Preparing the Hardware Foundations of Environmental Vetoes for the Advanced LIGO Era

要探测引力波——时空结构中的涟漪——以及首次直接探测到引力波后的天体物理学研究，需要高度可靠、调谐精细、灵敏度极高的引力波望远镜。该合同将确保先进的LIGO引力波探测器的可靠运行和充分理解数据流。我们的重点将放在关键任务活动上，目标是精确记录、充分表征和可追溯的aLIGO探测器操作，特别是它们的物理环境。环境干扰，如地震、电磁和声信号，可以耦合到引力波探测器的复杂基础设施中，并导致应包含引力波信号的数据流的瞬态、暂时或持续恶化。引力波数据流中这些由环境或次优干涉仪调谐引起的伪影必须被识别、追踪，并在可能的情况下消除或减少。我们将重点关注旨在识别这些物理环境工件的硬件组件的评估、校准和升级方面。在先进的LIGO时代，环境噪声源的识别和减轻其影响将至关重要(1)确保科学界的发现是合理的，(2)实现LIGO科学合作的一系列科学目标，所有这些都依赖于实现先进探测器的设计灵敏度和实现尽可能低的假事件率。因此，拟议的实验工作将对使用先进探测器的所有引力波搜索，包括多信使型瞬态搜索，做出重大贡献。从高中到研究生阶段的学生都有机会参与这项研究。此外，哥伦比亚大学的城市环境和现有的外展基础设施将使基于本研究的独特教育和外展活动成为可能，这些活动不仅针对当地社区的学校，还针对纽约大都会地区的学校。

Highly reliable, finely tuned gravitational-wave telescopes with exquisite sensitivity are required for the detection of gravitational-waves - ripples in the fabric of spacetime - and for astrophysics investigations that follow the first direct detection of them. This award will enable activities that ensure reliable operation and well understood data flow from the advanced LIGO gravitational wave detectors. Our focus will be on mission-critical activities targeting the precisely documented, well-characterized and traceable operation of the aLIGO detectors and specifically their physical environment. Environmental disturbances, such as seismic, electromagnetic and acoustic signals, can couple into the complex infrastructure of the gravitational-wave detectors and cause transient, temporary, or continuous deterioration of the datastream that shall contain the gravitational wave signal. These artifacts in the gravitational wave data stream caused by the environment or sub-optimal interferometer tuning must be identified, tracked down, and eliminated or reduced if possible. We will focus on aspects of the evaluation, calibration and upgrade of the hardware components aimed to identify these physical environmental artifacts. The identification of environmental noise sources and the mitigation of their effect in the advanced LIGO era will be vital (1) for ensuring a discovery that is justifiable to the scientific community, and (2) for the realization of a spectrum of science goals for the LIGO Scientific Collaboration, all relying on achieving the design sensitivity for the advanced detectors and on achieving the lowest possible false event rates. The proposed experimental efforts therefore will significantly contribute to all gravitational wave searches using the advanced detectors, including the multimessenger type transient searches. Students from high school through graduate level will have the opportunity to participate in this research. In addition, the urban setting and existing outreach infrastructure of Columbia University will enable unique educational and outreach activities based on this research that target schools not only in the local community but also in the greater New York City metropolitan area.