WA joins global push to detect gravity waves

The High Optical Power project at the recently commenced Australian International Gravitational Observatory near Gingin, in WA, will help scientists harness a million watts of laser power inside supersensitive detectors.

Gravity wave detectors work by converting the gravity waves into tiny changes of laser light in a device called a laser interferometer. Laser beams are sent down long vacuum pipes at right angles, where they reflect off mirrors, to be recombined and detected.

Australia has played a major role in developing gravity wave detectors, and has constructed a research facility, which will be the basis of a future detector once all the technology is proved. The biggest challenge is in raising the optical power to a megawatt. It is needed to reduce the fluctuations in the light that arise because light is made up of individual photons that arrive separately and cause sampling noise.

Last year the Commonwealth Department of Education, Science and Technology awarded four Australian Universities $4.8 million to develop a High Optical Power Test Facility to develop the technology for the world community. US and European projects have also contributed.

The project is run by the Australian Consortium for Interferometric Gravitational Astronomy chaired by Prof David McClelland of The Australian National University. Its other members include the University of Adelaide laser laboratory led by Prof Jesper Munch, and Monash University Department of Applied Mathematics led by Dr Tony Lun. Altogether more than 40 physicists will be participating in the project.

For further information, please visit http://www.gravity.uwa.edu.au/

Item provided courtesy of The University of WA