Agilent's Frequency and Time Standards product line includes the 5071A Primary Frequency Standard, one of the highest-performing commercial cesium standards available for timekeeping. The cesium clock, accurate to one second every 162,000 years, is used in government laboratories worldwide. Customers include national time authorities and measurement institutes, such as the U.S. Naval Observatory and the world's time authority, BIPM, in France (BIPM provides the internationally recognized definition of a second of time). The U.S. government also uses Agilent's precision timing instruments for satellite communication ground stations and precision navigation.
"The acquisition of Agilent's cesium products strengthens our technology leadership in high-precision timing," said Thomas Steipp, chief executive officer of Symmetricom. "Having the high-performance products and expertise will allow us to leverage our R&D investments in cesium for the benefit of both Agilent and Symmetricom customers. We are committed to further advancing cesium atomic oscillator technology to serve our customers' full range of requirements for precise time and frequency."
"For more than 40 years, scientists and technicians around the world have trusted Agilent's atomic cesium clocks, and we believe that they are the most precise cesium-based timing tools commercially available," said Bob Burns, vice president and general manager of Agilent's Nanotechnology Measurement Division. "As Agilent focuses on new market areas, we are pleased to transition this important world-leading and historic product line to Symmetricom, where our customers will find continuity with a company that understands their needs and can provide them with strong worldwide support."
Burns added that Agilent and Symmetricom are working closely to ensure a smooth transition for the product line's customers and employees.
Cesium standards are mission-critical frequency references used in government timekeeping, communications and satellite applications, and aerospace and telecommunications networks worldwide. Agilent (then part of Hewlett-Packard Company) pioneered the cesium standard in 1964 and has historically addressed the high-performance end of the market, including timekeeping for the United States as well as for official time authorities and measurement institutes throughout the world.
Symmetricom pioneered the use of cesium atomic clocks on board the Global Positioning System satellites, enabling full operational capability of GPS in April 1995. The precision and stability of cesium atomic clock technology is the enabling element in GPS's precision navigation accuracy. The evolution
of GPS-based systems has resulted in worldwide access to precision signals, which are used in navigation, telecommunications, safety of life and rescue, surveying, agriculture and a myriad of other applications. Symmetricom has also been a leading provider of cesium solutions for the world's telecommunications markets.
Symmetricom has made job offers to all of the Santa Clara, Calif.-based Agilent employees who support the product line. Manufacturing will move to San Jose, Calif., following a transition period. |
