Czech Expertise Behind Europe’s Infrastructure of the Future: CESNET Helps Build a Network for Ultra-Precise Time Transfer

The European research infrastructure FOREST (Fiber-based Optical network for European Research, Science and Timekeeping) has been included in the ESFRI Roadmap (European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures), which brings together Europe’s most significant research infrastructures of strategic importance. Projects and infrastructures featured on the Roadmap include, for example, PRACE, ELIXIR and ELI. The Czech Republic has been involved in the development of FOREST for many years, represented by CESNET and the Institute of Scientific Instruments of the Czech Academy of Sciences.

CESNET became involved in building the infrastructure at an early stage through European projects. These laid the foundations for technology capable of transferring extremely precise time and frequency signals over optical networks across thousands of kilometres without compromising their quality.

“FOREST’s inclusion in the ESFRI Roadmap is the result of almost fifteen years of collaboration among European partners to build an infrastructure for precise time and frequency distribution. CESNET has been part of this effort from the very beginning, and we are pleased to contribute to activities that open up new opportunities for both European and Czech research,” explains Josef Vojtěch, Head of the Optical Networks Department at CESNET.

FOREST connects national metrology institutes and research organisations through optical networks that distribute reference time and frequency signals generated by atomic and optical clocks. This fibre-optic infrastructure is typically operated by national research and education networks and by the pan-European research and education network GÉANT. Compared with satellite navigation systems such as GPS or Galileo, it enables time and frequency transfer with orders-of-magnitude greater accuracy while also offering greater resilience to outages and interference.

The ability to share extremely precise time references is important for a wide range of scientific and technological fields, including experimental physics, radio astronomy, geodesy and high-energy physics. Precise synchronisation is also essential for the development of quantum communications. It is becoming increasingly important in distributed fibre-optic sensing, where optical fibres act as sensors capable of monitoring phenomena such as seismic activity or the condition of critical infrastructure.

For Czech researchers, participation in FOREST provides access to an extensive pan-European network that enables extremely stable time and frequency references to be transferred and compared between leading metrology laboratories worldwide, without reliance on global navigation satellite systems. This opens up new opportunities for research and for the development of technologies requiring extreme sensitivity and exceptionally precise time synchronisation.

About ESFRI

The European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures (ESFRI) is a strategic advisory body of the European Union in the field of research infrastructures. Its Roadmap features projects with outstanding scientific value and strategic importance for the development of the European Research Area. Inclusion in the ESFRI Roadmap represents significant international recognition and supports the further development of the infrastructure as well as long-term cooperation among the partners involved.

About CESNET

Founded in 1996 by Czech universities and the Czech Academy of Sciences, CESNET provides advanced IT services for science, research, innovation and education. It operates and develops the national research and education network, provides secure access to a broad portfolio of services, and offers infrastructure for high-performance computing, data storage and communication tools for individuals and teams.

In addition to universities, CESNET’s services are used by students, academics, research organisations, researchers, public administration institutions and non-profit organisations.