polymer and hydrocarbon 

science, and various research team lead positions. Before coming to ExxonMobil, he was a postdoc, a 

National Research Council postdoctoral research associate, and a member of the permanent staff in the 

Polymer Division at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Dr. Bosse’s research has 
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APPENDIX B 109 

focused on the theory and simulation of block copolymer phase behavior to enable critical dimension 

metrology, polyolefin crystallization, polymer blends, polymer interfaces, composites, and random 

copolymers. His primary research interests are rooted in statistical field theories of heterogeneous 

systems, especially soft materials. Dr. Bosse received a BS in physics from the University of California, 

Davis, and an MA and a PhD in physics from the University of California, Santa Barbara. 

KENNETH M. CALDERONE is an advanced workflow specialist supporting confocal microscopy 

applications with Leica Microsystems. He is responsible for teaching and training research scientists on 

the appropriate applications of advanced microscopy, with a focus on laser scanning systems. Prior to his 

career at Leica, he gained 12 years of experience in microscopy as a research technician at the University 

of Michigan. At Michigan, he became a research laboratory technician lead by developing microscopy 

techniques and training scientists on proper microscopy protocols. During his career at Michigan, he 

focused on developing techniques to stain thick biological samples and image them using multiphoton 

microscopy. He also gained extensive experience in staining biological samples using immunofluorescent 

and chemical techniques, developing widefield microscopy protocols, and 2D and 3D image data 

analysis. He graduated from Western Michigan University with a BS in biomedical sciences and a minor 

in chemistry. 

IULIANA CERNĂTESCU is senior technical fellow of material characterization and applications for 

Pratt & Whitney (P&W). In her role, she provides technical leadership for materials characterization field 

at P&, including identification, development, and championing of characterization technologies that 

enables agile engineering development, increased efficiencies, and inspection and measurement 

capabilities at each stage of the jet engine life cycle. Furthermore, Dr. Cernătescu identifies and develops 

external partnerships to enhance P&W material characterization and inspection technologies that align 

with P&W business-critical strategic and tactical goals. She serves as the P&W materials characterization 

expert internally to P&W, other RTX divisions, and within external technical communities. She is 

actively engaged in recruitment, training, mentoring, and development of talent. Dr. Cernătescu has more 

than 20 years of industrial experience in materials characterization. She joined P&W in 2011 as an X-ray 

analytical methods subject-matter expert, and later became discipline chief for materials characterization 

and subsequently manager of the materials characterization group and laboratories where in addition to 

leading the technical and strategic direction for the discipline, she modernized the laboratory facilities and 

developed new partnerships, expanding P&W’s material characterization capabilities. Prior to joining 

P&W, she worked at two major companies that produced material characterization systems, where she 

served as technical leader for new methods and systems development and implementation. Dr. Cernătescu 

holds a master’s degree in physics and a PhD in materials and solid state physics from Eötvös Loránd 

University of Science, Budapest, Hungary. She is the author of 8 patents and more than 25 peer-reviewed 

technical publications. 

STEVEN C. FREILICH is currently executive-in-residence at the Princeton University Andlinger Center 

for Energy and Environment and holds a similar position in the Joint Institute for Strategic Energy 

Analysis at National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), having recently retired from DuPont after a 

33-year career. While at DuPont, he served as director of materials science. In that role, Dr. Freilich was 

responsible for developing and implementing technology growth strategies in rapidly moving areas such 

as materials for energy, displays, and biomedical applications. He used his experience to impact corporate 

innovation through leadership at the interface of technology and markets. During his tenure as director of 

materials science, Dr. Freilich held the additional position of chief technology officer of DuPont 

Electronics and Communication and was appointed as chief technology advocate for north Asia. He has 

served on the boards of the United States Display Consortium, the DuPont-MIT Alliance, and was vice 

chair of both the advisory panel for the Center for Revolutionary Solar Photoconversion and the advisory 

committee for the Clean Energy Manufacturing Analysis Center in the Department of Energy. He has also 
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110 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

served on the advisory boards for Sandia National Laboratories, NREL, and the National Research 

Council of Canada. 

