Gravitational Wave Detectors: Plan for the week

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. Overview How interferometers work Precision of interferometric measurement Time series analysis, linear system characterization Seismic noise and vibration isolation Thermal noise Fabry-Perot cavities and their applications Servomechanisms LIGO and other real interferometers Advanced ground-based interferometers and LISA
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LIGO-G1000685-v1

Gravitational Wave Detection #1: Gravity waves and test masses

Peter Saulson Syracuse University

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Summer School on Gravitational Wave Astronomy

Plan for the week

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. Overview How interferometers work Precision of interferometric measurement Time series analysis, linear system characterization Seismic noise and vibration isolation Thermal noise Fabry-Perot cavities and their applications Servomechanisms LIGO and other real interferometers Advanced ground-based interferometers and LISA
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LIGO-G1000685-v1

Outline of this lecture

What is a gravitational wave? What is a gravitational wave detector? Why is gravitational wave detection hard?

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What is a gravitational wave?

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A set of freely-falling test particles

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Electromagnetic wave moves charged test bodies

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Gravity wave: distorts set of test masses in transverse directions

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Comparison table, EM vs GW
charge E and B fields c mass h = shear strain c

Maxwell 1867 Einstein 1916 Hertz 1886-91 pretty strong

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? very weak
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Transmitters of gravitational waves: solar mass objects changing their quadrupole moments on msec time scales

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Gravitational waveform lets you read out source dynamics

The evolution of the mass distribution can be read out from the gravitational waveform:

1 2G && h (t ) = I (t R / c) 4 R c
Coherent relativistic motion of large masses can be directly observed.
I dV x x r 2 / 3 ( r ).
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Why not a Hertz experiment?

Hertz set up the first radio transmitter and receiver, on opposite sides of a room. Two 1-ton masses, separated by 2 meters, spun at 1 kHz, has && = 1.6 1011 kg m2s-2. I At distance of 1 = 300 km, h = 9 x10-39. Not very strong.
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Binary signal strength estimate

For a binary star,

h = r/R,
where R = distance to source, and r = rS1rS2/a, with rS1,2 Schwarzschild radii of the stars, and a is their separation. Often, r ~ 1 km (black hole binary). At Virgo Cluster, R ~ 1021 km. -21 Hence, expect h ~ 10 (on msec time scales!)
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What is a gravitational wave detector?

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Gravity wave detectors

Need:
A set of test masses, Instrumentation sufficient to see tiny motions, Isolation from other causes of motions.

Challenge:
Best astrophysical estimates predict fractional separation changes of only 1 part in 1021, or less.

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Resonant detector (or Weber bar)

A massive (aluminum) cylinder. Vibrating in its gravest longitudinal mode, its two ends are like two test masses connected by a spring.

Cooled by liquid He, rms sensitivity at/below 10-18.

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A more modern detection strategy

Tidal character of wave argues for test masses as far apart as practicable. Perhaps masses hung as pendulums, kilometers apart.
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Sensing relative motions of distant free masses

Michelson interferometer

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A length-difference-to-brightness transducer
Wave from x arm. Wave from y arm. Light exiting from beam splitter.

As relative arm lengths change, interference causes change in brightness at output.

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Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory

4-km Michelson interferometers, with mirrors on pendulum suspensions, at Livingston LA and Hanford WA. Site at Hanford WA had both 4-km and 2-km. Sensitivity: hrms ~ 10-21 thru 2010. Now upgrading.
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Other large interferometers

TAMA (Japan), 300 m
was operating, now improving.

GEO (Germany, Britain), 600 m

Starting a new data run on 3 June 2011.

VIRGO (Italy, France) 3 km

Starting a new data run on 3 June 2011.

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Why is it hard to detect gravitational waves?

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Gravity wave detection: challenge and promise

Challenges of gravity wave detection appear so great as to make success seem almost impossible.
from Einstein on ...

The challenges are real, but are being overcome.

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Einstein and tests of G.R.

Classic tests:
Precession of Mercurys orbit: had already been seen Deflection of starlight: ~1 arcsec, should have been just doable. (Eddington did it in 1919) Gravitational redshift in a star: ~10-6, seemed doable, but turned out to be hard. (Lab expt. ca. 1960 worked better.)

Possible future test:

dragging of inertial frames, 42 marcsec/yr, Einstein considered possibly feasible in future Gravity Probe B just achieved it!

Gravitational waves: Einstein had no comment!

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Why Einstein should have worried about g.w. detection

He knew about binary stars, but not about neutron stars or black holes. His paradigm of measuring instruments:
interferometer (xrms~ /20, hrms~10-9) galvanometer (rms~10-6 rad.)

Gap between experimental sensitivity and any conceivable wave amplitude was huge!

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Gravitational wave detection is almost impossible

What is required for LIGO to succeed: interferometry with free masses, with strain sensitivity of 10-21 (or better!), (which is equivalent to ultra-subnuclear position sensitivity), in the presence of much larger noise.

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Interferometry with free masses

Whats impossible: everything! Mirrors need to be very accurately aligned (so that beams overlap and interfere) and held very close to an operating point (so that output is a linear function of input.) Otherwise, interferometer is dead or swinging through fringes. Michelson bolted everything down. (See Lecture #8, Servomechanisms, for solution.)
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Strain sensitivity of 10-21

Why it is impossible: Sensitivity hrms can be expressed as precision to which we can compare arm lengths hrms ~ . length of arms Natural tick mark on interferometric ruler is one wavelength. Michelson could read a fringe to /20, yielding hrms of a few times 10-9. (See Lecture #3, Precision, for solution.)
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Ultra-subnuclear position sensitivity

Why people thought it was impossible: Mirrors made of atoms, 10-10 m. Mirror surfaces rough on atomic scale. Atoms jitter by large amounts. Divide by length of arms, even many km, still cant get to 10-21! (See Lecture #7, Fabry-Perot Cavities, for soln.)
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Large mechanical noise

How large? Seismic (i.e., external vibration): xrms ~ 1 m.
Can you filter it enough?

Thermal (i.e., internal vibration/jittering of atoms) :

mirrors CM: ~ 3 x 10-12 m. mirrors surface: ~ 3 x 10-16 m. No filtering is possible. Can lower the temperature, but by enough?

(See Lectures #5 Seismic Noise and #6 Thermal Noise, for solution.)

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Finding small signals in large noise

Why it is impossible: Everyone knows you need a signal-to-noise ratio much larger than unity to detect a signal. (See Lecture #4, Time Series Analysis, for solution.)

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Gravitational wave detection will succeed very soon

All of these challenges sound impossible. And yet, all of them can be met. Detectors of 10-21 have been built and run. Detectors 10 or more times better will run by around 2015. With this next generation of detector, we are just about certain to detect gravitational waves. This weeks goal is to know why to be confident that this is true.
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What well learn when we succeed

Physics
Direct verification of the most relativistic prediction of general relativity Detailed tests of properties of gravitational waves: speed, strength, polarization, Probe of strong-field gravity black holes Early universe physics

Astronomy and astrophysics

Abundance & properties of supernovae, neutron star binaries, black holes Tests of gamma-ray burst models Neutron star equation of state A new window on the universe
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