Compact Gravity Wave Detector

TL;DR

This paper proposes a compact Michelson interferometer design capable of detecting gravitational waves with extremely small amplitudes across a broad frequency range, utilizing phase shifts from spacetime curvature and mirror dynamics.

Contribution

It introduces a novel compact interferometer design that combines geometric phase analysis and advanced signal processing to detect weak gravitational waves.

Findings

Sensitivity to $10^{-23}/\sqrt{Hz}$ gravitational waves

Operates across $10^{-4}Hz$ to $10^4Hz$ frequency range

Design example of a 10cm interferometer targeting Virgo cluster sources

Abstract

An incoming gravity wave being a stress wave is a surface with intrinsic curvature. When a light beam is parallel transported on this non-Euclidian surface it acquires an excess phase which accumulates with each curcuit. We calculate the separate contributions to excess phase from the wave geometry as well as the dynamic response of mirrors in a Michelson interferometer. Using these results and a combination of analogue and digital signal processing techniques we show how a compact interferometer can be made sensitive to gravity waves of amplitude density $10^{-23}/\sqrt{Hz}$ within a frequency range $10^{-4}Hz$ to $10^4Hz$. As an example we describe a 10cm Michelson interferometer designed to measure gravity waves from sources as far as the Virgo cluster.