Cesium, as Second Standard

  1. Until 1960 second was (60•60•24)-1=(86400)-1 of day. (Mean solar second flucutated by 10 ppb.)

  2. Until 1967 was corresponding fraction of tropical year. (Ephemeris second good to few ppb except for orbit decay.)

  3. Since 1967:
    The second is the duration of 9 192 631 770 periods of the radiation corresponding to the transition between the two hyperfine levels of the ground state of the cesium-133 atom.

    (Accuracy of 10 ppt. Then comparable to Hydrogen Maser at 1 ppt.)

  4. In 1997 the International Committee on Weights and Measures (CIPM) affirmed this was at 0K.
  5. Is now accurate to 2x10-15 or 2 parts per quintillion and still improving at power of 10 per decade since 1960.

  6. Pressure to stabilize or move standard from 9 GHz
    • with: hydrogen masers used since 1976 with cesium fountain clock in space
    • to: single 199Hg+ at 1 064 721 609 899 143 (10) Hz or 282 nm
    • to: 107   40Ca at 455 986 240 494 158 (26) Hz or 657 nm
    • with: sapphire-rutile (TiO2)
  7. Effects of velocity, gravity, temperature, etc. loom large (and measureable/predictable).

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