GARY S. GROENEWOLD is a recently retired scientist with 35 years of service at the Idaho National 

Laboratory. During this span, Dr. Groenewold’s broad research interests involved investigations of 

reactivity and measurement of molecular and atomic species of importance in military, nuclear, and 

industrial enterprises. His research emphasized analysis of material surfaces, focusing on adsorbed 

organic and inorganic species in ambient environments. He specialized in mass spectrometry, and many 

studies utilized secondary ion mass spectrometry for surface characterization. He has authored 

approximately 150 peer-reviewed publications in these diverse areas, a significant fraction of which 

address surface analysis. Dr. Groenewold holds a PhD in chemistry from the University of Nebraska and 

completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). Dr. Groenewold has coauthored six National Academies reports in the area of chemical demilitarization and served as chair of 

the Committee on Chemical Demilitarization from 2013 to 2017. He is a national associate of the 

National Academies. 

MINKI HONG is senior manager of Kyulux North America. He is responsible for developing a webbased materials informatics platform for OLED (organic light-emitting diode) applications. The platform 

includes a high-throughput virtual screening system, a computational job managing system, and a data 

management system. Dr. Hong supervises scientific research on molecular discovery and machine 

learning prediction models, as well as software and system development for the platform. Prior to joining 

Kyulux North America, Dr. Hong worked as a postdoc at the King Abdullah University of Science and 

Technology and Georgia Tech. His postdoctoral research focused on the degradation mechanism of 

organic materials. Dr. Hong earned his PhD in materials science and engineering from the University of 

Florida and has more than 10 years of experience in computational materials science of various materials, 

including oxides, nitrides, and organic materials. He possesses a broad knowledge of first principles 

calculation methods and related software packages, as well as experience in lattice and molecular 

dynamics. Dr. Hong is also trained as an experimentalist and is well versed in inorganic thin-film growth 

for optoelectronic devices. Thus, he is familiar with ultra-high vacuum technology and related 

characterization methods. 

MOHAMMAD A. KHALEEL is associate laboratory director (ALD) of ORNL for National Security 

Sciences and oversees capabilities in protection of nuclear materials, defense materials and 

manufacturing, cyber-physical security, and human security. He previously served as ORNL’s deputy 

director for science and technology (interim) and ORNL’s deputy director for projects. He was ALD for 

energy and environmental science and oversaw a broad portfolio in biological and environmental 

sciences, and energy efficient transportation, building, and manufacturing. He was executive director of 

the Qatar Environmental and Energy Research Institute from 2013 to 2015. Dr. Khaleel held several 

technical and senior managerial positions at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory where he was a 

laboratory fellow (highest scientific rank by promotion) and led the Computational Sciences and 

Mathematics Division from 2003 to 2013. Dr. Khaleel received his PhD in structural engineering and 

mechanics from Washington State University and his MBA from University of Washington. He has 

extensive multidisciplinary research experience with more than 250 technical papers and three patents. 

His research interests have been in electrocatalytic materials and systems, superplasticity, dislocation 

dynamics, and lightweight materials. He is currently adjunct professor in the School of Materials Science 

and Engineering at Georgia Tech, a member of the Washington State Academy of Sciences, and a fellow 

of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the American Society of Civil Engineers, and the 

AAAS. 

