First Tests of a Newtonian Calibrator on an Interferometric Gravitational Wave Detector

TL;DR

This paper reports the first application of a Newtonian calibrator on a large interferometric gravitational wave detector, demonstrating promising results for achieving highly accurate absolute calibration essential for gravitational wave science.

Contribution

It introduces and tests a novel calibration technique based on gravitational force on a large interferometer, showing its effectiveness and agreement with existing methods.

Findings

Results agree with predictions and existing calibration methods.

The technique shows potential for sub-percent calibration accuracy.

It represents the first application of a Newtonian calibrator on such a detector.

Abstract

The ongoing improvements of the advanced gravitational wave (GW) detectors are setting challenging requirements on instrument calibration. We report tests of a calibration technique, based on the well-known gravitation force, which has been applied for the first time on a large interferometer. The results obtained with Advanced Virgo are in good agreement with the predictions and with the usual calibration method. This technique is expected to lead to accurate absolute calibration at the sub-percent level in the coming years, matching the needs of the blooming GW science.