China has produced optical clocks

Scientists in China's Hubei province say they have successfully installed the country's first optical meter, allowing for more precise time measurements than traditional atomic clocks.

The event has made China the seventh country in the world, after the US, Germany, Britain, Canada, Australia and Japan, producing optical clocks.

Gao Kelin, a researcher at the Hubei Academy of Sciences, says the optical clock, based on the principle of single-ionic calcium activity, can measure the exact time with a second error of more than 10 million years. .

According to Gao, his team used magnetic and magnetic fields to trap a calcium ion over a period of more than 15 days, allowing researchers to accurately calculate the flow of time through The atomic motion of this ion.

"Unlike microwaves, which operate on the motion of atoms in the ultra-shortwave waveband, optical clocks are based on tracking the atomic movement in the band," Gao said. Optical, thereby reducing the instability of the clock from 100 to 1,000 times. "

Atomic clocks, including ultra-short wave and optical clocks, can measure almost exactly the time and are used in a wide range of fields, from telecommunications to manufacturing tools. exactly.