First Thorium Nuclear Clocks Begin to Tick
Researchers in Vienna and Beijing have independently built the first nuclear clocks based on oscillations inside thorium nuclei, marking a major milestone for a field that could eventually produce highly portable, ultra-precise timekeepers. The clocks are already precise enough to lose only about a second over millions of years. The New York Times reports: The first nuclear clocks are not going…
Researchers in Vienna and Beijing have successfully constructed the world's first nuclear clocks using thorium nuclei, marking a significant breakthrough for a field that could revolutionize timekeeping. These novel clocks are already exhibiting remarkable precision, losing only approximately one second over millions of years. However, they are not yet poised to replace the existing global network of atomic clocks, which are essential for GPS and the standard definition of a second.
The current atomic clocks are about ten thousand times more accurate, requiring over 100 billion years to lose a single second.
Despite their current limitations, nuclear clocks offer several potential advantages over their atomic counterparts. In the long term, they may surpass the reliability of the best atomic clocks. Furthermore, their compact size could make them more portable than the bulky atomic counterparts. Additionally, nuclear clocks possess the unique ability to potentially detect dark matter particles.
If a particle of dark matter traverses the thorium nuclei, it could cause a slight fluctuation in the clock's otherwise consistent oscillations. These groundbreaking findings have been published in the prestigious journal Nature.
Written by urgent.news from Slashdot's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
