Simulation Validated Updated: 2026-02-19

Wireless Timing,
Near the Physics Limit.

Chronometric interferometry for carrier-referenced wireless timing in the femtosecond regime. Current record from E1 line-of-sight simulation at 5.8 GHz, 30 dB SNR, 2 ms integration.

2.17 fs Theoretical Limit (CRLB) Physics ceiling @ 5.8 GHz
≈2.7 fs E1 LoS Simulation Estimator within ~1.2× of CRLB
≈69× PTP Improvement Synthetic A/B comparison
Demonstrations Acoustic Demonstration Simulation Record

Application context: 6G JCAS, industrial TSN, and distributed sensing systems require synchronization below the nanosecond scale. GPS and PTP degrade in obstructed environments, while fiber timing infrastructure carries deployment cost and topology constraints.

Historical Context

Beat-note frequency comparison as a century-scale engineering method

Lineage Note 1921-2026
Ralph Bown to RF Chronometric Interferometry
Driftlock Choir extends an established engineering lineage. In US1490958A (filed 1921, granted 1924), Ralph Bown described a master station transmitting a frequency reference while subordinate stations derived beat frequencies against local oscillators for control and synchronization.
The same physical mechanism appears in modern timing infrastructure: satellite-disciplined references in GPS-era systems and carrier-phase comparison in RF synchronization research. Driftlock Choir applies this method at 5.8 GHz to resolve sub-picosecond timing through phase estimation.
Timeline: 1924 master-reference beat-note control → 1970s GPS timing references → 2026 RF carrier-phase femtosecond simulation record.
Citation: Ralph Bown, Frequency-Control System, US1490958A, granted April 8, 1924. Additional related work: US1447773A (1923), US1433599A (1922).

Plate I. Frequency-Control System

US1490958A drawing page 1 (granted April 8, 1924).
US1490958A patent drawing showing frequency control system architecture
Source: Google Patents, US1490958A.

Related Bown Work

Archival drawings from pilot-channel control and radiocircuit commutation patents.
US1447773A patent drawing showing radio transmission control system
US1433599A patent drawing showing radiocircuit commutation scheme
US1447773A (1923) and US1433599A (1922).

Simulation Record

Simulation results with operating conditions

Theoretical Bound 2026-02-19
2.17 fs
E1 CRLB Timing Precision
Conditions: 5.8 GHz • 30 dB SNR • 2 ms • 80k samples
Simulation Result 2026-02-19
≈2.7 fs
E1 LoS Timing RMSE
Conditions: 5.8 GHz • 30 dB SNR • 2 ms • LoS channel
Gap to CRLB: ~1.2× (estimator efficiency)
Synthetic Comparison 2026-02-19
≈69×
PTP Interop Improvement
Conditions: Synthetic A/B • 600 s • 60 samples
Caveat: Synthetic comparison using bridge hints; real PTP hardware pending.

Demonstrations

Interactive exhibits of interference, estimation, and system constraints

Beat-Note Interferometry Exhibit

E1 line-of-sight record (simulation)
Interpretation: Carrier-referenced timing delay appears as beat-note phase displacement. At 5.8 GHz, a 50 ps offset produces substantial cumulative phase rotation, permitting high-resolution delay estimation through stable phase tracking.
Signal 1 (reference carrier)
Signal 2 (delayed carrier)
Beat note (interference pattern φ)
Jitter band (±σ from noise)
LIVE SIM MODE (E1 LoS)

Wireless timing that approaches fiber precision. Compare jitter bands across technologies.

0 ps ≈ 15 mm light travel 200 ps
Phase Shift (φ): —
Phase Noise (σφ): —
Distance Noise (σd): —
Status: SIMULATION

Figure A. Parameter Sweep Validation

Timing precision scales with SNR and integration interval in accordance with CRLB expectations.
τ RMSE heatmap showing precision vs SNR and duration
A1: τ RMSE versus duration and SNR (lower values indicate better precision). A2: 2σ empirical coverage probability for estimator consistency.

Figure B. Hardware Sensitivity Analysis

Threshold analysis for aperture jitter and DC offset under fixed channel assumptions.
Sensitivity sweeps for aperture jitter and DC offset
B1: Aperture jitter tolerance curve. B2: DC offset sensitivity curve. The sweep defines practical operating windows for hardware implementation.

Technical Position

Validated capabilities and comparative baseline

500 nodes Max network capacity
19/19 Wolfram|Alpha physics checks
30 m/s Doppler resilience
Multi-band 2.4 GHz + 5.8 GHz validated

Comparative Baseline

Technology Precision Medium
GPS ~1 ns Satellite RF
PTP ~100 ns Ethernet
White Rabbit ~10 ps Fiber
Driftlock Choir (E1 LoS sim) ~2.7 fs (sim) Wireless (sim)

Regime-level precision ranges; Driftlock values are simulation outputs, not field deployments.

Acoustic Demonstration

Audible-frequency channel sounding with the same estimation primitives

Method correspondence at lower frequency. This demo executes the same frequency-diversity sounding procedure used in RF experiments, shifted to 2-10 kHz for direct observation. A 161-tone probe is transmitted and recorded; the impulse response is estimated in real time to visualize multipath structure in the local environment.

Live Channel Sounding

Uses your microphone and speakers to measure impulse response in real-time. Works best in a room with some reflections (not open air).

Requires microphone access. Audio will play through your speakers.

Technical Appendix: Chronometric Interferometry Derivation
01

Signal Generation

Two RF signals with precise frequency offset (Δf) transmitted simultaneously.

02

Beat Note Formation

Signals interfere at receiver, creating low-frequency beat note whose phase encodes time-of-flight.

03

Phase Extraction

Advanced signal processing extracts beat note phase with extraordinary precision.

04

Timing Calculation

Precision follows: στ = σφ / (2π · fcarrier)

τ = φmeasured / (2π · fcarrier)
We measure the phase of a derived interference pattern, which encodes carrier-referenced timing information at rates amenable to digital processing.

Understanding Femtosecond Scale

Distance: In 2.17 fs, light travels ~0.65 μm
RF Phase: At 5.8 GHz, 1 fs ≈ 0.036° phase shift
Compute: Below a single CPU clock tick—we measure phase, not time