Strontium Atomic Clock Will Keep Accurate Time Till The End Of Universe

The latest Strontium atomic clock is all set to break the world record by keeping accurate time for the next several billion years. Of course none of us would be around to verify the claims made by the creators, we can definitely rely on the mind-blowing science and engineering that powers this clock. Developed by the researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the new JILA Strontium Atomic Clock - The God Of Time Keeping will not gain or lose a second in the the next 15 billion years.

Researchers were able to improve the precision of the clock by three times over the last year when the clock set new world record. For the atomic clocks, the precision is a measure of how closely the clock can resonate with the strontium atom frequency of oscillation between two different energy states. The stability, on the other hand, is determined by how closely any tick matches with the other ticks of the clock. The researchers have claimed 50% improvement in stability, which is another record.

Albert Einstein had predicted that there will be tiny changes in time passage at different heights on the Earth; and the new atomic clock is capable of measuring those accurately. The clock can actually be used to demonstrate that the time passes faster at higher elevations. Researchers at | JILA - Exploring the Frontiers of Physics can now measure the gravitational shift when the atomic clock is elevated by just 2 centimeters. No one was able to demonstrate this with such precise sensitivity in the past.


The atomic clocks have been instrumental in allowing extremely precise time keeping that helps in advancing the communications technologies, positioning systems (a la GPS). Researchers can now use gravity sensors and make extremely accurate 3D measurements of the Earth.

The Strontium clock houses several thousands of Strontium atoms in a 30x30 micrometer column comprising of about 400 pancake shaped areas created using power and stable red laser, called 'optical lattice'. Researchers detect the strontium atom excitements accurately to about 430 trillion per second and that's a LOT. Read more about the atomic clock on the source links below. Also watch an old video about atomic clocks from NIST embedded below.


Sources: #-Link-Snipped-# | More Precise Nuclear Clock Might Dethrone Atomic Clock | Symmetricom SA.45s CSAC Is Portable Atomic Clock