Can the Salecker-Wigner clock be microscopic?

Abstract

Half a century ago H. Salecker and E. P. Wigner examined the functioning of a quantum clock of very simple construction [1]. They raised the question whether such a clock can be microscopic or not, but no clear-cut answer has been reached in [1] (see also [2]). In this note it is shown that their clock can have a microscopic mass and size only if its accuracy is poor, but if the size is macroscopic, a decent accuracy can be achieved even if the mass is microscopic.

11 pages, 1 figure