A weak equivalence principle test on a suborbital rocket

TL;DR

This paper proposes a highly precise test of the weak equivalence principle using a suborbital rocket, aiming to detect potential violations with unprecedented accuracy that could impact fundamental physics.

Contribution

It introduces a novel experimental setup for testing the weak equivalence principle during free fall with laser gauges achieving 0.1 pm/Hz^1/2 sensitivity.

Findings

Target measurement uncertainty of sigma(eta) < 10^-16

Expected to improve constraints on equivalence principle violations

Potential to detect new physics if violations are observed

Abstract

We describe a Galilean test of the weak equivalence principle, to be conducted during the free fall portion of a sounding rocket flight. The test of a single pair of substances is aimed at a measurement uncertainty of sigma(eta) < 10^-16 after averaging the results of eight separate drops. The weak equivalence principle measurement is made with a set of four laser gauges that are expected to achieve 0.1 pm Hz^-1/2. The discovery of a violation (eta not equal to 0) would have profound implications for physics, astrophysics, and cosmology.