Sandia National Laboratories (DOE)
Sandia helps IT pros visualize complex network vulnerabilities
January 11, 2012 5:14 am | News | CommentsAddressing the complexity of Domain Name System Security (DNSSEC), Sandia National Laboratories computer scientist Casey Deccio has developed a new visualization tool known as DNSViz. DNSSEC is a standard security feature at high-level government offices, but it is extremely complex and Deccio’s tool helps simplify implementation.
New detectors glow with recognition
December 14, 2011 4:48 pm | by David L. Chandler, MIT News Office | News | CommentsResearchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have developed a new way of revealing the presence of specific chemicals—whether toxins, disease markers, pathogens or explosives. The system visually signals the presence of a target chemical by emitting a fluorescent glow.
Microneedle sensors may allow real-time monitoring of body chemistry
December 13, 2011 3:22 am | News | CommentsResearchers from North Carolina State University, Sandia National Laboratories, and the University of California, San Diego have developed new technology that uses microneedles to allow doctors to detect real-time chemical changes in the body—and to continuously do so for an extended period of time.
Fuels expert: put practicality before policy
December 8, 2011 6:35 pm | News | CommentsA transportation fuels expert from Sandia National Laboratories says policy makers should consider such practical issues as the number of gas stations selling ethanol and how long it takes to get new transportation technologies to market as they introduce aggressive federal and state energy policies.
Voltage increases up to 25% observed in closely packed nanowires
December 7, 2011 4:43 am | News | CommentsUnexpected voltage increases of up to 25% in two barely separated nanowires have been observed at Sandia National Laboratories. Designers of next-generation devices using nanowires to deliver electric currents may need to make allowances for such surprise boosts.
IBM prototype tops “big data” competition
November 17, 2011 9:34 am | News | CommentsFollowing on the news that the Japanese K computer topped other high-performance computers at the SC11 conference, the National Nuclear Security Administration’s IBM Blue Gene/Q prototype has topped the Graph500, an increasingly competitive ranking that stresses supercomputer performance on “big data” scaling problems rather than purely arithmetic computations.
Sandia's Annular Core Research Reactor conducts 10,000th operation
November 2, 2011 5:07 am | News | CommentsWith a muffled "pop," a flash of blue light, and a few ripples through 14,000 gallons of deionized water, Sandia National Laboratories' Annular Core Research Reactor (ACRR) recently conducted its 10,000th operation.
Diode lasers may vie with LEDs for lighting supremacy
October 26, 2011 7:15 am | News | CommentsLight-emitting diodes (LEDs) are widely accepted as a more efficient and reliable option than tungsten incandescent bulbs. But recent research at Sandia National Laboratories shows that humans are as comfortable with white light generated by diode lasers, which are more efficient than LEDs at higher amperages.
Simulating turbulent combustion speeds design
September 22, 2011 5:04 am | News | CommentsMultiscale complexity is common across all combustion applications—internal combustion engines, rockets, and industrial boilers—and can range from tens of meters to billionths of meters. New techniques being employed at supercomputers covers this huge scale range using fewer computer hours, and could benefit efficiency levels in the combustion industry.
Sandia researchers help create U.S. industry for wave energy production
September 14, 2011 10:15 am | News | CommentsA dearth of public information, complicated marine environments, and even the corrosive effects of bubbles are among the challenges for companies trying to produce energy from river currents, tides, and waves, but Sandia National Laboratories is working on solutions. Sandia is helping companies on the frontier of the coming marine hydrokinetics industry navigate these and other concerns with support from the Department of Energy.
Two radiation generators mark milestones in helping protect the U.S.
September 9, 2011 5:05 am | News | CommentsTwo remarkable pulsed-power machines used to test the nation's defenses against atomic weapons have surpassed milestones at Sandia National Laboratories: 4,000 firings, called 'shots,' on the Saturn accelerator and 9,000 shots on the HERMES III accelerator.
Mobile facility designed to measure greenhouse gases
September 8, 2011 5:38 am | News | CommentsResearchers at Sandia National Laboratories have designed and built a mobile research facility to trace and identify the origin of greenhouse gases. In addition to pinpointing the chemicals' location, the unique mobile facility can help researchers learn whether the gases are biogenic (coming from plant sources) or anthropogenic (coming from man-made sources).
