picosecond

noun

pi·​co·​sec·​ond ˌpē-kō-ˈse-kənd 

-kənt

: one trillionth of a second

Examples of picosecond in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Those energies were exceeded during the cosmos’s first 100 picoseconds (10-10 seconds). — Big Think, 27 Apr. 2026

The time delays are very small, often just a few picoseconds. — Ameya Paleja, Interesting Engineering, 24 Apr. 2026

But now an international research team has used laser light differently to induce magnetism in picoseconds, and in a first, initiated a magnetic state that lasted for milliseconds. — IEEE Spectrum, 5 Feb. 2025

Optical atomic clocks, accurate to picoseconds, will enable satellite constellations and ground stations to determine satellites’ locations with centimeter-level precision—avoiding potentially catastrophic in-orbit collisions. — Paul Lipman, Forbes, 8 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

International Scientific Vocabulary

First Known Use

circa 1962, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for picosecond

• femtosecond
• microsecond
• millisecond
• nanosecond
• beckoned
• reckoned
• second
• seconde

Medical Definition

picosecond

noun

pi·​co·​sec·​ond ˈpē-kō-ˌsek-ənd, -ənt 

: one trillionth of a second

—abbreviation ps