We are pleased to announce and invite you to one of our weekly online zoom events.
 

The World’s Most Accurate Clocks – and Why They Measure More Than Just Time: The New National Centre of Competence in Research “Precision”

Measurements of the frequencies associated with the motion of electrons in atoms represent the most precise physical experiments currently possible. Such high-precision measurements of atomic frequencies serve as the basis for the world’s most accurate clocks. The current record corresponds to a relative accuracy of better than 10^-18. In practical terms, this means that such a clock would lose or gain less than one second over the entire age of the Universe, approximately 13.8 billion years.

The extraordinary precision of modern spectroscopic measurements enables to address questions that were previously the exclusive domain of particle physics and cosmology. These include the possible existence of previously unknown fundamental forces, potential temporal variations of the fundamental constants of nature, and the internal structure of elementary particles. The enormous scientific and technological potential of precision spectroscopy is also reflected in the recent establishment of the new Swiss National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR) “Precision”, which is dedicated to these topics.

This lunch chat will provide an introduction to the technology behind ultra-precise frequency and time measurements and discuss several of their scientific and technological applications.


Speaker

Prof. Dr. Stefan Willitsch, Departement Chemie, Universität Basel
Prof. Stefan Willitsch studied chemistry and interdisciplinary sciences at ETH Zurich from 1994 to 2000, earning a Diploma in Natural Sciences in 2000 and a Ph.D. in Chemistry in 2004 under the supervision of Frédéric Merkt.

Following a Junior Research Fellowship at the University of Oxford, the academic career progressed through a lectureship at University College London before joining the University of Basel in 2008 as an SNSF Professor. Promotions followed to Associate Professor (2014) and Full Professor (2022). Since 2025, Stefan Willitsch has served as Head of the Department of Chemistry and, in 2026, became Co-Director of the National Centre of Competence in Research Precision.

The career has been recognised with numerous prestigious awards, including the ETH Zurich Medal, the Dimitris N. Chorafas Award, the Marlow Medal, the Ruzicka Prize, and both an SNSF Consolidator Grant (2015) and an SNSF Advanced Grant (2022). Earlier distinctions include membership of the Swiss Study Foundation from 1996 to 2004 and a Junior Research Fellowship at Christ Church, Oxford.

Moderator

Dr. Christian Bosshard, Managing Director Swissphotonics
Dr. Christian Bosshard received his degree in Physics (1986) and his doctorate (1991, Silver medal award) from ETH. From 2001-2021 he was working at CSEM, first as Section Head and then as Vice President and Head Photonics. Since 2013 he is Managing Director of Swissphotonics. Christian is a Fellow of Optica, former Board Member of EPIC, and Member of the Board of the University of Basel.

Date
Tuesday, 3 November 2026

Time
12:00 - 12:45

Software
Zoom

Costs
free of charge

Registration only necessary once
This event series requires registration (see link above). We will send you the access information (Zoom-link and ID) by email after the registration. As the Zoom link remains the same every week, you do not need to register again for the following meetings.

Contact NCCR Precision
Prof. Stefan Willitsch
Head of the Department of Chemistry, University of Basel
Co-Director of the National Centre of Competence in Research Precision

Contact Swissphotonics
Dr. Christian Bosshard
Managing Director Swissphotonics
+41 79 405 1826

28 June 2026, Christian Bosshard