| Harry Diamond Laboratories | |
|---|---|
| Adelphi, Maryland in the United States | |
 The Harry Diamond Laboratories building complex, which now houses the headquarters of the U.S. Army Research Laboratory. | |
 Harry Diamond Laboratories emblem. | |
| Type | Military research laboratory |
| Site information | |
| Owner | Department of Defense |
| Operator | U.S. Army |
| Controlled by | Army Materiel Command |
| Condition | Redeveloped as part of the U.S. Army Research Laboratory |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1949 (as Harry Diamond Ordnance Laboratory) |
The Harry Diamond Laboratories (HDL) was a research facility under the National Bureau of Standards (NBS) and later the U.S. Army. It conducted research and development in electronic components and devices and was at one point the largest electronics research and development laboratory in the U.S. Army. HDL also acted as the Army’s lead laboratory in nuclear survivability studies and operated the Aurora Pulsed Radiation Simulator, the world’s largest full-threat gamma radiation simulator. In 1992, HDL was disestablished, and its mission, personnel, and facilities were incorporated into the newly created U.S. Army Research Laboratory (ARL). As part of this transition, the Army designated the HDL building as the site of ARL’s new headquarters.[1][2]
The installation was named in honor of pioneer radio engineer and inventor Harry Diamond, who led the Ordnance Development Division during World War II. Diamond contributed greatly to the fundamental concept and design of proximity fuzes.[1]
- ^ a b U.S. Army Research Laboratory (September 2017). History of the U.S. Army Research Laboratory. Government Printing Office. ISBN 978-0-16-094231-0.
- ^ "Army Materiel Command Labs and RDE Centers". Army RD&A Magazine. Vol. 27, no. 4. July–August 1986. pp. 1–10.