CAREER: Detector Technology and Science Education in the Era of Gravitational Wave Astrophysics

职业：引力波天体物理时代的探测器技术和科学教育

• 批准号: 1352511
• 负责人: Stefan Ballmer
• 金额: $ 80万
• 依托单位: Syracuse University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2014
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2014-09-01 至 2020-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1352511&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: CAREER; Detector; Technology; Science; Education

This CAREER award funds research at Syracuse University to support Advanced LIGO's quest to observe the gravitational wave universe. The research will include monitoring Advanced LIGO's data quality and developing hardware for upgrading the detectors. Specifically supported are i) The design and development of adaptive mode-matching for Advanced LIGO's output mode cleaner, enabling the use of non-classical squeezed-vacuum in the detector to improve the observational range. ii) A search for rare detector artifacts and low-level environmental correlations, prone to diminish the scientific return from Advanced LIGO. Einstein's general theory of relativity predicts that violent cosmic events, such as for example colliding neutron stars, lead to tiny distortions of space-time here on earth, measurable as minuscule fluctuations in the distance between suspended optical mirrors. The NSF-funded Advanced LIGO project intends to precisely measure these so-called gravitational waves. Advanced LIGO's sensitivity is limited by the quantization of light, but can be improved by using an additional non-classical light source. Such light sources are however extremely sensitive to optical losses. This award supports the development of adaptive elements in the beam path to guarantee that all the light coming from the interferometer can be detected. Additionally, environmental disturbances have the potential to mimic the tiny distance fluctuations due to gravitational waves. This award supports monitoring Advanced LIGO's data for such disturbances. The first direct observation of gravitational waves will be a scientific break-through echoed in the news media, providing an outreach opportunity. The award supports workshops for high school teachers to bring the excitement of new scientific discoveries in this brand-new field of astronomy to high school class rooms.

该职业奖为锡拉丘兹大学的研究提供了资金，以支持高级Ligo的探索重力浪潮世界的追求。该研究将包括监视高级LIGO的数据质量和开发用于升级检测器的硬件。特别支持的是i）高级Ligo输出模式清洁器的自适应模式匹配的设计和开发，从而使检测器中使用非经典挤压 - vacuum来改善观测范围。 ii）寻找稀有检测器伪像和低级环境相关性，容易减少高级LIGO的科学回报。爱因斯坦的相对论一般理论预测，暴力宇宙事件（例如碰撞中子星星）在地球上会导致时空的扭曲很小，可以测量，因为悬浮的光学镜之间的距离微小波动。 NSF资助的高级LIGO项目旨在精确测量这些所谓的重力波。高级Ligo的灵敏度受光的量化限制，但可以使用其他非经典光源来改善。但是，这种光源对光损耗非常敏感。该奖项支持梁路径中自适应元素的发展，以确保可以检测到来自干涉仪的所有光线。另外，环境干扰有可能模仿由于重力波引起的微小距离波动。该奖项支持监视高级Ligo的此类干扰数据。 对引力浪潮的第一个直接观察将是新闻媒体中回荡的科学突破性，提供了外展机会。该奖项支持高中教师的研讨会，以将这个新的天文学领域的新科学发现兴奋地引起到高中教室。