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Currently planned second-generation gravitational-wave laser interferometers such as Advanced LIGO exploit the extensively investigated signal-recycling (SR) technique. Candidate Advanced LIGO configurations are usually designed to have two…
KAGRA is a new gravitational wave detector which aims to begin joint observation with Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo from late 2019. Here, we present KAGRA's possible upgrade plans to improve the sensitivity in the decade ahead. Unlike…
Since the first gravitational wave detection in 2015, ground-based interferometer sensitivities have significantly improved, requiring highly precise calibration to ensure accurate reconstruction of the h(t) strain signal. In this talk we…
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…
We develop a steady-state analytical and numerical model of the optical response of power-recycled Fabry-Perot Michelson laser gravitational-wave detectors to thermal focusing in optical substrates. We assume that the thermal distortions…
Monitoring motion originating from ultra low-temperature cooling systems like cryocoolers is important for vibration sensitive cryogenic experiments like KAGRA. Since no commercial cryogenic accelerometers are available, we developed a…
The three Advanced Virgo and LIGO gravitational wave detectors participated to the third observing run (O3) between 1 April 2019 15:00 UTC and 27 March 2020 17:00 UTC,leading to several gravitational wave detections per month. This paper…
The need for both high quality images and lightweight structures is one of the main drivers in space telescope design. An efficient wavefront control system will become mandatory in future large observatories, retaining performance while…
The MIGA project aims at demonstrating precision measurements of gravity with cold atom sensors in a large scale instrument and at studying the associated applications in geosciences and fundamental physics. The first stage of the project…
Nearly a century after Einstein first predicted the existence of gravitational waves, a global network of earth-based gravitational wave observatories is seeking to directly detect this faint radiation using precision laser interferometry.…
Interferometric gravitational wave detectors are expected to be limited by shot noise at some frequencies. We experimentally demonstrate that a power recycled Michelson with squeezed light injected into the dark port can overcome this…
We report the first use of Michelson interferometry on the Keck I telescope for diffraction-limited imaging in the near infrared JHK and L bands. By using an aperture mask located close to the f/25 secondary, the 10 m Keck primary mirror…
The ALFA laser subsystem uses a 4 watt continuous wave laser beam to produce an artificial guide star in the mesospheric sodium layer as a reference for wavefront sensing. In this article we describe the system design, focusing on the…
We realize a Mach-Zehnder-type dual-atom-interferometer gyroscope with an interrogation arm of 40 cm length and the interference area up to 1.2 cm$^2$. The precise angular alignment of the large-scale separated Raman lasers is demonstrated…
The Advanced LIGO detectors are sophisticated opto-mechanical devices. At the core of their operation is feedback control. The Advanced LIGO project developed a custom digital control and data acquisition system to handle the unique needs…
Recently, Adaptive Secondary Mirrors showed excellent on-sky results in the Near Infrared wavelengths. They currently provide 30mm inter-actuator spacing and about 1 kHz bandwidth. Pushing these devices to be operated at visible wavelengths…
Direct and unequivocal detection of gravitational waves represents a great challenge of contemporary physics and astrophysics. A worldwide effort is currently operating towards this direction, building ever sensitive detectors, improving…
We present the Global Rapid Advanced Network Devoted to the Multi-messenger Addicts (GRANDMA). The network consists of 21 telescopes with both photometric and spectroscopic facilities. They are connected together thanks to a dedicated…
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…
The existing high technology laser-beam detectors of gravitational waves may find very useful applications in an unexpected area - geophysics. To make possible the detection of weak gravitational waves in the region of high frequencies of…