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| Born | 6 September 1908 Nottingham |
| Died | 24 August 1997 | Age 88 |
Louis Essen and Jack Parry 1955
In 1955, Louis Essen and Jack Parry built the world's first caesium atomic clock at the National Physical Laboratory in Teddington, Middlesex.From Quartz
An Atomic clock, is a timekeeping device that is controlled by atomic or molecular oscillations. Essen joined NPL in 1929 to further his ambition to build highly accurate time pieces. He investigated the potential of tuning forks and quartz crystal oscillators for precise time measurement. His research led to his development of the quartz ring clock in 1938, which used the electrically induced vibrations of a quartz crystal to measure time.
The clock soon become the industry standard for time measurement at observatories throughout the world.
Atomic Clock
Essen based his clock on caesium because
- 'An atom will always have the same transition frequency anywhere in the universe'.
Links
NPL
