Fun Stuff > CHATTER
How "normal" do you think you are?
dennis:
--- Quote from: himynameisjulien on 10 Jul 2008, 08:43 ---jhocking:
Oh, I think I misunderstood you the first time then. Thanks for correcting.
How can radiation be given off? At absolute 0, there is no energy, so the atom cannot emit radiation because it has no energy to spare.
http://www.newton.dep.anl.gov/askasci/phy05/phy05142.htm
Sorry if that's not a clickable link, I have no clue how to do those unless the forum has a system that does it for me.
--- End quote ---
Absolute zero isn't an attainable state, but yes if you *were* too cool an a material to 0K, you would see no radiation. However, realize that as long as there is a temperature differential, it's not a stable state.
In any case, the caesium isotope used in atomic clocks isn't radioactive, anyway.
The radiation they're talking about in an atomic clock are microwave frequency oscillations (i.e. electromagnetic, not nuclear) that are a fundamental property of caesium atoms. You can tune a matter circuit to those oscillations and it basically works like a pendulum in a grandfather clock or the quartz crystal in an electric clock. You still have to put energy into the clock itself.
StreetSpirit:
SCIENCE!
est:
Man, science is for nerds.
KvP:
Get 'em, Ogre!
jhocking:
--- Quote from: est on 10 Jul 2008, 17:04 ---Man, science is for nerds.
--- End quote ---
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