Related papers: Probing New Forces with Nuclear Clocks
The low-energy, long-lived isomer in $^{229}$Th, first studied in the 1970s as an exotic feature in nuclear physics, continues to inspire a multidisciplinary community of physicists. Using the nuclear resonance frequency, determined by the…
The proposal for the development of a nuclear optical clock has triggered a multitude of experimental and theoretical studies. In particular the prediction of an unprecedented systematic frequency uncertainty of about $10^{-19}$ has…
We propose a novel approach to probe new fundamental interactions using isotope shift spectroscopy in atomic clock transitions. As concrete toy example we focus on the Higgs boson couplings to the building blocks of matter: the electron and…
We consider the general class of theories in which there is a new ultralight scalar field that mediates an equivalence principle violating, long-range force. In such a framework, the sun and the earth act as sources of the scalar field,…
Today's most precise time and frequency measurements are performed with optical atomic clocks. However, it has been proposed that they could potentially be outperformed by a nuclear clock, which employs a nuclear transition instead of the…
The isotope $^{229}$Th is the only nucleus known to possess an excited state $^{229m}$Th in the energy range of a few electron volts, a transition energy typical for electrons in the valence shell of atoms, but about four orders of…
We review the ideas and concepts for a clock that is based on a radiative transition in the nucleus rather than in the electron shell. This type of clock offers advantages like an insensitivity against field-induced systematic frequency…
Given the drastic progress achieved during recent years in our knowledge on the decay and nuclear properties of the thorium isomer 229mTh, the focus of research on this potential nuclear clock transition will turn in the near future from…
Attempts are made to unify gravity with the other three fundamental forces of nature. As suggested by higher dimensional models, this unification may require space and time variation of some dimensionless fundamental constants. In this…
Quantum state-resolved spectroscopy of the low energy thorium-229 nuclear transition was recently achieved. The five allowed transitions within the electric quadrupole structure were measured to the kilohertz level in a calcium fluoride…
Motivated by recent experimental breakthroughs toward a realization of a solid-state Thorium-229 nuclear clock, we review the technology, basic physics motivation, and limitations of the present generation of atomic clocks. We then discuss…
We propose the nuclear interferometer - a single-photon interferometry experiment based upon the thorium-229 nuclear clock transition - as a novel detector for ultra-light dark matter. Thanks to the enhanced sensitivity of this transition…
Quantum algorithms such as dynamical decoupling can be used to improve the sensitivity of a quantum sensor to a signal while suppressing sensitivity to noise. Atomic clocks are among the most sensitive quantum sensors, with recent…
The recent demonstration of laser excitation of the $\approx 8$ eV isomeric state of Thorium-229 is a significant step towards a nuclear clock. The low excitation energy likely results from a cancellation between electromagnetic and strong…
The nucleus of the radioisotope thorium-229 (${}^{229}$Th) features an isomer with an exceptionally low excitation energy that enables direct laser manipulation of nuclear states. For this reason, it is a leading candidate for use in…
Optical atomic clocks$^{1,2}$ use electronic energy levels to precisely keep track of time. A clock based on nuclear energy levels promises a next-generation platform for precision metrology and fundamental physics studies. Thorium-229…
After nearly fifty years of searching, the vacuum ultraviolet $^{229}$Th nuclear isomeric transition has recently been directly laser excited [1,2] and measured with high spectroscopic precision [3]. Nuclear clocks based on this transition…
Promising searches for new physics beyond the current Standard Model (SM) of particle physics are feasible through isotope-shift spectroscopy, which is sensitive to a hypothetical fifth force between the neutrons of the nucleus and the…
We discuss a new method to search for a new very weakly interacting light boson with extremely precise atomic spectroscopy, namely, the atomic clock. The contribution of the new physics may appear as the violation of a linear relation of…
Recent developments in frequency metrology and optical clocks have been based on electronic transitions in atoms and singly charged ions as references. These systems have enabled relative frequency uncertainties at a level of a few parts in…