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Research|Researchnews|2011|Squeezedlaserwillbringgravitationalwavestothelightofday

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Squeezedlaserwillbringgravitationalwavestothelightofday

ASTROPHYSICS.QUANTUM PHYSICS

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Squeezedlaserwillbringgravitationalwavestothelight
ofday
Aquantumphenomenonallowsdetectorswhichsenseoscillationsof
spacetimetomeasurewith50percentmoreaccuracy

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CONTACT
Dr.RomanSchnabel

September11,2011

MaxPlanckInstituteforGravitational
Physics(Hannover),Hannover

Measuringatthelimitsofthelawsofnaturethisisthechallengewhich
researchersrepeatedlytakeupintheirsearchforgravitationalwaves.
Theinterferometerstheyuseheremeasurewithsuchsensitivitythata
particularquantumphenomenonoflightshotnoiselimitsthe
measuringaccuracy.Withthesqueezedlightmethodscientistsfrom
theMaxPlanckSocietyandtheLeibnizUniversityHannoverlikewiseuse
quantumphysicsinacountermoveinordertoremovetheinterfering
effect.Thenewtypeoflaserlightimprovesthemeasuringaccuracyofthe
gravitationalwavedetectorGEO600byaround50percentandthus
increasesitseffectivesensitivity.Thisisthefirsttimethistechnologyhas
beenusedoutsideofatestlaboratoryanywhereintheworld.Theresults
willbepublishedinthespecialistjournalNaturePhysics,onlineon11th
September2011.

Phone:
Email:

OnLocation
Yearbooks
Dossiers

Thenewsqueezedlightlaserof
GEO600.Ahighlycomplexlaser
systemproduceslightwhich
particularlyquietinthe...[more]

Some50yearsafterthedevelopmentof
thefirstlasers,thetechnologyof
squeezedlightcanbeusedtogenerate
acompletelynewqualityoflaserlight.
Thelightfromasqueezedlaserradiates
muchmorecalmlythanlightfroma
conventionallasersource.Thanksto
thesqueezedlaser,wewereableto
increasethemeasuringsensitivityof
GEO600to150%,saysHartmutGrote,
whoheadsthedetectoroperation.The
newlightsourcefulfilsallrequirements
asexpected.Infuture,thistechnology
couldbeusedtoevendoublethe
measuringaccuracy.Inthesearchfor
thealmostundetectablegravitational
waves,thisincreaseinsensitivityisan
importantsteptotheirdirectdetection.

TheGEO600experimentattheQUEST
(CenterforQuantumEngineeringand
SpaceTimeResearch)Clusterof
MaxPlanckInstitutefor
Excellenceispartoftheinternational
GravitationalPhysics(Hannover)
LIGOVirgoCollaboration(LVCon)andis
puttingtheresearchersfromtheMax
PlanckInstituteforGravitationalPhysics
(SubInstituteHanover,AlbertEinsteinInstitute/AEI)andfromtheInstitutefor
GravitationalPhysicsattheLeibnizUniversityHannoveronthetrackof
gravitationalwaves.Einsteinpredictedtheseoscillationsinspacetimearounda
hundredyearsagoinhisGeneralTheoryofRelativity.Theyariseduring
turbulentcosmiceventssuchassupernovaexplosions,forexample.
GravitationalwavesarescarcelynoticeableonEarth,however.Onereasonis
thattheinteractionbetweenmatterandspaceisveryweak.Changestothe
structureofspacetimewhichoccurinourimmediateastronomicalvicinityasa
resultofthemovementsofrelativelylowmassobjects,suchasmoonsor
planets,arewaybelowwhatismeasurable.Turbulentsupernovaexplosions
whichviolentlyshakespacetimeoccuratagreatdistance,incontrast.The
gravitationalwavesgeneratedintheprocessareconsiderablyattenuatedwhen
theyreachEarth.Therelativemeasuringpathinagravitationalwavedetector
wouldchangebyonlyaroundathousandthofaprotondiameterifasupernova
occurredwithinourMilkyWay.WithGEO600,thescientistsaremeanwhileable
tomeasuresuchdifferencesinlength.

