nanoseconds
Light's brief journeys
Nanoseconds are billionths of a second—units of time so brief they're meaningful only in computing and physics.
Light travels about one foot in a nanosecond.
The term appears in technical contexts measuring processor speeds or signal delays, and figuratively for anything extremely fast: The market can shift in nanoseconds.
Maximum possible velocity
- photonElectromagnetic radiation unit
- electronNegative subatomic particle
- quantumSmallest discrete unit
- particleMinute piece of matter
oscillation · wavelength · femtoseconds · atomic clock · cesium · frequency · electromagnetic · decay
Delay in system response
- processorComponent that executes instructions
- clock cycleProcessor's basic time unit
- cacheConcealed storage spot
- CPUMain computing chip
bandwidth · throughput · benchmark · response time · execution · instruction · gigahertz · timing
Briefest unit of time
- blinkRapid lid movement
- flashBrief burst of light
- heartbeatRhythmic cardiac contraction
- momentBrief period of time
fleeting · imperceptible · lightning fast · eyeblink · fraction · brief · instantaneous · swift
Satellite-based location technology
- satelliteOrbiting celestial body
- fiber opticLight-based data transmission
- networkInterconnected system
- synchronizationAligning timing across systems
timestamping · high-frequency trading · flash memory · transistor · semiconductor · radar · telecommunications · 5G
light speed
Maximum possible velocity
- photonElectromagnetic radiation unit
- electronNegative subatomic particle
- quantumSmallest discrete unit
particle · oscillation · wavelength · femtoseconds · atomic clock · cesium · frequency · electromagnetic · decay · collision
latency
Delay in system response
- processorComponent that executes instructions
- clock cycleProcessor's basic time unit
- cacheConcealed storage spot
CPU · bandwidth · throughput · benchmark · response time · execution · instruction · gigahertz · timing · buffer
instant
Briefest unit of time
moment · fleeting · imperceptible · lightning fast · eyeblink · fraction · brief · instantaneous · swift · rapid
GPS
Satellite-based location technology
- satelliteOrbiting celestial body
- fiber opticLight-based data transmission
- networkInterconnected system
synchronization · timestamping · high-frequency trading · flash memory · transistor · semiconductor · radar · telecommunications · 5G · data transmission
nanosecondseons
Immense spans of time
eternities · aeons · gigayears · millennia · centuries
nanosecondseternity
Boundless temporal existence
forever · perpetuity · time immemorial · ages and ages · everlasting