Atomic clock with rubidium frequency standard, custom electronic circuit, cast of human skull, 4 digit numrerical LED display.
The Memento Mori installation consists of a 4 digit LED display, which is mounted between the teeth of a casted human skull and connected to a highly accurate rubidium atomic clock. The display visualizes the passage of time by repeatedly counting down one second in millisecond-steps (from 1.000 to .001).
By utilizing atomic clocks, we can determine with unimaginable accuracy how quickly the irretrievable essence of our lives is decreasing, how fast the ultimate yet unknown point in time of our death is approaching – millisecond by millisecond.
This Memento Mori is not only an ironic reminder of our own mortality but a reflection of the values we are striving for. Despite all the hyper-accurate technology inhabiting our lives the haunting question of “When?” still remains unanswered.
The FE-5680A rubidium frequency standard achieves a base accuracy of up to 2E-12. It utilizes the hyperfine transition of electrons in rubidium-87 atoms to discipline a crystal oscillator.
This work was supported by the Finnish Cultural Foundation, Kymenlaakso Regional Fund.
The atomic clock without the case. (The FE-5680A rubidium frequency standard is the steel container right from the middle.)
Power socket 110V/230V