Cold-atom sources for the Matter-wave laser Interferometric Gravitation Antenna (MIGA)

TL;DR

MIGA is an underground cold-atom interferometer array designed to measure gravity gradients and strains, serving as a prototype for gravitational wave detection with a 150-meter baseline.

Contribution

This paper details the design, realization, and integration of cold-atom sources for MIGA, a novel gravitational wave detector prototype.

Findings

Successful implementation of cold-atom sources for MIGA

Achieved precise gravity gradient measurements

Demonstrated system integration within the instrument

Abstract

The Matter-wave laser Interferometric Gravitation Antenna (MIGA) is an underground instrument using cold-atom interferometry to perform precision measurements of gravity gradients and strains. Following its installation at the low noise underground laboratory LSBB in the South-East of France, it will serve as a prototype for gravitational wave detectors with a horizontal baseline of 150 meters. Three spatially separated cold-atom interferometers will be driven by two common counter-propagating lasers to perform a measurement of the gravity gradient along this baseline. This article presents the cold-atom sources of MIGA, focusing on the design choices, the realization of the systems, the performances and the integration within the MIGA instrument.