Can Spinning a Crystal Distort Time? This Experiment Says Yes—Without Einstein

Soumendra Nath Thakur

Tagore's Electronic Lab, India

May 10, 2025

In a laboratory experiment, scientists spun a special type of crystal called a piezoelectric—a material known for generating electricity when it's squeezed or stretched. But here’s the twist: they didn’t apply any power at all. They simply rotated the crystal, and it began to generate a clean 50 Hz electrical signal entirely on its own.

Even more curious? That signal started to drift in time. Imagine a metronome ticking, but each tick slowly shifting forward. This steady “phase shift” wasn’t noise or error—it was perfectly matched to how fast the crystal was spinning. That means the act of rotating the crystal was somehow affecting the timing of the signal it produced.

So what’s going on?

This surprising behaviour actually fits beautifully with the fundamental principles of piezoelectricity: the internal structure of the crystal responds to mechanical stress—in this case, the stresses caused by rotation. But there’s a deeper message. The experiment points to a bold new idea called Extended Classical Mechanics (ECM), which suggests that motion—especially acceleration—can change how time flows inside matter.

In short, this crystal didn’t just make electricity—it acted like a clock whose rhythm was bent by motion. No need for satellites or speed-of-light travel—just an ordinary device showing that even here on Earth, motion can subtly reshape time.

This ground breaking result opens new doors for precision sensors, navigation tech, and even how we understand time itself. Sometimes, spinning a crystal is all it takes to shake up physics.

Experimental Phase Shift in Rotating Piezoelectric Device

Soumendra Nath Thakur
Tagore's Electronic Lab, India
May 10, 2025

This experiment used a piezoelectric crystal—materials that can turn mechanical pressure into electrical signals—to explore how motion affects time. Normally, piezoelectric devices need electricity to work, but here, no electricity was applied. Instead, the crystal was simply rotated.

Surprisingly, the crystal started producing a clear 50 Hz electrical signal all on its own, and more importantly, that signal began to slowly drift in phase, meaning its timing was shifting little by little—like a second hand running slightly ahead or behind on a clock. This shift wasn’t random; it matched the speed of rotation, showing that the motion itself was causing a change in the crystal’s internal behaviour.

This lines up perfectly with how piezoelectric materials work: when they're squeezed, stretched, or rotated, their structure changes in ways that can generate electricity. The experiment showed that rotation was enough to create internal stresses in the crystal that made it behave like a tiny self-powered clock—one whose timing was subtly altered just by being spun.

These findings support a new physics idea called Extended Classical Mechanics (ECM), which says that motion—especially acceleration—can directly affect how time flows inside matter. The phase drift we saw in the experiment is like a fingerprint of this effect. So in simple terms: spinning the crystal made it create its own voltage and shift its timing, proving that motion can affect time in a measurable, physical way—without needing relativity or space travel.