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What makes a clock nuclear?
Both atomic and nuclear clocks use electromagnetic radiation to track a precise quantum transition. In a conventional atomic clock, the reference transition involves an atom’s electrons; in a nuclear clock, it occurs in the atom’s nucleus.
Nuclei are less affected by some external disturbances than electrons, which may eventually help a nuclear clock maintain a stable reference. But that is a motivation for research, not proof of superior performance in an operating device. Nuclear transitions generally require difficult-to-produce radiation. Thorium-229 is unusual because its low-energy transition can be reached with ultraviolet light, making it more accessible to laser techniques than typical nuclear transitions. NIST’s account of the 2024 demonstration and its nuclear-clock overview describe this as a route toward a clock, not a ready-made timekeeping device.
What researchers have demonstrated so far
2024: measuring thorium’s clock transition
A JILA/NIST-led team measured the frequency of a transition in thorium-229 nuclei embedded in a solid crystal, using a specially designed ultraviolet laser and an optical frequency comb. The team related the nuclear transition’s frequency to a strontium-87 atomic clock. NIST described the laser, frequency-comb and transition-measurement work as key clock technology, while stating that the laboratory experiment was not a fully developed nuclear clock. The NIST publication record describes the frequency-ratio study; a transition measurement is not an operational clock comparison.
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2025: studying temperature-related shifts
Clock development also requires identifying and controlling shifts caused by the environment. A 2025 study measured five allowed thorium-229 transitions in a calcium-fluoride host crystal to the kilohertz level and examined their temperature sensitivity. That is a laboratory spectroscopy result, not a GPS timing benchmark. See the NIST publication record and the Physical Review Letters paper hosted by NIST.
Are nuclear clocks more accurate than atomic clocks?
There is no established like-for-like operational comparison showing that a thorium nuclear clock is more accurate than the best existing atomic clocks. Measuring a nuclear transition precisely and operating a clock against that transition are different achievements. A deployed clock’s performance must be assessed as a clock, under stated conditions—not inferred from the precision of one transition-frequency measurement.
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Atomic-clock research is also advancing. In July 2025, NIST announced an aluminum-ion clock result as a record for accuracy at the time of that announcement. That dated result illustrates that nuclear clocks are being developed alongside continued progress in atomic clocks; it does not settle a permanent ranking of all clock technologies. NIST’s announcement gives the context for that record.
Does GPS use atomic clocks?
Yes. GPS uses atomic clocks aboard its satellites, coordinated with ground-based clocks. A receiver uses the timing of transmitted satellite signals to calculate its position, so GPS is a navigation and timing system—not a single clock that can simply be swapped for another.
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NIST’s history of atomic time reports that GPS satellites carry four rubidium-based atomic clocks each and are synchronized daily with ground clocks and one another. Those are figures reported on that history page, not a freshly verified count of the current satellite fleet. NIST’s GPS and atomic-time background describes the system.
Why a nuclear clock is not ready to replace GPS timing
A promising reference transition is only one part of the job. Moving from a laboratory demonstration to a clock used in navigation would require an integrated device that can perform reliably in its intended environment and fit into satellite hardware and system operations. Size, power, environmental stability, reliability and maintainability are practical considerations; the cited demonstrations do not establish that these requirements have been met.
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NIST presents navigation as a possible future application. Its overview says nuclear clocks could someday replace hydrogen masers in national time scales and navigation satellites, and might also suit deep-space navigation. These are prospective uses, not current deployments or a timetable for replacing GPS.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What would count as a fair comparison?
“Accuracy” alone can obscure the difference between a measured transition, a complete clock and a navigation service. A meaningful comparison would distinguish what is being measured, under what conditions, and at what level of the system:
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- Reference: a nuclear transition versus an electronic transition in an atomic clock.
- Performance: transition-frequency measurement versus the stability and accuracy of a functioning clock, or the timing and positioning performance of an operational GPS system.
- Environment: the proposed lower sensitivity of nuclei to some disturbances, weighed against measured effects such as temperature sensitivity in solid-state samples.
- Readiness: laboratory component work versus a deployed, maintained clock integrated with satellite and ground infrastructure.
The available reports do not supply a single operational benchmark comparing a nuclear clock with GPS timing or the best atomic clocks. For now, nuclear clocks are a potential future addition or successor for selected applications—not a demonstrated replacement for GPS or a reason to assume atomic clocks are obsolete.
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