Bulletin of the American Physical Society
APS April Meeting 2015
Volume 60, Number 4
Saturday–Tuesday, April 11–14, 2015; Baltimore, Maryland
Session U7: Focus Session: Space-based Gravitational Wave Detection II |
Hide Abstracts |
Sponsoring Units: GGR Chair: Ira Thorpe, NASA Room: Key 3 |
Monday, April 13, 2015 3:30PM - 3:42PM |
U7.00001: The Gravitational Universe - ESA's L3 mission Guido Mueller, Masaki Ando, Pierre Binetruy, Philippe Bouyer, Luigi Cacciapuoti, Mike Cruise, Fabio Favata, Martin Gehler, Reinhard Genzel, Oliver Jennrich, Mark Kasevich, Bill Klipstein, Michael Perryman, Frederic Safa, Bernard Schutz, Robin Stebbins, Stefano Vitale Following the advice of ESA's Senior Survey Committee (SSC) the Science Programme Committee (SPC) decided in November 2013 to select the science theme ``The Gravitational Universe'' for their L3 mission. The Director of Science and Robotic Exploration (D/SRE) has established a Gravitational Observatory Advisory Team (GOAT) to advise on the scientific and technological approaches for a gravitational wave observatory with a planned launch date in 2034. Our team is comprised of scientists from Europe and the US as well as scientists and engineers from ESA and observers from NASA and JAXA. We meet about every ten weeks, evaluate the technical readiness of all necessary technologies, study the science impact of different mission designs, and will advise ESA on the required future technology development. We will report on our progress and plans forward to a future space-based gravitational-wave observatory. [Preview Abstract] |
Monday, April 13, 2015 3:42PM - 3:54PM |
U7.00002: Possible Space-based Gravitational Wave Observatory Mission Design for the L3 Cosmic Visions Opportunity Jeffrey Livas A rich spectrum of astrophysical gravitational-wave sources is expected at frequencies between 0.0001 and 0.1 Hz. A space-based observatory is required to access these sources to avoid large gravity gradient (Newtonian) noise at low frequencies, to take advantage of a benign thermal environment, and to allow the construction of large measurement baselines that are well matched to the wavelengths of the sources. The Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) has long been the reference mission to cover this science with an international partnership between NASA and ESA. Budget constraints have forced both agencies to search for revised mission concepts with a lower cost point. A possible mission design compatible with the cost constraints of the L3 Cosmic Visions Opportunity will be described based on the SGO-Mid concept developed for the 2012 Gravitational Wave Mission Concept Study.\footnote{http://pcos.gsfc.nasa.gov/studies/gravitational-wave-mission.php} [Preview Abstract] |
Monday, April 13, 2015 3:54PM - 4:06PM |
U7.00003: Black Hole Astrophysics with eLISA Joey Shapiro Key Space based gravitational wave astronomy with the eLISA mission will probe massive black holes over a wide range of redshift and mass, across their evolutionary history. Coalescing massive binary black holes are among the loudest sources of gravitational waves in the Universe and are expected to appear in the early Universe when the first galaxies started to form. eLISA will be able to detect coalescing binary black holes at a redshift as high as z~20, if they exist. eLISA will also observe Extreme Mass Ratio Inspirals (EMRIs), the inspiral and merger of stellar mass black holes into large, massive black holes at the centers of galaxies. A space based gravitational wave observatory will open a new window to understanding the astrophysics and role of massive black holes in our Universe. [Preview Abstract] |
Monday, April 13, 2015 4:06PM - 4:18PM |
U7.00004: Architectures for a Space-based Gravitational-Wave Observatory Robin Stebbins The European Space Agency (ESA) selected the science theme, the ``Gravitational Universe,'' for the third large mission opportunity, known as L3, under its Cosmic Vision Programme. The planned launch date is 2034.~ ESA is considering a 20{\%} participation by an international partner, and NASA's Astrophysics Division has begun negotiating a NASA role. We have studied the design consequences of a NASA contribution, evaluated the science benefits and identified the technology requirements for hardware that could be delivered by NASA. The European community proposed a strawman mission concept, called eLISA, having two measurement arms, derived from the well studied LISA (Laser Interferometer Space Antenna) concept.~ The US community is promoting a mission concept known as SGO Mid (Space-based Gravitational-wave Observatory Mid-sized), a three arm LISA-like concept. If NASA were to partner with ESA, the eLISA concept could be transformed to SGO Mid by the addition of a third arm, thereby augmenting science, reducing risk and reducing non-recurring engineering costs. The characteristics of the mission concepts and the relative science performance of eLISA, SGO Mid and LISA are described. [Preview Abstract] |
