The quantum clock: a critical discussion on space-time

Abstract

We critically discuss the measure of very short time intervals. By means of a "gedankenexperiment", we describe an ideal clock based on the occurrence of completely random events. We show that the minimum time interval Delta t that this clock can measure scales as the inverse of its size Delta r. This implies an uncertainty relation between space and time: Delta r Delta t > G \hbar / c^4, where G, \hbar, and c are the Gravitational constant, the reduced Planck constant, and the speed of light, respectively. We outline and briefly discuss the implications of this uncertainty principle.