Chapter 615: 524 Atomic Clock – Redefining the Passage of Time_2
“Even you can’t do it?” Sean asked, puzzled.
Although he couldn’t fully understand the quantum theory of the Star of Magic, he had read it several times. Its logic was very rigorous and self-consistent, and it was also in line with the results of the double-slit interference experiment, offering a good explanation for various bizarre phenomena in the Quantum Domain.
“Of course not!” Lynn shook his head. Not to mention himself, even the federal government in his previous life hadn’t truly perfected the quantum theory.
According to a friend of his who studied microscopic phenomena, the gap between the most advanced quantum theory and actual observations was about the same as the distance of a hair’s breadth between Earth and Uranus…
This was undoubtedly very slight, hardly affecting the application of its findings, but since there was a gap, it meant that the quantum theory was still incomplete, at least in that some unknown interference factor had not been found.
“Since you have read my paper, you should know that when electrons inside an atom transition between two energy levels, they absorb or release electromagnetic waves. This is also the operational principle of laser magic,” Lynn said.
“However, atomic clocks make use of another property of atoms. During specific orbital transitions of the same element, the emitted electromagnetic waves have a very stable oscillation frequency, a fixed value.”
“For example, the electromagnetic oscillations produced by rubidium atoms can reach frequencies of over a billion cycles, which means, with sufficient technology, one could divide time down to one-billionth of a second…”
Lynn went on enthusiastically, while the listening Sean was already feeling dizzy.
Using the frequency of electromagnetic wave vibrations generated by atomic transitions for timing?
He couldn’t help feeling embarrassed by the chairman’s wild imagination.
To create a clock, was it really necessary to go through such great lengths and measure so accurately?
Perhaps seeing Sean’s thoughts, Lynn began to explain. “For the macroscopic realm, there is no need for precision to the billionths of a second, but when it comes to experiments and observations at the atomic or even quantum level, this becomes very necessary.”
Considering the issue of secrecy, Lynn did not reveal that the new timer would be used for measuring flow rates of time; he explained it with quantum experiments instead.
“Here I recommend three elements—hydrogen, rubidium, and cesium. You could experiment with each one,” Lynn suggested.
“Chairman Lynn, I might find a way with the quartz vibration detection device, but I’m afraid I don’t have the capability to construct the atomic clock,” Sean said, feeling that the chairman was overestimating him.
He was just a small-time official wizard, and the principles of atomic clocks involved laser emissions, internal structure of elements, and even quantum theory, all of which were confusing to him, let alone creating one.
“How will you know if you don’t try? You can take my personal letter to the Magic Research Institute for help. If there’s any issue they can’t figure out, you can always come ask me,” Lynn encouraged him, and then suggested Sean first manage to create the quartz clock, while the research on the atomic clock could proceed slowly with the goal of completing it within a year!
If successful, his name was bound to be inscribed in the annals of magic history with heavy strokes, and time itself would be redefined by these achievements!
Moved by the splendid prospects Lynn described and his repeated assurances, Sean found himself tempted. The opportunity to receive guidance from such a distinguished chairman was enormously enticing. After hesitating for a while, Sean agreed to give it a try, though he did not guarantee that the atomic clock could be made.
Watching Sean leave, a smile appeared on Lynn’s face. This way, another necessary task was solved once again.
The quartz clock was manageable; if he felt like it, it could be done in a few days. However, the process of constructing an atomic clock was incredibly intricate and beyond the current technological capabilities of the Magic Kingdom.
But fortunately, they possessed a miracle called magic, which could make up for the lack of materials and processes. What was needed was to continuously put forth ideas and attempt experiments.
This was undoubtedly a very time-consuming task.
Now that he was chairman, Lynn naturally wouldn’t attend to all matters personally, lest he worked himself to death. Sean was the person he had chosen for this.
Discovering the law of the pendulum isn’t difficult, but according to Sean’s description, it was during some kind of reproduction of the pendulum experiment that he intuitively sensed the time of each swing of the pendulum to be very close to the same, rather than decreasing linearly with each swing as logic would have predicted, and then he verified it with an experiment.
Such keen insight is the best aid for invention and innovation!
Once Lynn had organized his thoughts, he didn’t pause for even a moment before having his Attendant notify Harrov, Aurora, and Vittorio that he needed to convene an internal emergency meeting.
After the several council leaders arrived, Lynn recited in detail the intelligence he had obtained from Bud and the crow.
“The flow of time is different between the two worlds?” Aurora said delightedly, “This is indeed welcome news!”
Previously, they had generally believed that the war might break out within three months, and in extreme cases, it might even be within one month. Now, it seemed there would be more time than anticipated.
Subsequently, they discussed how many people should be sent and through which Space-Time Gate to explore.
The number couldn’t be too large, nor too small.
If the number was too large, it could easily alert the Death Lord, prematurely exposing the location of the Space-Time Gate. If too few went, and they were ambushed, there would be no one left to report back.
After deliberation, they quickly decided to form a nine-member squad, consisting of a Grand Wizard and eight official Wizards, to enter through the Space-Time Gate located in the northern territory.
There were three reasons for this; first, Bud’s intelligence meant that they were not completely ignorant about that area.
Second, if the Church’s expeditionary force could enter in large numbers, then their sending people should not be an issue.
Third, the dangerous magical beasts there had already been cleared by the expeditionary force, which should make it slightly safer.
All things considered, it was the best choice they had.
A week flew by in an instant, and Sean’s development progress was a bit quicker than Lynn had anticipated, finishing the task in only six days.
In that time, as the council proposed a half-year development plan, the entire Magic Kingdom also experienced a second wave of construction boom. Each city was busy constructing roads and building workshops, with every person bustling about nonstop. Just the number of laborers had already exceeded a million, causing many Wizards to complain incessantly.
The technical positions requiring magical skills were extremely scarce, leading to many Wizards having to juggle multiple tasks.
Lynn had the council allocate a portion of resources to set up magical communication towers first. Once the magic network started operating, thousands of official Wizards could be added instantly.
The council’s plan for collecting grain was proceeding quite smoothly.
Having learned from the bankruptcies of their colleagues in the previous food war, even rich merchants who treasured wealth dearly did not dare play the scarcity game. Moreover, the council was very generous, offering a price thirty percent above market rate, allowing for a decent profit.
The real headache for Lynn and the others was selecting personnel to enter the Space-Time Gate.
Euphemistically, this group was called the scouting squad, but more bluntly, they were the suicide squad. Wizards entering had to be prepared for the possibility of accidents preventing their return. If they were discovered or captured by the Death Lord, they had to trigger contingencies themselves, destroying everyone present materially and spiritually to prevent the enemy from gathering too much intelligence about their world.
Therefore, each candidate needed to be trustworthy, as well as sharp, decisive, and willing to sacrifice. It took seven days to finally select these nine individuals based on recommendations and voluntary principles.
On the day of departure, Lynn put aside his research projects to personally see off the team.