Personal recollections: Frascati and the search for gravitational waves at the Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare (INFN)

TL;DR

This paper reviews the history of gravitational wave detection efforts at INFN's Frascati Laboratories, highlighting the development from early ideas to the NAUTILUS detector, the most sensitive of its time.

Contribution

It provides a detailed historical account of gravitational wave experiments at Frascati, emphasizing technological progress and scientific milestones.

Findings

NAUTILUS was the most sensitive detector by the end of the 20th century.

The paper documents the evolution of gravitational wave detection efforts at INFN.

Historical insights into the development of gravitational wave experiments.

Abstract

The history of the gravitational wave experiments at the Frascati National Laboratories of INFN is described, from the early suggestion of Edoardo Amaldi to the realization of NAUTILUS, the most sensitive detector at the end of the XXth century.