Title:
Design of microresonators to minimize thermal noise below the standard quantum limit at LIGO structure.
Abstract:
The Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) has opened a new window to the universe by detecting the first gravitational waves in 2015. The discovery impels the need for better detection schemes by decreasing the limiting noise sources in gravitational-wave interferometers. This presentation employs a new design for mechanical microresonators in Michelson interferometry to minimize thermal noise below the standard quantum limit (SQL). I used a micro-genetic algorithm and a finite element method to design a microresonator whose geometry is optimized to maximize the sub-Standard Quantum Limit (SQL) performance including lower thermal noise (TN) below the SQL, a broader sub-SQL region, and a sub-SQL region at lower frequencies. For the proposed design, I studied the effects of different geometries of the mirror pad and cantilever microresonator on sub-SQL performance. The performance of this designed microresonator will allow it to serve as a test-bed for quantum non-demolition measurements and to open new regimes of precision measurement that are relevant for many practical sensing applications, including advanced gravitational wave detectors.
