Related papers: An Upper Bound for the Mass of Microscopic Clocks
A quantum clock must satisfy two basic constraints. The first is a bound on the time resolution of the clock given by the difference between its maximum and minimum energy eigenvalues. The second follows from Holevo's bound on how much…
Time plays a fundamental role in our ability to make sense of the physical laws in the world around us. The nature of time has puzzled people -- from the ancient Greeks to the present day -- resulting in a long running debate between…
By taking into account both quantum mechanical and general relativistic effects, I derive an equation that describes some limitations on the measurability of space-time distances. I then discuss possible features of quantum gravity which…
Our spacetime is filled with gravitational wave backgrounds that constitute a fluctuating environment created by astrophysical and cosmological sources. Bounds on these backgrounds are obtained from cosmological and astrophysical data but…
In this paper the effect of the post-Newtonian gravitomagnetic force on the mean longitudes $l$ of a pair of counter-rotating Earth artificial satellites following almost identical circular equatorial orbits is investigated. The possibility…
We revisit a recent proposal for a definition of time in quantum cosmology, to investigate the effects of having more than one possible type of clock "at the same time". We use as test tube an extension of Einstein gravity with a massless…
Pulsars are the most stable macroscopic clocks found in nature. Spinning with periods as short as a few milliseconds, their stability can supersede that of the best atomic clocks on Earth over timescales of a few years. Stable clocks are…
Being able to measure time, whether directly or indirectly, is a significant advantage for an organism. It allows for the timely reaction to regular or predicted events, reducing the pressure for fast processing of sensory input. Thus,…
Measurements take a singular role in quantum theory. While they are often idealized as an instantaneous process, this is in conflict with all other physical processes in nature. In this Letter, we adopt a standpoint where the interaction…
Optical lattice clocks (OLCs) enable us to measure time and frequency with a fractional uncertainty at $10^{-18}$ level, which is 2 orders of magnitude better than Cs clocks. In this article, after briefly reviewing OLCs and the history of…
Non-metricity provides a natural extension of Riemannian geometry, yet its experimental signatures remain largely unexplored. In this work we investigate how spacetime non-metricity can be probed through high-precision observations,…
General relativity predicts that two freely counter-revolving test particles in the exterior field of a central rotating mass take different periods of time to complete the same full orbit; this time difference leads to the gravitomagnetic…
We demonstrate gravitational coupling between two gold spheres of approximately 1mm radius and 90mg mass. By periodically modulating the source mass position at a frequency f=12.7mHz we generate a time-dependent gravitational acceleration…
Time-like and space-like invariant space-time intervals are used to analyse measurements of spatial and temporal distances defined by two spatially-separated clocks. The time dilatation effect is confirmed, but not `relativity of…
The performance of optical clocks has strongly progressed in recent years, and accuracies and instabilities of 1 part in 10^18 are expected in the near future. The operation of optical clocks in space provides new scientific and…
Being able to measure time, whether directly or indirectly, is a significant advantage for an organism. It permits it to predict regular events, and prepare for them on time. Thus, clocks are ubiquitous in biology. In the present paper, we…
We critically discuss the measure of very short time intervals. By means of a "gedankenexperiment", we describe an ideal clock based on the occurrence of completely random events. We show that the minimum time interval Delta t that this…
A clock is, from an information-theoretic perspective, a system that emits information about time. One may therefore ask whether the theory of information imposes any constraints on the maximum precision of clocks. Here we show a…
The precision of optical atomic clocks is approaching a regime where they resolve gravitational time dilation on smaller scales than their own extensions. Hence, an accurate description of quantum clocks has to take their spatial extension…
Time is a parameter playing a central role in our most fundamental modelling of natural laws. Relativity theory shows that the comparison of times measured by different clocks depends on their relative motion and on the strength of the…