+4951176219169
roman.schnabel@aei.mpg.de

Dr.HartmutGrote
MaxPlanckInstituteforGravitational
Physics(Hannover),Hannover
Phone:
Email:

+495117626133
hartmut.grote@aei.mpg.de

Dr.PeterAufmuth
MaxPlanckInstituteforGravitational
Physics(Hannover),Hannover
Phone:
Fax:
Email:

+495117622386
+495117622784
peter.aufmuth@aei.mpg.de

PUBLICATIONREFERENCE
RomanSchnabelandHartmutGrote
fortheLIGOVirgoScience
Collaboration
Agravitationalwaveobservatory
operatingbeyondthequantumshot
noiselimit
NaturePhysicsadvanceonline
publication,11.September2011
R ELATED LINKS

Theworld'slowestnoiselaser
ResearchersinHannoveroutsmart
quantumphysicsbyorganisingthephotons
ofalaserbeaminanorderlyfashion.

SqueezedLight

QUESTCentreforQuantum
EngineeringandSpaceTime
Research

GEO600TheGermanBritisch
GravitationalWaveDetector

Laserlightwithconstantintensity
Inordertobeabletomakesuchaccuratemeasurements,thephysicistsmust
relyonmetrologytechniquesthatareasfreefrominterferencesaspossible.
Oneoftheeffectswhichhascausedinterferencesofaristhesocalledshot
noise.Theirquantumnaturemeansthephotonsraindownatirregularintervals
ontothephotodiodeinthedetector.Thisisevidentinthesignalasfluctuating
backgroundbrightness.Anoscillationofspacetimewhichcausesasimilarly
weakchangeinthebrightnessliketheshotnoise,canthusonlyberecognised
withdifficulty.
RomanSchnabelandhisresearchgroupinHannoverhavenowdevelopeda
speciallightsourcewithwhichthedisturbingshotnoisecanbecurbed.When
integratedintoGEO600,thesqueezedlightlaserassiststhegravitationalwave
detectortoanewmeasuringsensitivity.ThismakestheGEO600thefirst
detectorwhosesignalbeamissmoothedwiththenewtypeoflaserlight.

http://www.mpg.de/4416133/Squeezed_laser_gravitational_waves?filter_order=L

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Research|Researchnews|2011|Squeezedlaserwillbringgravitationalwavestothelightofday
TheHeisenberguncertaintyprinciplestatesthattheintensityandcolourofa
laserbeamcannotsimultaneouslybedefinedwitharbitraryaccuracy.For
example,themoreexacttheintensity(tobemoreprecise:theamplitude)is
specified,themoreuncertainthecolourbecomes(tobemoreprecise:the
phase).Thequantumphysicistsutilisethiseffecttominimisetheshotnoisein
theGEO600experiment.Afterall,theshotnoiseisactuallynothingmorethan
anuncertaintyofthelaserintensity.Theyimprovethelaserlightsothatits
intensityisveryaccuratelydefined,i.e.exhibitsalmostnofluctuations.The
expertsalsocallthisprocesssqueezing.Inthisexperiment,itisofno
consequencethatthelightcolourbecomesmoreimprecise,i.e.slightlymore
colourful,sincethisparameterisnotincludedinthemeasurementdata.
Wenowfeedthesqueezedlightintotheinterferometer,inadditiontoour
normallaserlight,explainsSchnabel.Ifthetwolightfieldsthensuperimpose,
theresultinglaserbeamhasamuchmoreuniformintensity,comparedtothe
originalsignalbeam.Wethussmoothouttheirregularitiescausedbyquantum
physicaleffectsinthedetectorsignal,Schnabelcontinues.
ThesqueezedlightlaserhasbeenundergoingalongertestphasesinceApril
lastyearatGEO600andisnowbeingusedinthesearchforgravitationalwaves.
Theapplicationofsqueezedlighttechnologyhasthuspassedtheacidtest.The
AmericancolleagueswithintheLVCplantosoontestasqueezedlaseronthe
LIGOdetectors.
FM/PH

20032015,MAXPLANCKGESELLSCHAFT,MNCHEN

http://www.mpg.de/4416133/Squeezed_laser_gravitational_waves?filter_order=L

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