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Higher order Laguerre-Gauss (LG) beams have been proposed for use in future gravitational wave detectors, such as upgrades to the Advanced LIGO detectors and the Einstein Telescope, for their potential to reduce the effects of the thermal…
A small fixed-mirror Michelson interferometer has been built in Frascati to experimentally study the alignment method that has been suggested for VIRGO. The experimental results fully confirm the adequacy of the method. The minimum angular…
Optical losses degrade the sensitivity of laser interferometric instruments. They reduce the number of signal photons and introduce technical noise associated with diffuse light. In quantum-enhanced metrology, they break the entanglement…
We demonstrate in microwave measurements the broadband enhancement of transmission through an opaque barrier due to mirror symmetry. This enhancement relies on constructive interference between mirror scattering paths resulting from strong…
After the completion of the catalogue built with ESO key program (REFLEX), we are beginning to explore the multiband optical characteristics of a subsample of those clusters selected in a statistically independent way. We have already…
Thermal lensing in resonant optical interferometers such as those used for gravitational wave detection is a concern due to the negative impact on control signals and instrument sensitivity. In this paper we describe a method for monitoring…
High-reflectivity fused silica mirrors are at the epicentre of current advanced gravitational wave detectors. In these detectors, the mirrors interact with high power laser beams. As a result of finite absorption in the high reflectivity…
Optical cavities are frequently used in quantum technologies to enhance light matter interactions, with applications including single photon generation and entanglement of distant emitters. The Fabry-P\'{e}rot resonator is a popular choice…
Co-phase and co-focus detection is one of the key technologies for large-aperture segmented mirror telescopes. In this paper, a new edge sensor based on fringes of equal thickness is developed, which can detect each segment's relative…
We report the results of a recent search for the lowest value of thermal noise that can be achieved in LIGO by changing the shape of mirrors, while fixing the mirror radius and maintaining a low diffractional loss. The result of this…
The Advanced LIGO gravitational wave detectors are nearing their design sensitivity and should begin taking meaningful astrophysical data in the fall of 2015. These resonant optical interferometers will have unprecedented sensitivity to the…
To enable the enhancement of few-cycle pulses in high-finesse passive optical resonators, a novel complementary-phase approach is considered for the resonator mirrors. The design challenges and first experimental results are presented.
Visible Light Communication (VLC) is a rapidly growing technology which can supplement the current radio frequency (RF) based wireless communication systems. VLC can play a huge part in solving the ever-increasing problem of spectrum…
In the last decade, the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) and the European Virgo observatory have opened a new observational window on the universe. These cavity-enhanced laser interferometers sense spacetime…
A novel atomic beam splitter, using reflection of atoms off an evanescent light wave, is investigated theoretically. The intensity or frequency of the light is modulated in order to create sidebands on the reflected de Broglie wave. The…
In astronomy and microscopy, distortions in the wavefront affect the dynamic range of a high contrast imaging system. These aberrations are either imposed by a turbulent medium such as the atmosphere, by static or thermal aberrations in the…
High-sensitivity optical measurements such as those performed in interferometric gravitational wave detectors are prone to scattered light noise. To minimize it, optical components must meet tight requirements on surface roughness and bulk…
Optics for future X-ray telescopes will be characterized by very large aperture and focal length, and will be made of lightweight materials like glass or silicon in order to keep the total mass within acceptable limits. Optical modules…
We simulate the performance of a gravitational wave interferometer in the Dual Recycling (DR) configuration, as will be used for systems like Advanced-LIGO. Our grid-based simulation program models complex interferometric detectors with…
We study the effect of finite size and misalignment on a fundamental optomechanical setup: a Fabry-P\'erot cavity with one fixed and one moveable mirror. We describe in detail light confinement under these real world imperfections and…