Experimental Physics · Fluid Metrology · Turbulence
Physicist, Fluid Metrology Group — NIST
I develop measurement techniques for characterizing fluid flow — from laser velocimetry and image-based analysis to acoustics — and study turbulence through the lens of dynamical systems.
About
Dr. Christopher J Crowley is a physicist at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), where he advances the frontiers of measurement science within the Fluid Metrology Group of the Sensor Science Division.
Chris develops innovative techniques for characterizing fluid flow and properties, spanning a wide range of approaches — from image-based analysis to acoustics to laser velocimetry. He is driven by a passion for making these measurements more robust, accurate, and cost-effective.
He is currently exploring the use of acoustics to measure fluid flow and improving optical techniques for understanding complex flow patterns. His expertise in algorithm development plays a crucial role in ensuring the Sensor Science Division continues to make groundbreaking advances in measurement technology.
Trajectory
Research interests
My work has centered on two intertwined areas: fluid flow metrology and fluid turbulence. Studying how to improve flow measurement made clear that turbulence sits at the heart of nearly every metering challenge — and that the tools of chaos theory and dynamical systems may finally let us predict and control it.
Maintaining primary flow standards and improving calibration — from uncertainty analysis and wind-tunnel experiments to establishing safer, non-toxic surrogate calibration fluids.
Testing a dynamical-systems description of turbulence: special unstable solutions of the Navier–Stokes equations whose connections act as a road map for where a chaotic flow goes next.
A custom fully time-resolved tomographic Particle Image Velocimetry rig captures 3-D turbulent velocity fields in Taylor–Couette flow, compared against spectral Newton–Krylov simulations.
Selected work
A selection from 10 journal articles, 17 conference papers, and 3 NIST publications — see the full list on Google Scholar →
Off the clock
I like showing simple and exciting demonstrations of physical principles. A few things I'm tinkering with.
A photograph of an exploded carbon-film resistor body — and the story of how I captured it.
An in-progress low-power, pulse-width-modulated solid-state Tesla coil.
A reproduction of Iosif's index-of-refraction matching demonstration.
The search for the perfect bubble recipe — homemade, and maybe someday for sale.
The illustrated story of trading a car for a broken golf cart and reviving it.