Monday, April 13, 2015 4:18PM - 4:30PM |
U7.00005: Development of a US Gravitational Wave Laser System for LISA Jordan Camp, Kenji Numata A highly stable and robust laser system is a key component of the space-based LISA mission architecture. In this talk I will describe our plans to demonstrate a TRL 5 LISA laser system at Goddard Space Flight Center by 2016. The laser system includes a low-noise oscillator followed by a power amplifier. The oscillator is a low-mass, compact 10 mW External Cavity Laser, consisting of a semiconductor laser coupled to an optical cavity, built by the laser vendor Redfern Integrated Optics. The amplifier is a diode-pumped Yb fiber with 2W output, built at Goddard. I will show noise and reliability data for the full laser system, and describe our plans to reach TRL 5 by 2016. [Preview Abstract] |
Monday, April 13, 2015 4:30PM - 4:42PM |
U7.00006: Back-reflection from a Spiral Pattern Secondary Mirror for LISA Zachary Bush, Aaron Spector, Guido Mueller The Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) represents a class of proposed space-based gravitational wave observatories that will operate in the frequency band between 0.03 mHz and 1 Hz. These missions are characterized by a triangular constellation of three spacecraft (SC), separated by gigameters, in a heliocentric orbit. A reflecting telescope transfers the laser signals between the SC, and laser interferometry is used to measure length changes between proof masses housed on adjacent SC with pm/rtHz sensitivity. One of the proposed telescope designs is an on-axis `quadpod' in which the secondary mirror is axially aligned to the primary mirror. Back-reflected (BR) light from the secondary can introduce phase noise to the measurement signal due to length changes between the telescope structure and the optical bench. Simulations have demonstrated that the BR power can be sufficiently attenuated by imprinting an anti-reflective spiral pattern in the reflective gold coating at the center of the secondary. Prototype secondaries were manufactured by depositing a layer of gold onto a germanium substrate and using photolithography to etch the spiral pattern. An experimental testbed was built to evaluate the secondary prototype's BR distribution and the results will be discussed. [Preview Abstract] |
Monday, April 13, 2015 4:42PM - 4:54PM |
U7.00007: A New Optical Bench Concept for Space-Based Laser Interferometric Gravitational Wave Missions Andrew Chilton, Stephen Apple, Giacomo Ciani, Taiwo Olatunde, John Conklin, Guido Mueller Space-based interferometric gravitational wave detectors such as LISA have been proposed to detect low-frequency gravitational wave sources such as the inspirals of compact objects into massive black holes or two massive black holes into each other. The optical components used to perform the high-precision interferometry required to make these measurements have historically been bonded to Zerodur optical benches, which are thermally ultrastable but difficult and time-consuming to manufacture. More modern implementations of LISA-like interferometry have reduced the length stability requirement on these benches from $\mathrm{30\frac{fm}{\sqrt{Hz}}}$ to a few $\mathrm{\frac{pm}{\sqrt{Hz}}}$. We therefore propose to alter the design of the optical bench in such a way as to no longer require the use of Zerodur; instead, we plan to replace it with more easily-used materials such as titanium or molybdenum. In this presentation, we discuss the current status of and future plans for the construction and testing of such an optical bench. [Preview Abstract] |
Follow Us |
Engage
Become an APS Member |
My APS
Renew Membership |
Information for |
About APSThe American Physical Society (APS) is a non-profit membership organization working to advance the knowledge of physics. |
© 2024 American Physical Society
| All rights reserved | Terms of Use
| Contact Us
Headquarters
1 Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740-3844
(301) 209-3200
Editorial Office
100 Motor Pkwy, Suite 110, Hauppauge, NY 11788
(631) 591-4000
Office of Public Affairs
529 14th St NW, Suite 1050, Washington, D.C. 20045-2001
(202) 662-8700