Scientists find fundamental limit to time measurement in gravity-linked quantum collapse models
Updated
Updated · Popular Mechanics · May 6
Scientists find fundamental limit to time measurement in gravity-linked quantum collapse models
6 articles · Updated · Popular Mechanics · May 6
In Physical Review Research, Nicola Bortolotti and colleagues said gravitational fluctuations would create intrinsic uncertainty in time, though even atomic clocks measuring to 19 decimal places would not detect it.
The study examined objective-collapse theories including GRW, CSL and the Diósi-Penrose model, which proposes gravity helps trigger wave function collapse in quantum systems.
Researchers said the result offers a way to test radical quantum ideas against precision measurements, while leaving open whether gravity actually causes collapse and whether future ultra-precise squeezed-state clocks could probe the effect.
If gravity makes time 'fuzzy,' could we ever build a perfect clock to prove it?
Does a fundamental 'fuzziness' in time mean the future is even more uncertain than quantum mechanics implies?