Elusive 'nuclear clocks' tick closer to reality - after decades in the making

"Nearly a dozen research teams spread across China, Europe, Japan and the United States are closing in on assembling the components of such a clock, including a source of thorium-229 - which is radioactive - and a powerful continuous-wave ultraviolet laser to excite the energy transition."

"This is a really, really promising technology for commercial applications. That's because nuclear clocks could be resilient to noise and have a compact design for use outside the laboratory."

"You'll see nuclear-clock measurements in 2026, I'm sure. This clock is way closer than people think."

Physicists are advancing towards the development of a nuclear clock that measures energy transitions in atomic nuclei. The isotope thorium-229 has been identified for this purpose, with significant progress made in 2024 using laser technology. Researchers from various countries are collaborating to assemble the necessary components, including a source of thorium-229 and a powerful ultraviolet laser. Experts believe that nuclear clocks could outperform current optical atomic clocks in precision and offer practical applications outside laboratory settings.

Read at Nature