First responders visualize post-event disaster environments
August 19, 2011 9:59 am | News | CommentsUsing iPad mobile devices, emergency preparedness officials and first responders can now, for the first time, make use of a new, science-based software tool developed at Sandia National Laboratories that allows them to view and modify accurate models of building damage and other post-event disaster effects.
Tribal Energy Program at Sandia powers tribal lands
August 15, 2011 10:05 am | News | CommentsMost Americans take electric power for granted, but for thousands of people living on tribal lands, getting to the grid can be a challenge. A lack of infrastructure, transmission capabilities, and policies impede the availability of electricity within the reservations and to outlying tribal areas. A program at Sandia National Laboratories addresses those challenges and is helping to train a new generation of Native American renewable energy advocates.
New physics lets thyristor reach higher level
August 14, 2011 8:00 pm | Award WinnersThe Ultra-high-voltage Silicon Carbide Thyristor, developed by GeneSiC Semiconductor Inc., and partners, can operate at up to 10 times higher voltage, four times higher blocking voltages, and 100 times faster switching frequency than silicon-based thyristors.
All-in-one RF lets mobile devices stay small
August 14, 2011 8:00 pm | Award WinnersResearchers at Sandia National Laboratories have invented a technology that combines multiple radio frequency filters on a single chip, enabling the development of compact devices that efficiently access 3G and 4G networks.
Sandia donates historically significant robots to Smithsonian Institution
July 20, 2011 5:40 am | News | CommentsIn a nod to Sandia National Laboratories' contributions to the field of robotics, the Smithsonian Institution has obtained nine of Sandia's historically significant robots for its permanent collection at the National Museum of American History.
Sandia's Battery Abuse Testing Lab undergoing renovation
July 13, 2011 9:04 am | News | CommentsSandia National Laboratories' Battery Abuse Testing Laboratory is undergoing a major renovation so Sandia researchers can test larger batteries for electric and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles.
Fundamental breakthrough in heat transfer for microelectronics
July 8, 2011 4:55 am | News | CommentsSandia National Laboratories has developed a new technology with the potential to alter the air-cooling landscape in computing and microelectronics. Lab officials are now seeking licensees in the electronics chip cooling field to license and commercialize the device.
Sandia partners with TUV Rheinland to advance nation's photovoltaic industry
June 23, 2011 4:40 am | News | CommentsTesting techniques from Sandia National Laboratories are helping accelerate the growth of the nation's photovoltaic solar power industry through a partnership with TUV Rheinland PTL, LLC, a private testing and certification company in Tucson, Ariz.
New thermal battery manufacturing method
June 3, 2011 4:41 am | by Heather Clark | News | CommentsA new thin-film coating process for manufacturing thermal batteries used in nuclear weapons and other munitions that was invented at Sandia National Laboratories will be industrialized under a new corporate partnership with a Maryland company. The process could lead to create lighter batteries in a variety of shapes for future applications.
Sandia and Cray to tackle 'big data' in new supercomputing institute
May 27, 2011 4:38 am | News | CommentsSandia National Laboratories and supercomputer manufacturer Cray Inc. are forming an institute focused on data-intensive supercomputers. The Supercomputing Institute for Learning and Knowledge Systems (SILKS), to be located at Sandia in Albuquerque, will take advantage of the strengths of Sandia and Cray by making software and hardware resources available to researchers who focus on a relatively new application of supercomputing.
Unveiling the plague's secrets
May 17, 2011 6:47 am | News | CommentsResearchers at Sandia National Laboratories have developed a super-resolution microscopy technique that is answering long-held questions about exactly how and why a cell's defenses fail against some invaders, such as plague, while successfully fending off others like E.coli .
Second Z plutonium 'shot' safely tests materials for NNSA
May 11, 2011 7:27 am | News | CommentsThe National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announced that researchers from Sandia and Los Alamos national laboratories have completed their second experiment in the past six months at Sandia's Z machine to explore the properties of plutonium materials under extreme pressures and temperatures.
Collaboration puts Sandia hydrogen program on global track
May 5, 2011 9:10 am | News | CommentsA new hydrogen research initiative based in Japan will leverage Department of Energy (DOE)-funded hydrogen research at Sandia National Laboratories' California site and will likely become the first research effort to be rolled into a broader laboratory research umbrella aimed at increasing the laboratories’ hydrogen partnerships domestically and abroad.
