Laser excitation of Th-229 nucleus: New findings suggest classical quantum physics and nuclear physics can be combined

Physicists have been hoping for this moment for a long time: For many years, scientists all around the world have been searching for a very specific state of thorium atomic nuclei that promises revolutionary technological applications. It could be used, for example, to build a nuclear clock that could measure time more precisely than the best atomic clocks available today. It could also be used to answer completely new fundamental questions in physics--for example, the question of whether the co...