Development of New Diagnostic Techniques for Preliminary and in Situ Characterization of Advanced LIGO Optical Components

一项由佛罗里达大学和该研究所的科学家与俄罗斯科学院应用物理研究所合作开展的研究项目，旨在研究高功率激光束如何通过吸收和加热扭曲引力波探测器中的精密光学元件。将开发用于远程测量十亿分之一米量级的光路畸变的方法。此外，隔离反向传播的高功率激光束的新方法将被开发出来，以防止与敏感的、相位稳定的激光器相互作用。该研究将对激光干涉引力波天文台（LIGO）等地面引力波探测器的运行起到重要的促进作用。大规模高功率激光干涉仪对引力波的探测，将通过探测黑洞-中子星碰撞等灾难性天体物理现象，为研究宇宙打开一扇新的窗口。为了提高未来干涉仪的灵敏度，这里开发的高灵敏度测量技术对于感知这些干涉仪的工作状态至关重要，这些干涉仪是有史以来最灵敏的仪器。

A research program carried out by scientists at the University of Florida and the Institute in collaboration with the Institute of Applied Physics of the Russian Academy of Sciences to investigate how high power laser beams can distort precision optical components in gravitational wave detectors through absorption and heating. Methods will be developed for remotely measuring optical path distortions on the order of one billionth of a meter. In addition, novel methods for isolating back-propagating high power laser beams will be developed to prevent interactions with sensitive, phase-stabilized lasers. This research will play a major role in facilitating the operation of ground-based gravitational wave detectors such as the Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory (LIGO). The detection of gravitational waves by large-scale high power laser-based interferometers will open a new window on the universe through the detection of cataclysmic astrophysical phenomena such as black hole-neutron star collisions. To enhance the sensitivity of future interferometers, highly sensitive measurement techniques such as those developed here are crucial for sensing the operational state of these interferometers, the most sensitive instruments ever constructed.