CuriousMarc uploaded a video to Youtube showing the startup procedure for an HP 5061A cesium clock [0]. They switch on the clock and compare it to a GPS reference. Seeing the abstract description realized in concrete terms through hot cesium tubes, phase locked loops, and Lissajous curves was really fascinating.
Quite impressive that a hobbyist got his hands on two working active hydrogen masers. These are still by far the best commercially available frequency standards and cost a few hundred thousand dollar each.
That's the price -- when new. But most "time nuts" buy their atomic clocks well used on eBay or local surplus sales at a massive discount. For example the most recent H-maser on the hobbyist market went for just a few thousand. Granted it was in need of repair, but that journey is part of the fun of an atomic timekeeping at home hobby.
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[ 3.3 ms ] story [ 23.0 ms ] thread[0] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOti3kKWX-c
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