Related papers: LIGO's "Science Reach"
The Advanced LIGO gravitational wave detectors will be installed starting in 2011, with completion scheduled for 2015. The new detectors will improve the strain sensitivity of current instruments by a factor of ten, with a thousandfold…
Isolating ground-based interferometric gravitational wave observatories from environmental disturbances is one of the great challenges of the advanced detector era. In order to directly observe gravitational waves, the detector components…
The Advanced LIGO gravitational wave detectors are second generation instruments designed and built for the two LIGO observatories in Hanford, WA and Livingston, LA. The two instruments are identical in design, and are specialized versions…
We describe the plans for gravitational-wave observations and astrophysics that will be carried out by the LIGO Scientific Collaboration (LSC) in the next decade using data from the LIGO Observatories in the US, and sister facilities abroad…
LIGO's detection of gravitational waves marks a first step in measurable effects of general relativity on quantum matter. In its current operation, laser interferometer gravitational-wave detectors are already quantum limited at high…
We assess the science reach and technical feasibility of a satellite mission based on precision atomic sensors configured to detect gravitational radiation. Conceptual advances in the past three years indicate that a two-satellite…
We present a short communication on the recent direct measurements of gravitational waves, made possible by the joint efforts of the LIGO and the Virgo projects. These notes are devoted to a broad audience. In the first part we will present…
The Gravitational-wave Optical Transient Observer (GOTO) is an array of wide-field optical telescopes, designed to exploit new discoveries from the next generation of gravitational wave detectors (LIGO, Virgo, KAGRA), study rapidly evolving…
Gravitational wave (GW) experiments have transformed our understanding of the Universe by enabling direct observations of compact object mergers and other astrophysical phenomena. This chapter reviews the concepts of GW detectors, such as…
The range to which the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) can observe astrophysical systems varies over time, limited by noise in the instruments and their environments. Identifying and removing the sources of noise…
Gravitational-wave detectors with sensitivities sufficient to measure the radiation from astrophysical sources are rapidly coming into existence. By the end of this decade, there will exist several ground-based instruments in North America,…
The second-generation of gravitational-wave detectors are just starting operation, and have already yielding their first detections. Research is now concentrated on how to maximize the scientific potential of gravitational-wave astronomy.…
Ground-based interferometers are not perfectly all-sky instruments, and it is important to account for their behavior when considering the distribution of detected events. In particular, the LIGO detectors are most sensitive to sources…
The LIGO experiment aims to detect and study gravitational waves using ground based laser interferometry. A critical factor to the performance of the interferometers, and a major consideration in the design of possible future upgrades, is…
GEO 600, Kagra, LIGO, and Virgo were built to observe gravitational waves at frequencies in the audio band, where the highest event rates combined with the largest signal to noise ratios had been predicted. Currently, hypothetical sources…
In gravitational-wave detection, special emphasis is put onto searches that focus on cosmic events detected by other types of astrophysical observatories. The astrophysical triggers, e.g. from gamma-ray and X-ray satellites, optical…
The first direct measurement of gravitational waves by the LIGO and Virgo collaborations has opened up new avenues to explore our Universe. This white paper outlines the challenges and gains expected in gravitational wave searches at…
At the time of this conference, in June 2002, The LIGO Science Collaboration was getting ready to perform its first Science Run, where data will be taken with all three LIGO detectors. We describe here the status of the LIGO detectors as of…
The LIGO-India project to build and operate an advanced LIGO (aLIGO) gravitational wave (GW) detector in India in collaboration with LIGO-USA was considered and initiated as an Indian national megascience project in 2011. Procedural…
Progress in gravitational-wave astronomy depends upon having sensitive detectors with good data quality. Since the end of the LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA third Observing run in March 2020, detector-characterization efforts have lead to increased…