RICHARD A. LESAR has served as materials science and engineering professor at Iowa State University 

since 2006. Prior to that, Dr. LeSar worked at Los Alamos National Laboratory, as a postdoctoral fellow, 
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APPENDIX B 111 

as a research scientist, and in management. His research uses computational modeling to study the 

properties of materials, with a long-term interest in multiscale models and work spanning from electronic 

structure methods to theoretical mechanics. His current work is focused primarily on developing and 

applying polycrystal plasticity calculations (based in part on discrete dislocation mechanics), developing 

multiscale simulations of additive manufacturing, and an increasing focus on developing new 

computational strategies for multiscale design. Dr. LeSar is a fellow of the American Physical Society 

and the AAAS. He served on the scientific advisory board (SAB) for the U.S. Air Force (2005–2009) and 

SAB science and technology review panels for the Air Force Research Laboratory Materials and 

Manufacturing Directorate, the Air Vehicles Directorate, and the Office of Scientific Research. He 

received his BS in chemistry from the University of Michigan (1975) and an AM in physics (1977) and a 

PhD in chemical physics (1981) from Harvard University. In 2006–2008, Dr. LeSar served on the 

National Academies’ study panel on integrated computational materials engineering. 

FRANCES S. LIGLER is Eppright Chair and professor of biomedical engineering at Texas A&M 

University. From 2013 to 2022, she was Ross Lampe Distinguished Professor of Biomedical Engineering 

at North Carolina State University and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Before 2013, she was 

at the Naval Research Laboratory for 28 years, during the last 18 of which she was the U.S. Navy senior 

scientist for biosensors and biomaterials. She earned a BS from Furman University and both a DPhil and 

a DSc from Oxford University. She has more than 450 full-length publications and patents, which have 

led to 11 commercial biosensor products and generated an H = 85 (Google Scholar). She was elected an 

SPIE fellow in 2000, a member of the National Academy of Engineering in 2005 (2020 winner of the 

Ramo Founders Award), a fellow of the AIMBE in 2011, a fellow of the AAAS in 2013, a fellow of the 

National Academy of Inventors in 2016, and an honorary member of the Hellenic Society for 

Nanotechnology in Health Sciences in 2017. In 2003, she was awarded the Presidential Rank of 

Distinguished Senior Professional by President Bush. In 2012, she was awarded the Presidential Rank of 

Meritorious Senior Professional by President Obama. In 2014 and 2018, she was awarded honorary 

doctorates from the Agricultural University of Athens, Greece, and Furman University, respectively. She 

is a 2017 inductee of the U.S. National Inventors Hall of Fame, honored for her invention of portable 

optical biosensors. In 2015, Dr. Ligler chaired the review panel for the assessment of the NIST Material 

Measurement Laboratory. 

QUINGHUANG LIN is president of Linktech International, LLC. Linktech is a consulting firm for the 

semiconductor and materials industries focusing on semiconductor technology, materials, wafer 

fabrication and testing equipment, workforce development, supply chain management, and sustainability. 

It aims to enable clients to innovate to meet customer’s needs for an increasingly digitized, interconnected 

and knowledge-centric economy and for the betterment of people’s lives. Dr. Lin was previously the 

director of advanced technology development at Lam Research in Fremont, California. He is an SPIE 

fellow, an ACS fellow, a PMSE fellow, and a POLY fellow. For more than 15 years, he has held 

technical and executive positions in photoresist development, advanced lithography, BEOL materials and 

integration, 3D integration, semiconductor equipment, and semiconductor technology strategy for several 

nodes of CMOS technology research and development at Lam Research, IBM, and ASML. He holds 

more than 120 U.S. patents and is author and co-author of more than 100 technical papers. Dr. Lin is the 

recipient of the Industrial Polymer Scientist Award (2018), Roy W. Tess Award (2020), E.V. Murphree 

Award (2023), and several IBM awards. He is co-chair of SPIE Advanced Lithography and Patterning 

(2021–2023) and serves as associate editor of the Journal of Micro/Nanopatterning, Materials, and 

Metrology. Dr. Lin received a PhD in materials science and engineering from the University of Michigan, 

Ann Arbor, and an MS and a BE from Tsinghua University, China. 

