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LIGO's Laser Precision Unlocks Deeper Universe
4 Dec
Summary
- New instrumentation controls laser wavefronts at high power.
- FROSTI prototype enhances LIGO's sensitivity to gravitational waves.
- Technology promises to expand observable universe by tenfold.
A significant advancement in gravitational-wave detection has emerged from the University of California, Riverside. Physicist Jonathan Richardson and his team have successfully tested FROSTI, a full-scale prototype designed to control laser wavefronts with unprecedented precision within the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO).
FROSTI, an adaptive optics device, operates by precisely reshaping LIGO's primary mirrors using controlled thermal radiation. This innovation manages distortions caused by megawatt-level laser powers, a critical need for future detectors like Cosmic Explorer, which aim to observe more distant cosmic events with greater clarity.
This development is poised to revolutionize gravitational-wave astronomy, potentially increasing the observable universe by tenfold. It paves the way for detecting millions more black hole and neutron star mergers and studying them in unprecedented detail, marking a pivotal moment for astronomical research.
