100 picoseconds
100 psTime · definition
Time conversions use a Julian year of exactly 365.25 days.
Time
Just how long is 100 picoseconds?
A duration of 100 picoseconds is 1 × 10⁻¹⁰ seconds.
Fleeting instants
100 ps
ELAPSED TIME
100 picoseconds
Time conversions use a Julian year of exactly 365.25 days.
100 psTime
0
Caesium-133 clock transition
The caesium-133 clock transition is the specific change in energy state of a caesium-133 atom that defines the duration of one second in the International System of Units.
108.8 psOne cycle
0
Both timelines start together. Length measures elapsed time, not a physical distance.
A little perspective
One cycle of the caesium-133 clock transition is about 1.09 times 100 picoseconds.
Measurements, assumptions & sources +
100 picoseconds
Time: 100 ps; definition.
Time conversions use a Julian year of exactly 365.25 days.
Caesium-133 clock transition
One cycle: 108.8 ps; derived.
The SI second is defined from exactly 9,192,631,770 periods of the unperturbed caesium-133 ground-state hyperfine transition. The cycle duration and photon energy here are derived from that exact frequency.
BIPM — The International System of Units
The marked one cycle is calibrated. Unmeasured illustration details are representative.
Measurement details
Why these numbers?
Compare 100 picoseconds with one cycle of the caesium-133 clock transition. The notes below explain how each value was chosen.
Caesium-133 clock transition
108.8 psOne cycle · derived
The SI second is defined from exactly 9,192,631,770 periods of the unperturbed caesium-133 ground-state hyperfine transition. The cycle duration and photon energy here are derived from that exact frequency.
- Comparing
- Time ↔ One cycle
- Relative size
- One cycle of the caesium-133 clock transition is about 1.09 times 100 picoseconds. One cycle of the caesium-133 clock transition is approximately 8.78% greater than 100 picoseconds.
How to read the visual
The diagram uses the recorded measurements. Details outside the marked spans do not set the scale.
- One cycle of the caesium-133 clock transition: The measurement is labelled derived. Check the source notes for its basis.
A duration is an interval, not a calendar date.
1 × 10⁻¹⁰ sseconds
2.7778 × 10⁻¹⁴ hhours
1.1574 × 10⁻¹⁵ daysdays
3.1688 × 10⁻¹⁸ yearsyears
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