Collaborative Research: Enabling Megawatt Optical Power in Cosmic Explorer

合作研究：在宇宙探测器中实现兆瓦级光功率

• 批准号: 2309007
• 负责人: Stefan Ballmer
• 金额: $ 20.23万
• 依托单位: Syracuse University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2023-08-01 至 2026-07-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2309007&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Enabling; Megawatt; Optical

Gravitational-wave astronomy has opened a new window on the universe. A century after Einstein predicted gravitational waves, the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) has rewarded decades of investment with the first direct observations of gravitational waves from merging black holes and neutron stars. Cosmic Explorer, a concept for a next-generation gravitational-wave observatory in the United States, aims to push the reach of gravitational-wave astronomy to the edge of the observable universe, using proven LIGO technology in a ten times larger facility. Cosmic Explorer will enable transformative discoveries across physics, astronomy, and cosmology, by observing black holes and neutron stars across cosmic time, probing the nature of the most extreme matter in the universe, and exploring questions in gravity and fundamental physics. This award supports research to design an adaptive optical sensing and controls system critical to enabling Cosmic Explorer. The success of Cosmic Explorer will reshape the field of gravitational-wave astrophysics and the futures of current early-career researchers. By clearing a key technological hurdle towards its realization, this award will ensure that gravitational-wave science continues inspiring young scientists across the country to fulfill their potential as the world-leading researchers of the future.To achieve its unprecedented sensitivity, Cosmic Explorer will require much higher circulating laser power (1.5 MW) than has ever been demonstrated in a large interferometer. The objective of this work is to enable laser interferometry at the megawatt scale, by developing the initial design of a Mode Sensing and Control system for Cosmic Explorer capable of overcoming the thermally-induced optical aberrations that limit current detectors. Specifically, Cosmic Explorer’s thermal compensation requirements will be modeled, documenting the degree to which known sources of wavefront error must be sensed and corrected to achieve the detector design sensitivity. Then, current and emerging technological options will be comprehensively assessed, making down-selections where possible, to deliver a detector subsystem conceptual design for optical mode sensing and control. This work supported by this award will feed into the overall detector design, ahead of a conceptual design review anticipated to take place roughly five years from the award start date.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

引力波天文学为宇宙打开了一个新窗口。爱因斯坦（Einstein）预测引力波后的一个世纪，激光干涉仪重力波动天文台（LIGO）奖励了数十年的投资，首先直接直接观察到重力波从合并黑洞和中子星。宇宙探险家是美国下一代引力波观察的一个概念，旨在将引力波天文学的触及到可观察到的宇宙边缘，并在大十倍的设施中使用验证的Ligo技术。宇宙探险家将通过观察到宇宙时代的黑洞和中子星，探测宇宙中最极端物质的本质，并探索重力和基本物理学问题的问题，从而使跨物理，天文学和宇宙学的变革性发现。该奖项支持研究设计自适应光学感官，并控制系统对实现宇宙资源管理器至关重要的系统。宇宙探险家的成功将重塑引力波天体物理学的领域和当前早期研究人员的未来。通过清除实现实现的关键技术障碍，该奖项将确保引力波科学继续鼓舞全国的年轻科学家，以实现自己作为未来世界领先的研究人员的潜力。为了实现其前所未有的敏感性，宇宙探索者将需要比以前在大型界面上表现出更高的激光功率（1.5 mW）。这项工作的目的是通过开发能够克服限制电流检测器的热诱导的光学畸变的宇宙探索器的模式感应和控制系统的初始设计来实现激光干涉法。具体而言，将建模宇宙资源管理器的热补偿要求，记录必须感知并校正已知的波前误差来源以达到检测器设计灵敏度的程度。然后，将对当前和新兴的技术选择进行全面评估，并在可能的情况下进行缩减，以提供检测器子系统的概念设计，以实现光学模式灵敏度和控制。该奖项支持的这项工作将介入整体探测器设计，此前预计将从奖励开始日期开始进行大约五年的概念设计评论。该奖项反映了NSF的法定任务，并通过基金会的智力优点和更广泛的影响来评估NSF的法定任务。