How an atomic clock built in the UK helps navigation accuracy

By Alex Jantzen (Aquark Technologies)

Read the full article in Marine Technology News, February 2026.

The best precision timing systems today measure the natural and stable frequency properties of atoms as defined by quantum mechanics and uses them to correct drifts from an expected point, typically a 10 MHz oscillator. To generate the highest accuracy, you must access the atom undisturbed for as long as possible to remove noise and average out random variations.

At Aquark, we do this by laser cooling the atoms close to absolute zero – a temperature of minus 273.149996°C, to be exact – which is what we have built with AQlock. Effectively, in our systems, we’ve made the coldest place in the universe.