New Nuclear Clock Research Promises Next Leap in Timekeeping Precision
By
Darren Orf
Summary
Two new independent studies are heralding a new era of timekeeping with the development of nuclear clocks, which use the nucleus itself rather than atomic electron transitions to keep time. This follows nearly 80 years of atomic clock evolution since the first was built by the U.S. National Bureau of Standards (now NIST), with researchers having achieved atomic clocks capable of measuring time down to the 19th decimal point. Nuclear clocks promise even greater precision and stability than atomic clocks.
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Key quotes
· 3 pulledNearly 80 years ago, the atomic clock—first built by the U.S. National Bureau of Standards (now known as National Institute of Standards and Technology, or NIST)—revolutionized timekeeping.
One research group even created an aluminum ion clock capable of measuring time down to the 19th decimal point.
Now, two new independent studies are heralding a new era of timekeeping—that of nuclear clocks, timekeeping devices
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