Investigations in Gravitational Radiation
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Strathclyde
Department Name: Physics
Abstract
Close to 40 years after the first gravitational wave detectors becoming operational, long baseline instruments using laser interferometry, LIGO (USA) and GEO 600 (Germany/UK) have now been operating together as a network for ~ 5 years, taking data at an unprecedented level of sensitivity. Four science runs have so far been completed with these new interferometric detectors. All have involved the LIGO detectors, three have involved the GEO detector and two had involvement from the smaller Japanese TAMA detector. The fifth science run of the LIGO detectors started on 4th Nov 2005 and is currently ongoing, with GEO having joined in January 2006. This run, expected to last about 18 months, will be the longest stretch of data taking to date. The Virgo detector in Italy is expected to provide data to the network in the near future. New 'upper limits' have been set on the strength of gravitational waves from a range of sources: coalescing compact binaries, pulsars, burst sources and a stochastic background of gravitational waves. Recent research is allowing us to close in on what fraction of the energy loss of the pulsar in the Crab Nebula is due to gravitational wave emission. Binary black holes are probably the best candidates for detection with some chance of seeing an event over the period of the fifth science run. The field of gravitational wave detection is moving quickly forward at present and plans are already in place for major upgrades to LIGO and Virgo (Advanced LIGO and Advanced VIRGO) and also intermediate upgrades to both detectors starting in 2009 as well as the possibility of a new 3 km detector, LCGT, in Japan. Advanced LIGO, now approved by the US National Science Board and in the President's budget for 2008, is planned to be construced over the period 2010-2014, and the IGR has a major part in this upgrade through a project grant for the provision of suspensions for Advanced LIGO based on the GEO design. GEO will operate during these intermediate upgrades working in coincidence with bar detectors such as Auriga in Padua and with whatever interferometer in LIGO is operating, and then will be upgraded to optimise sensitivity at higher frequencies (GEO HF) where signals associated with neutron star oscillations and magnetars may be expected. To see further out in the Universive and maximise the potential science return possible with gravitational wave astronomy, the IGR is working with European colleagues on plans for a design study for a new '3rd generation' gravitational wave detector. This rolling grant proposal is for observations with the GEO, LIGO and Virgo detector systems and for fundamental research towards future detectors.
Publications
Aartsen M
(2014)
Multimessenger search for sources of gravitational waves and high-energy neutrinos: Initial results for LIGO-Virgo and IceCube
in Physical Review D
Aasi J
(2014)
Methods and results of a search for gravitational waves associated with gamma-ray bursts using the GEO 600, LIGO, and Virgo detectors
in Physical Review D
Aasi J
(2012)
The characterization of Virgo data and its impact on gravitational-wave searches
in Classical and Quantum Gravity
Aasi J
(2014)
Search for gravitational waves associated with ?-ray bursts detected by the interplanetary network.
in Physical review letters
Aasi J
(2014)
Constraints on Cosmic Strings from the LIGO-Virgo Gravitational-Wave Detectors
in Physical Review Letters
Aasi J
(2014)
Search for gravitational radiation from intermediate mass black hole binaries in data from the second LIGO-Virgo joint science run
in Physical Review D
Aasi J
(2014)
The NINJA-2 project: detecting and characterizing gravitational waveforms modelled using numerical binary black hole simulations
in Classical and Quantum Gravity
Aasi J
(2014)
Implementation of an $\mathcal{F}$-statistic all-sky search for continuous gravitational waves in Virgo VSR1 data
in Classical and Quantum Gravity
Aasi J
(2013)
Search for gravitational waves from binary black hole inspiral, merger, and ringdown in LIGO-Virgo data from 2009-2010
in Physical Review D
Aasi J
(2013)
Einstein@Home all-sky search for periodic gravitational waves in LIGO S5 data
in Physical Review D
Description | The detection of Gravitational Waves. |
Exploitation Route | The construction of new gravitational wave observatories. |
Sectors | Construction |
URL | http://journals.aps.org/prl/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevLett.116.061102 |
Description | Gravitational Waves have been detected. The University of Strathclyde produced 3 videos on the detection of Gravitational Waves. |
First Year Of Impact | 2016 |
Impact Types | Cultural Societal |
Description | Rolling grant |
Amount | £271,916 (GBP) |
Organisation | Science and Technologies Facilities Council (STFC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 09/2010 |
End | 09/2015 |
Description | Investigations in Gravitational Radiation |
Organisation | University of Glasgow |
Department | Institute for Gravitational Research |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | This collaboration allowed the development at Strathclyde of ultra-low noise Electroststic Drivers, and their subsequent construction and testing, for the Advanced LIGO project. |
Collaborator Contribution | Assistance with making contacts with the US side of the LIGO project, specifically with collaborators at MIT and Caltech. |
Impact | Eight ultra-low noise Elecrostatic Drivers have been delivered to the IGR. |
Start Year | 2008 |