DAVID MELLOR leads the policy and incentive programs at the Center for Open Science as director of 

policy. These initiatives seek reward increased transparency and reduced bias in scientific research and 

are covered in the transparency and openness promotion guidelines (TOP, https://www.cos.io/top.). His 
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112 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

research background and professional training include behavioral ecology, citizen science, and research 

methods and policy. Dr. Mellor received his PhD in ecology and evolution from Rutgers University. 

NICOLA POHL is professor of chemistry, Joan and Marvin Carmack Chair in Bioorganic Chemistry, and 

associate dean of natural and mathematical sciences and research for the College of Arts and Sciences at 

Indiana University Bloomington. She was professor of chemistry and chemical and biological engineering 

and held the Wilkinson Professor of Interdisciplinary Engineering at Iowa State University before moving 

to Indiana University. The Pohl research group works to find new ways to make and analyze sugars to 

dissect their important roles in plant, animal, and human biology and to design therapeutics. One major 

long-term goal of the group is to develop rational designs of therapeutic interventions, such as vaccines 

and glycoproteins, on the basis of a deeper knowledge of the role of carbohydrates. Her research group 

created the first automated solution-phase method for readily synthesizing oligosaccharides and is now 

working to expand the scope of those methods to tackle the equal challenge of providing building blocks 

to feed their automated oligosaccharide synthesis machines. Dr. Pohl received her PhD in chemistry from 

the University of Wisconsin–Madison and completed a National Institutes of Health postdoctoral 

fellowship in the Department of Chemical Engineering at Stanford University. 

JAYAKANTH RAVICHANDRAN is associate professor in the Mork Family Department of Chemical 

Engineering and Materials Science with courtesy appointment in Ming Hsieh Department of Electrical 

and Computer Engineering at the University of Southern California (USC). He holds the Philip and 

Cayley MacDonald Endowed Early Career Chair. His research interests are in materials design, synthesis, 

characterization, and physical properties of complex materials for electronic, photonic, and energy 

applications. His honors include the 2020 TMS Young Leader Professional Development Award and 

2017 Early Career Scholar in Materials Science by the Journal of Materials Research. He received his 

PhD from the University of California, Berkeley, in 2011. He performed postdoctoral research at 

Columbia University and briefly at Harvard University, before joining USC in 2015 as an assistant 

professor. 

JAMES W. RINGER is currently president of Innovative Process Solutions, LLC, where he provides 

consulting expertise in research, manufacturing, and business strategies. His professional experience 

includes the following: president of technology and new business development for Innovative Process 

Solutions, LLC (2021–2023); strategic leadership of large organizations (design and leadership 

development); innovation strategies to drive value capture, value generation strategies (implementation of 

new innovation concepts and continuous improvement programs), and technology portfolio strategies 

(pipeline development, portfolio optimization, and technology solutions); and active ingredient process 

development and bioprocessing and bioengineering research and development (R&D) leader at Corteva 

(2017–2019). He led new technology identification and development for both chemistry and fermentation 

process, delivery of financial impact through implementation of new R&D processes into commercial 

operations, and identification of external partnerships (academic and industry). At the Dow Chemical 

Company in Midland, Michigan, he was director of engineering and process sciences (2010–2017). He 

led the organization of 160 personnel for new technology development and implementation of new R&D 

processes into commercial operations for multiple Dow businesses (more than 20 business units including 

electronic materials, polymers, agrichemicals, coatings, etc.) and development and execution of more than 

20 university projects. Dr. Ringer graduated from Purdue University (BS in chemistry) and University of 

Wisconsin (PhD in organic chemistry). He authored or co-authored 15 granted patents with more than 25 

patent applications. He was a recipient of TDCC Michigan Scientists Organization Excellence in Science 

Award, received the DAS “Increase the Slope Award” in 1994 and 1999, a TDCC WRAP award, multiple 

Awards for manufacturing improvements, and the 2013 Noland Poffenberger Award from AIChE. He is 

currently a member of the ACS. 
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APPENDIX B 113 

GEORGE RODRIGUEZ is computational chief scientist at ExxonMobil Technology and Engineering. 

