#nistf4

[francois-chung]

New Atomic Fountain Clock Joins Elite Group That Keeps the World on Time

NIST scientists have published results establishing a new atomic clock, NIST-F4, as one of the world’s most accurate timekeepers

« Cesium fountain clocks such as NIST-F4 are a type of atomic clock — a complex, high-precision device that extracts timing pulses from atoms. These clocks play a critical role in our globally connected society: They serve as “primary frequency standards” that work together to calibrate Coordinated Universal Time, or UTC (an agreed-upon system for keeping time using data from atomic clocks around the world, known as a time scale). »