“Optical Clock Comparisons at the 18th-Decimal Place”

Tara Fortier

NIST, Time and Frequency Division

Monday, March 2nd at 4:00pm

120 Engineering (Hammond Auditorium)

Systems that can produce frequency in a deterministic way are the cornerstones for timing and synchronization in telecommunications networks, the Global Positioning System, and large telescope arrays. The generation of frequency references from quantum mechanical systems, namely atomic clocks, have been instrumental in enabling a timing stability and resolution, that are not only unparalleled, but are unattainable in systems based on classical architectures. Improvements in atomic clock development, achieved by harnessing the decreased uncertainty and instability of optical as opposed to microwave transitions can now be measured to 18 digits in frequency resolution. [Read More…]