He obtained undergraduate degrees in chemistry and mathematics from State University of New York 

(SUNY) Geneseo. Upon joining Exxon in 1997 with a PhD in inorganic chemistry from the University of 

Rochester, he completed a master’s degree in statistics from the University of Houston-Clear Lake, 

focusing on the application of statistical design of experiments to understand workflows in high 

throughout experimentation. Dr. Rodriguez has worked in organometallics, polymers, computational 

chemistry, chemometris, and cheminformatics. He recently led teams at ExxonMobil who were using 

quantum chemistry, soft matter physics, and data science to accelerate the discovery pipeline of 

homogeneous catalysts and polymers. He was involved with researchers at the University of North TexasDenton to explore computational chemistry and statistical learning in the development of organometallic 

catalysts and is a co-investigator in a DMREF/GOALI program with researchers at the Massachusetts 

Institute of Technology to design additives that control polymer morphology and performance. He is a 

member of the ACS and the American Statistical Association (statistical learning and data science 

section). 

JAMES E. SAAL is director of external research programs at Citrine Informatics, where he manages 

Citrine’s government-funded research programs, advancing the state of the art in materials informatics 

with collaborators. Before joining Citrine in 2018, he was manager of technology at QuesTek 

Innovations, leading programs in alloy design and integrated computational materials engineering (ICME) 

methods development. Dr. Saal earned his BS in materials science and engineering from Rice University 

in 2005 and his PhD in material science and engineering from The Pennsylvania State University in 2010, 

where he focused on the integration of density functional theory with CALPHAD. He continued his 

postdoctoral study at Northwestern University, developing a high-throughput materials property database 

and studying Mg- and Co-based alloys. Since then, Dr. Saal has specialized in computational simulation 

of process-structure-property relationships, ICME design of new materials, and the use of data-driven 

methods in materials science. His research has included alloys, ceramics, and polymers, and diverse 

properties such as corrosion, additive manufacturing printability, and thermoelectric performance. Dr. 

Saal is author of more than 50 peer-reviewed publications, several patents on designed alloys, and coedited the book Computational Materials System Design. He currently serves as a trustee of ASM 

International and chair of the TMS ICME committee. 

MARC SALIT is a measurement scientist who has worked in chemistry, physics, and biology over a 

career in the public, private, and academic sectors. He realized significant advances in these fields in 

more than 28 years of work at NIST. He contributed to the modernization of chemical metrology and 

developed world’s-best measurement capability to support calibration of elemental analysis, broadband 

ultraviolet-visible wavelength metrology, and the world’s first standard materials for the human genome. 

He has contributed 97 papers to the scientific literature. While at NIST, he established a partnership 

among Stanford University, NIST, and the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory to form a Joint 

Initiative for Metrology in Biology. To seed this, he moved half of his research group to Stanford 

University from NIST in 2013 and established academic partnerships across the engineering and medical 

schools. His recent research interests have been focused on innovation and development of measurement 

science, standards, methods, and tools for biology. Such tools are at the foundation of our ability to 

generate and sustain scientific advance by enabling sharing of reproducible data, results, and materials; 

distribution of labor by supporting accurate, low-friction transactions; confidence in technologies 

permitting regulated applications; and access to quantitative measurement of previously inaccessible 

phenomena—all through systematic application of the principles of metrology. He is at MITRE as a 

fellow. 

ISAAC C. SANCHEZ is professor of chemical engineering and William (Bill) J. Murray, Jr. Endowed 

Chair in Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin. Dr. Sanchez is an expert in the properties of 

polymer liquids, solutions, and blends. He attempts to solve problems in polymer science and engineering 
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114 AN ASSESSMENT OF MML AT NIST: FY 2023 

by studying polymer interfacial phenomena, and how changes in temperature, pressure, and volume affect 

polymers. He develops models and uses computer simulations to understand polymer solubility and 

conformation and to understand the role of water in polymer processes. He received his PhD in physical 

chemistry from the University of Delaware. 

