nuclear isomer

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Clocks on the cusp of a nuclear age

7 min read
Scicomm Science caesium standard calcium fluoride fine structure constant frequency comb Indian Standard Time ISOLDE lithium strontium hexafluoroaluminate metastability nuclear clock nuclear isomer nuclear physics optical atomic clocks Planck equation strong interaction parameter strong nuclear force thorium-229 thorium-229m vacuum ultraviolet

You need three things to build a clock: an energy source, a resonator, and a counter. In an analog wrist watch, for example, a small battery is the energy source that sends a small electric signal to…