Quantum Backaction on kg-Scale Mirrors: Observation of Radiation Pressure Noise in the Advanced Virgo Detector

(The Virgo Collaboration)

Research output: Contribution to JournalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

The quantum radiation pressure and the quantum shot noise in laser-interferometric gravitational wave detectors constitute a macroscopic manifestation of the Heisenberg inequality. If quantum shot noise can be easily observed, the observation of quantum radiation pressure noise has been elusive, so far, due to the technical noise competing with quantum effects. Here, we discuss the evidence of quantum radiation pressure noise in the Advanced Virgo gravitational wave detector. In our experiment, we inject squeezed vacuum states of light into the interferometer in order to manipulate the quantum backaction on the 42 kg mirrors and observe the corresponding quantum noise driven displacement at frequencies between 30 and 70 Hz. The experimental data, obtained in various interferometer configurations, is tested against the Advanced Virgo detector quantum noise model which confirmed the measured magnitude of quantum radiation pressure noise.

Original languageEnglish
Article number131101
Pages (from-to)1-9
Number of pages9
JournalPhysical review letters
Volume125
Issue number13
Early online date22 Sept 2020
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 25 Sept 2020

Funding

The authors gratefully acknowledge the support of the Max Planck Society, Leibniz Universität Hannover, and Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) through Grant No. VA 1031/1-1 and Germany’s Excellence Strategy Grant No. EXC-2123 QuantumFrontiers—390837967 for the construction, installation, and operation of the squeezed light source. The authors gratefully acknowledge the Italian Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare (INFN), the French Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), and the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research, for the construction and operation of the Virgo detector and the creation and support of the EGO consortium. The authors also gratefully acknowledge research support from these agencies as well as by the Spanish Agencia Estatal de Investigación, the Consellera d’Innovació, Universitats, Ciència i Societat Digital de la Generalitat Valenciana and the CERCA Programme Generalitat de Catalunya, Spain, the National Science Centre of Poland, the European Commission, the Hungarian Scientific Research Fund (OTKA), the French Lyon Institute of Origins (LIO), the Belgian Fonds de la Recherche Scientifique (FRS-FNRS), Actions de Recherche Concertes (ARC), and Fonds Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek Vlaanderen (FWO), Belgium. Finally the authors kindly thank S. Danilishin for useful discussions on the quantum noise model of the interferometer.

FundersFunder number
Actions de Recherche Concertes
Fonds Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek Vlaanderen
French Lyon Institute of Origins
European Commission
Deutsche ForschungsgemeinschaftVA 1031/1-1, EXC-2123 QuantumFrontiers—390837967
Fonds De La Recherche Scientifique - FNRS
Generalitat de Catalunya
Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek
Generalitat Valenciana
Hungarian Scientific Research Fund
Instituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare
Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Universität Hannover
Max-Planck-Gesellschaft
Narodowe Centrum Nauki
Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
Agencia Estatal de Investigación
Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare

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