ALIX L. SCHMIDT is senior data scientist at Dow Chemical leading programs in predictive formulation 

and machine learning model deployment strategy. Her previous roles in Dow and Dow Corning include 

process research for silicone-organic copolymer production, high-throughput research for catalyst 

discovery, and manufacturing chemometrics for operations troubleshooting. She is an expert in statistics 

and machine learning as applied to chemicals and materials, and through her roles has been involved in all 

phases of the data life cycle—experimental design, data generation and collection, data storage, data 

cleaning, and data analysis and modeling. Dr. Schmidt is an expertise leader in Dow’s Citizen Data 

Science training program, developing and delivering foundational training on data stewardship and 

programming to researchers. She is a member of the AIChE and has chaired conference sessions on data 

analytics at the spring meetings since 2017. She has a BS in chemical engineering from University of 

Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and an MS in predictive analytics from Northwestern University. 

JESSE C. SEEGMILLER is a board-certified clinical chemist in the Division of Clinical Chemistry at the 

University of Minnesota. He focuses his research activities on esoteric testing where he primarily 

employs mass spectrometry to analyze and develop methods for biological samples in the Advanced 

Research and Diagnostics Laboratory. He also oversees clinical laboratories at M Health Fairview, 

including the Drug Analysis Laboratory and Acute Care Laboratory. Dr. Seegmiller also serves as the 

medical director for the M Health Fairview Maple Grove Laboratory. Before his fellowship and faculty 

appointment, Dr. Seegmiller worked in industry for a mass spectrometry company as a product 

applications specialist in clinical applications. Dr. Seegmiller earned a PhD in chemistry from the 

University of Wyoming and a BS in chemistry from the University of Minnesota, Duluth (2000). 

JOHNNA S. TEMENOFF is Carol Ann and David D. Flanagan Professor in the Coulter Department of 

Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech/Emory University. Dr. Temenoff is also currently deputy 

director of the National Science Foundation (NSF) Engineering Research Center in Cell Manufacturing 

Technologies (CMaT). Scientifically, she develops new biomaterials for use in cell manufacturing and 

regenerative medicine applications. At CMaT, she co-leads a center that spans more than eight research 

institutions throughout the United States, with more than 200 researchers working to develop new 

manufacturing technologies for emerging biologic therapies. Dr. Temenoff has received the NSF 

CAREER Award and was named to the College of Fellows of the American Institute for Medical and 

Biological Engineers, as a fellow of the Biomedical Engineering Society, and as a fellow of Biomaterials 

Science and Engineering, International Union of Societies for Biomaterials Science and Engineering. She 

was recently awarded the Clemson Award for Contributions to the Literature from the Society for 

Biomaterials. Dr. Temenoff received a BS in biomedical engineering and a BA in French from Case 

Western Reserve University (1998). She was then granted a PhD in bioengineering from Rice University 

in 2005. 

CRISTINA U. THOMAS has more than 34 years of technical and leadership experience in research and 

development organizations including in the Venezuelan oil industry, IBM (New York), and 3M 

(Minnesota). She has undergraduate degrees in chemistry and mathematics and a PhD in chemical 

engineering. She is currently 3M’s senior director for Global R&D Services and R&D GPO and has had 

prior assignments as strategy manager, laboratory manager, commercialization manager, Design for Six 

Sigma technical black belt, and group leader of materials modeling. She became an early leader in 

chemical engineering’s molecular and materials modeling community, led the reinvention of the 3M 

window-film product platform, the design and implementation of new product introduction processes, and 

the incorporation of digital technologies in new connected safety platform. She is a co-inventor in more 
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APPENDIX B 115 

than 25 patents and is recognized for persistently nurturing team high performance to deliver innovative 

ideas that move new technologies into markets. She is an industry expert and leader in knowledge 

discovery and analytics, materials modeling and simulation, advanced materials design, electronic 

laboratory environments, and laboratory information management systems. Dr. Thomas has a passion for 

institutions that focus on education of underrepresented students and women in science and engineering. 

