{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"632nm","title":"What Optical Atomic Clocks Tell Us About Space-Time | Jun Ye","html":"<iframe width=\"100%\" height=\"180\" frameborder=\"no\" scrolling=\"no\" seamless src=\"https://share.transistor.fm/e/54450d14\"></iframe>","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":6755,"description":"Times have changed. And cesium clocks can't keep up.\nIn this episode, we sit down with Jun Ye, Joint Institute for Laboratory Astrophysics (JILA) Fellow and pioneer of optical lattice clocks, whose work has pushed timekeeping far beyond traditional cesium atomic clocks. Ye explains how combining ultra-stable lasers, frequency combs, and ultra-cold atoms produces clocks more than 100× more precise than today’s standards: so sensitive they can detect gravitational time dilation across the width of a human hair.\nWe explore how this next generation of atomic clocks may open windows onto gravitational waves, test Einstein’s relativity in new regimes, and even help build a GPS for space travel. Ye also shares his personal journey from growing up during China’s Cultural Revolution to becoming a leader in precision measurement, and what that experience taught him about resilience, mentorship, and protecting scientific inquiry.\nWhether you’re curious about time, relativity, quantum physics, GPS technology, or the frontiers of precision measurement, this conversation offers a rare insider’s look at how breakthroughs in timekeeping can lead to entirely new physics.\nFollow us for more technical interviews with the world’s greatest scientists:\nTwitter: https://x.com/632nmPodcast\nInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/632nmpodcast?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==\nLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/632nm/about/\nSubstack: https://632nmpodcast.substack.com/\nFollow our hosts!\nMichael Dubrovsky: https://x.com/MikeDubrovsky\nMisha Shalaginov: https://x.com/MYShalaginov\nXinghui Yin: https://x.com/XinghuiYin\nSubscribe:\nApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/632nm/id1751170269\nSpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4aVH9vT5qp5UUUvQ6Uf6OR\nWebsite: https://www.632nm.com\nTimestamps:\n00:00 - Intro\n01:17 - Why Haven't Optical Clocks Replaced Cesium Clocks?\n10:45 - Fundamentals of Optical Atomic Clocks\n17:34 - History of Atomic Clocks\n30:18 -...","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/GydlQqnUybBqv7mvA947eCIsz_CyOG8rEnboLv3Hs_I/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS8yOGMz/YTliMThlODIyYzYw/OGVjOWNiZWNlNmQ1/ZmQ0Ni5qcGc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}