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Physics Colloquium, May 14, 2002LIGO, the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave ObservatoryDavid B. TannerUniversity of FloridaThe LIGO experiment, one of the largest projects ever undertaken by the US National Science Foundation, has as its goal the detection and study of gravitational waves. These waves were predicted 80 years ago by Einstein’s general theory of relativity but never have been observed directly. The LIGO observatory consists of three separate laser interferometers, two in Washington state and one in Louisiana. These are Michelson interferometers, with Fabry-Perot cavities in the arms to increase the storage time of light in the interferometer. The arms are 4 km (in one case 2 km) in length, allowing precise measurement of the motion of test masses which make up the end mirrors of the interferometers. These interferometers are being commissioned at the present time, and data taking should begin shortly and continue for several years. In this talk, I will focus on some of the extremely demanding experimental aspects of the LIGO detector, including the “input optics,” the part of the detector built by the University of Florida LIGO group. The demands are high because gravitational waves are feeble: the necessary sensitivity to the end-mirror motion is of order 10-19 m, a distance much less than the size of an atomic nucleus. 3.30 p.m., Smith Laboratory, Room 1005Refreshments served in Smith 1094 at 3:00 p.m. |
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