She is a board member at Crito Rey Jesuit Twin Cities High School and at Project Scientist. She leads 3M 

Science Encouragement Programs and is a member of the AIChE Corporate Council & Industry Leader’s 

and the Government-University-Industry Research Roundtable of the National Academies of Sciences, 

Engineering, and Medicine. She received the 2019 AIChE Industry Leadership Award, the 2019 AICHE 

Management Division Award, and is an ACS fellow, an ACS PMSE fellow, and an AIChE fellow. 

OCKERT J. VAN DER SCHIJFF is principal engineer in Exponent’s Materials and Corrosion 

Engineering practice. He is a chemical and metallurgical engineer with almost four decades of experience 

in the materials engineering field. He specializes in aqueous corrosion of materials in industrial 

applications and materials failure analysis in utility, manufacturing, and chemical processing 

environments. He has managed and participated in a wide variety of forensic investigations, failure 

analyses, and condition assessments on individual above-ground and buried components such as piping, 

valves, pumps, tanks, presses, fire protection systems, reactors, bearings, medical devices, and 

manufacturing machinery to determine the root cause for in-service failures. Dr. Van Der Schijff is a 

recognized industry expert on corrosion and microbiologically influenced corrosion of fire protection 

systems and the use of nitrogen as a supervisory gas in dry and preaction fire protection systems. He also 

provides consulting services in the fields of corrosion of metals, microbiologically influenced corrosion, 

medical device corrosion and failure, materials selection, alloy development, and AC and DC 

electrochemical techniques for investigation of corrosion mechanisms of metal alloys. Since 2001, Dr. 

Van Der Schijff has served as an expert witness on a number of diverse litigation cases dealing with 

corrosion of river going barges; corrosion failure of home heating furnaces; internal corrosion of wet, dry, 

and preaction fire protection systems; corrosion of buried fuel and gas piping; corrosion resulting from 

defective drywall; caustic cracking of refinery components; stress corrosion cracking of dairy processing 

equipment; pinhole leaks in domestic copper piping; and premature corrosion and/or failure of brass, 

copper, and stainless steel plumbing components. Prior to joining Exponent, Dr. Van Der Schijff founded 

CorrConsult, LLC, a consultancy providing consulting and litigation support services in the areas of 

corrosion engineering, metallurgy, forensic science, and failure analysis. Earlier, he was employed at 

Altran Corporation for a period of 9 years from 1995 through 2003. In his position as principal engineer, 

he was responsible for business development, project management, failure analysis, and contract research 

in the materials science disciplines. From 1984 to 1996, Dr. Van Der Schijff was associate professor in 

the Department of Metallurgical Engineering at the Potchefstroom University in South Africa. In addition 

to teaching undergraduate courses in materials science, corrosion, pyrometallurgy, and thermodynamics, 

he conducted research in the field of corrosion. During this time, he also consulted widely to industry in 

the fields of chemical engineering, materials science, metallurgical engineering, corrosion, and wear. 

Previously, Dr. Van Der Schijff was employed by the Council for Mineral Technology in South Africa as 

a contract researcher where he conducted research into the plasma smelting of directly reduced iron. This 

led to a master’s degree in metallurgical engineering from The University of Pretoria in 1986. Dr. Van 

Der Schijff completed a PhD in metallurgy at the University of Connecticut in 1990 where he worked in 

the Institute of Materials Science under the advisorship of Professor Owen Devereux. In 2001, he was 

awarded an MBA from the Potchefstroom Business School at North–West University.
An Assessment of the Material Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology: Fiscal Year 2023

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