Science & Tech · Science & Environment · 11 hrs ago
Vienna team demonstrates a self-stabilizing thorium nuclear clock
Researchers in Vienna have built the first nuclear clock that can stabilize itself, keeping its laser frequency steady without intervention for more than 24 hours.
The device uses a crystal containing thorium atoms and a laser, with thorium nuclei serving as the clock’s reference.
Thorium is unusual because two of its nuclear energy states are close enough for laser light to move the nucleus between them.
When the laser’s frequency shifts, the nuclei absorb less light, allowing the system to adjust the laser automatically.
Measurements over a day showed precision equivalent to about one second of error in 30 million years.
That is a strong result for a first prototype, but it is not yet as precise as the best optical atomic clocks.
The researchers say nuclear clocks could eventually enable more precise measurements, but the sources give no timeline for further development.
A Vienna team has demonstrated what the articles describe as the first self-stabilizing nuclear clock, using thorium nuclei to stabilize a laser.
The prototype operated for more than 24 hours without intervention.
Measurements over a day put its precision at approximately 10⁻¹⁵, equivalent to roughly one second in 30 million years.
The clock uses a crystal containing thorium atoms, made at TU Wien and illuminated by a laser.
The result is an advance toward nuclear clocks, though the prototype has not reached the level of the world’s best optical atomic clocks.
- Who
- Researchers in Vienna, including a team led by Professor Thorsten Schumm at TU Wien.
- What
- They demonstrated a self-stabilizing nuclear clock that uses thorium nuclei to stabilize a laser.
- When
- The demonstration was reported in October 2026. The clock operated steadily for more than 24 hours.
- Where
- TU Wien in Vienna, Austria.
- Why
- To use thorium nuclei as a stable reference for timekeeping and advance precision measurement.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Researchers led by Thorsten Schumm and Ekkehard Peik demonstrated laser excitation of thorium nuclei for the first time.
The team connected its thorium excitation apparatus to a conventional optical atomic clock and showed that the nuclei could serve as a timekeeping reference.
The Vienna team reported a self-stabilizing nuclear clock that operated for more than 24 hours without intervention.
- Precision
- Approximately 10⁻¹⁵, or roughly one second in 30 million years
- Operating time
- More than 24 hours without intervention
- Clock reference
- Thorium nuclei
- Crystal
- Contains thorium atoms and was produced at TU Wien
- Prior milestone
- Laser excitation of thorium nuclei demonstrated in April 2024
What people are saying
This is not yet at the level of the world’s best optical atomic clocks, but for a first prototype it is a fantastic result,
What you really want is a self-stabilizing nuclear clock,
The basic idea is simple: you have a laser and you have thorium. The laser changes the energy state of the thorium nuclei, and the thorium nuclei are used to stabilize the frequency of the laser.
Sources
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