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arXiv · 2509.08766

Demonstration of a next-generation wavefront actuator for gravitational-wave detection

Tyler Rosauer·Huy Tuong Cao·Mohak Bhattacharya·Peter Carney·Luke Johnson·Shane Levin·Cynthia Liang·Xuesi Ma·Luis Martin Gutierrez·Michael Padilla·Liu Tao·Aiden Wilkin·Aidan Brooks·Jonathan W. Richardson
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Abstract

In the last decade, the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) and the European Virgo observatory have opened a new observational window on the universe. These cavity-enhanced laser interferometers sense spacetime strain, generated by distant astrophysical events such as black hole mergers, to an RMS fluctuation of a few parts in $10^{21}$ over a multi-kilometer baseline. Optical advancements in laser wavefront control are key to advancing the sensitivity of current detectors and enabling a planned next-generation 40-km gravitational wave observatory in the United States, known as Cosmic Explorer. We report the first experimental demonstration of a new wavefront control technique for gravitational-wave detection, obtained from testing a full-scale prototype on a 40-kg LIGO mirror. Our results indicate that this design can meet the unique and challenging requirements of providing higher-order precision wavefront corrections at megawatt laser power levels, while introducing extremely low effective displacement noise into the interferometer. This new technology will have a direct and enabling impact on the observational science, expanding the gravitational-wave detection horizon to very early times in the universe, before the first stars formed, and enabling new tests of gravity, cosmology, and dense nuclear matter.

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Tyler Rosauer, Huy Tuong Cao, Mohak Bhattacharya, Peter Carney, Luke Johnson, Shane Levin, Cynthia Liang, Xuesi Ma, Luis Martin Gutierrez, Michael Padilla, Liu Tao, Aiden Wilkin, Aidan Brooks, Jonathan W. Richardson. 2025-09-10. Demonstration of a next-generation wavefront actuator for gravitational-wave detection. https://doi.org/10.1364/optica.567608

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