![]() "These comparisons are really defining the state of the art for both fiber-based and free-space measurements-they are all close to 10 times more accurate than any clock comparisons using different atoms performed so far," says Hume in a statement. This trio of networked atomic clocks was able to tell time with uncertainties less than a quadrillionth of a percent, according to Science News. Researchers used a laser beam and fiber optic cable to connect the three clocks and compare their measurements. The ytterbium and aluminum clocks were housed in one lab in Boulder, Colorado, and the strontium clock was housed in another lab just under a mile across town, according to NPR. Each of the three clocks used different atoms to measure time: one used strontium, one used ytterbium and the third used just one electrically charged aluminum atom. A new paper, published last week in the journal Nature, pitted three different atomic clocks against each other, per Science News. Using these new atomic clocks to redefine the length of a second could help physicists conduct new, more accurate experiments testing weighty concepts such as relativity and dark matter, reports Sarah Wells for Inverse.īut that requires a thorough study of the differences between these new-fangled clocks. “There have been a lot of improvements in atomic clocks,” David Hume, a physicist at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, tells Science News. "Every time you want to find your location on the planet, you're asking what time it is from an atomic clock that sits in the satellite that is our GPS system," Colin Kennedy, a physicist at the Boulder Atomic Clock Optical Network (BACON) Collaboration, tells NPR.īut newer atomic clocks use different atoms that oscillate or tick even faster, which means they dice up each second into even smaller pieces, according to NPR. These cesium-based atomic clocks “tick” about nine billion times per second, and they’re used to keep our modern, connected world in sync, report Karen Zamora, Christopher Intagliata and Farah Eltohamy for NPR. When atomic clocks first appeared in the 1960s, they defined the second based on the properties of cesium atoms, which absorb and emit light at a reliable frequency. ![]() Due the hermetically sealed package and the integrated thermal management, these lasers offer high stability and robustness, making them ideal for applications with harsh environments beyond the laboratory.New experiments bring researchers one step closer to redefining the length of the second, reports Emily Conover for Science News.įor decades, atomic clocks have been the gold standard when it comes to measuring the passage of time. For example, our DFB lasers or our miniECLs can be used to excite Rubidium atoms at 780 nm or cesium based atomic clocks at 852 nm to their resonant state. Our single frequency lasers offer narrow linewidth and high output power, making them particularly suitable for atomic clocks. ![]() In navigation, atomic clocks are used in GPS satellites to accurately measure the time it takes for a signal to travel from the satellite to a GPS receiver on the ground to calculate the precise location. The frequency of an atomic transition is extremely stable and can be used to measure time accurately by counting the number of vibrations that occur in a certain period of time.Ītomic clocks are already essential in telecommunication applications, where they are used to synchronize data transmission between devices. Atomic clocks are one of the most precise systems for time measurement today, which utilizes the natural vibrations of atoms. ![]()
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