A scheduled update of advanced laser-interferometric gravitational-wave Observatory LIGO will use ingenious quantum methods, this was the other day. However, this is interesting. The upgrade price in the $ 35 million will allow scientists to catch an average of one gravitational wave every day. The current record of 11 LIGO discovered gravitational waves can be surpassed in one week.
How many gravitational waves LIGO found?
Starting in 2024, an improved detector, known as Advanced LIGO Plus, try to use the well-known quantum rule, Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle to improve the vehicle’s ability to detect ripples in space-time. The Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle asserts that it is impossible to accurately measure certain properties, such as position and momentum of an object simultaneously.
In LIGO it is imposed on the principle by which scientists keep track of gravitational waves. On each of the two detectors of the Observatory, located in Livingston, Louisiana and Hanford, Washington, the laser light bounces back and forth along two 4-kilometer-long sleeves in the form of letters, to determine whether gravitational waves, scientists measure the brightness of the light in the meeting place of the sleeves, and the rays recombine.
Because of quantum mechanics that light varies in two ways: in the phase, which means the light wave; and the amplitude, which determines the intensity of the light. This change confuses the measurement of LIGO, complicating the detection of subtle signals of gravitational waves. Therefore, in the next round of work LIGO, which will begin in April, scientists use quantum “compressed” light in which the oscillation phase of the light is reduced. The result LIGO will be better to capture waves of a higher frequency ripple, which will have higher frequency, if convert it into sound waves.
“That’s great, but not without its flaws,” says physicist Michael Zucker from Caltech. Power fluctuation of the light increases, making it difficult to measure low frequency gravitational waves. “You are not exempt from Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle”.
But in Advanced LIGO Plus scientists will use a system that will use the best of these two systems and, gripping the light in one direction to reduce the frequency of the ripple, and the other for the higher frequency signals to improve the performance of the machine as a whole. The other detector in India LIGO-India is also turned on simultaneously with Advanced LIGO Plus, in order to utilize the same quantum methods.
And that means we will see new waves every day. Just imagine what a picture of the Universe opens before us. Offer to discuss it in our chat in Telegram.