LIGO in Mississippi Marco Cavagli LIGO Scientific Collaboration
LIGO in Mississippi Marco Cavaglià LIGO Scientific Collaboration Dept. of Physics and Astronomy University of Mississippi MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z Background picture from http: //cgwp. gravity. psu. edu
What is LIGO? MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
LIGO = Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory LIGO Scientific Collaboration = +… MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
Two LIGO Observatories Hanford (WA) 4 km + 2 km interferometers ~2. 5 hr Livingston (LA) 4 km interferometer MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
Livingston, Louisiana MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
Interferometer design ETMY 14 k. W Pickoff Port Reflected Port Input Beam (Laser) 6 W RM Ly ITMY Lx BS ITMX 250 W ETMX ~0. 2 W Strain Readout (Ly-Lx) Anti-Symmetric Port MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
Vacuum equipment MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
Core optic suspensions MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
Core optics MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
The control room Vitor Cardoso (postdoc @ Ole Miss) MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
What do we hope to see? MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
Gravitational waves Einstein’s General Relativity The spacetime geometry is continuously distorted by the presence of mass (=energy). When masses move rapidly, the spacetime becomes stirred by their motion: ripples start traveling outward with the speed of light MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
What is the effect of a gravitational wave? We will experiment on a graduate student MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
How do we know that gravitational waves exist? Indirect detection: slow down of a binary pulsar R. Hulse J. Taylor Nobel prize in physics, 1993 John Rowe Animation/Australia Telescope National Facility, CSIRO MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
Sources of gravitational waves ♦ Coalescing binary neutron stars or black holes ♦ Spinning neutron stars ♦ Gravitational bursts (e. g. supernovae) ♦ Big bang gravitational echo MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
Sources of gravitational waves ♦ Coalescing binary neutron stars or black holes ♦ Spinning neutron stars ♦ Gravitational bursts (e. g. supernovae) ♦ Big bang gravitational echo Picture credit: NASA/CXC/AIf. A; NRAO/VLA/NRL MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
Sources of gravitational waves ♦ Coalescing binary neutron stars or black holes ♦ Spinning neutron stars ♦ Gravitational bursts (e. g. supernovae) ♦ Big bang gravitational echo Picture credit: NASA/HST/STSc. I MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
Sources of gravitational waves ♦ Coalescing binary neutron stars or black holes ♦ Spinning neutron stars ♦ Gravitational bursts (e. g. supernovae) ♦ Big bang gravitational echo Picture credit: NASA/HST/STSc. I MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
Sources of gravitational waves ♦ Coalescing binary neutron stars or black holes ♦ Spinning neutron stars ♦ Gravitational bursts (e. g. supernovae) ♦ Big bang gravitational echo Picture credit: NASA/WMAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
LIGO sensitivity S 2: Feb. - Apr. 2003 59 days BNS reach ~ 1 Mpc S 3: Oct. ‘ 03 - Jan. ‘ 04 Science Requirement. document (1995) 70 days BNS reach ~ 3 Mpc Distance Earth-Sun (93. 2 million miles)… …stretches by a fraction of an atom! S 5: Nov 2005 – Current S 4: Feb. - Mar. 2005 30 days BNS reach ~ 15 Mpc MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
LIGO is so sensitive that it feels… ♦ Cars and trucks ♦ Airplanes ♦ Sea waves ♦ Earthquakes… MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
LIGO outreach MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
LIGO Science Education Center MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
Photos by Ana Sousa MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
http: //www. ligo-la. caltech. edu MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
The Einstein@home Project Sun Oct 8 2007 17: 12 UTC http: //www. einsteinathome. org MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
Thank you! MAP Fall Meeting – Canton MS, Nov. 3 rd, 2007 LIGO-G 070633 -00 -Z
- Slides: 29