Attosecond

attosecond
Unit systemSI
Unit oftime
Symbolas
Conversions
1 as in ...... is equal to ...
   SI units   10−18 s

An attosecond (abbreviated as as) is a unit of time in the International System of Units (SI) equal to 10−18 or 1⁄1 000 000 000 000 000 000 (one quintillion) of a second.[1]

An attosecond is to a second, as a second is to approximately 31.69 billion years.[2]

The attosecond is a tiny unit but it has various potential applications: it can observe oscillating molecules, the chemical bonds formed by atoms in chemical reactions, and other extremely tiny and extremely fast things.

  1. ^ "attosecond - Memidex dictionary/thesaurus". 7 April 2019. Archived from the original on 7 April 2019. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
  2. ^ "Exploring "Attosecond" Time - Steacie Institute for Molecular Sciences (SIMS)". 11 November 2007. Archived from the original on 11 November 2007. Retrieved 24 October 2023.