Nuclear watches guarantee unprecedented precision

Although it is unlikely that in the future we will carry a nuclear watch on the wrist, these devices are getting closer to becoming a reality in laboratories. From there, your signs will be available for those who need themexplained José Ignacio Jiménez Mier y Terán, researcher at the National Institute of Nuclear Sciences of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM).

Nuclear watches promise unprecedented precision in time measurement. It is estimated that they will exceed 10 times in accuracy to atomic watches, which are currently the basis of time measurement in the world and are used in systems such as GPS, telecommunications and synchronization of digital networks.

Even when a long way to go, scientific advances indicate that we are getting closer to their developmentSaid Jiménez Mier and Terán.

In an interview with The daythe expert stressed the relevance of time measurement in areas such as science, navigation and telecommunications. He said that reaching the level of precision promised by nuclear watches will transform these key areas.

For example, geolocation systems, which depend on atomic watches in satellites, will be more exact. A GPS system that today could tell us that we are 20 meters from the Institute of Nuclear Sciences, could tell us, precisely, in which exact room we arehe explained.

In addition, they will allow a more punctual synchronization in the functioning of digital networks, internet and telecommunications. The duration of a call may seem irrelevant, but when it is multiplied by millions of users and daily transactions, it becomes crucial for the collection of services.

These advances will also impact quantum computing and cryptography, essential for the cybersecurity of the future. “This is key to banking operations; For example, when one makes an online transaction, the credit institution needs to register the exact time: ‘This operation was done such a day, such a minute and such second.’ If there is a small delay or advance, I could alter the result of millions of commercial or financial transactions, ”he said.

This could strengthen the safety of online bank transactions and protect sensitive data in the digital erahe added.

Jiménez Mier and Terán stressed that the difference between both types of watches lies in the reference they use to measure time. The atomic, such as Cesio, are based on the energy transitions of an atom, while the nuclear take advantage of the transitions within the nucleus of the atom, which makes them more stable and precise.

The researcher explained that atomics present several limitations, such as stability, sensitivity to external interference and technological restrictions. To minimize these interferences, they must operate in controlled conditions, such as vacuum cameras at ultra -abuse temperatures.

The nuclear, on the other hand, are much more stable and less sensitive to external interference. Being protected from influences such as electric, magnetic fields and temperature fluctuations, they guarantee unprecedented precisionadded the scientist.

During 2024, said Jiménez Mier and Terán, two central discoveries for the construction of nuclear watches were made. One of them was achieved by a team of Austrian physicists, who stimulated the core of the Torio-229 isotope, with the help of a laser. The Torio-229 is a crucial element for nuclear watches because its nuclear transition occurs with much lower energy than that of other elements, allowing its laser manipulation.

The second advance was carried out by a team led by researchers from the United States, who demonstrated the effectiveness of the key components necessary to manufacture this type of clock, including the ability to excite the Torio-229 core with a table laser.

They are very important advances, but we must take them easy. Let’s not hope that in the short term there will be a much more precise nuclear clock than atomicthe expert mentioned.

For Jiménez Mierán and Terán, interdisciplinary collaboration and knowledge of the advances of the past 100 years, from theoretical physics to precision lasers engineering, will be the basis for taking the following steps towards nuclear watches.

Although time is still for this technology to be available to the public, current advances open a promising panoramahe concluded.