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A brighter future for gravitational-wave astronomy

A brighter future for gravitational-wave astronomy

© LZH
Fiber lasers are – due to their special beam properties – expected to be used in future gravitational-wave detectors, which will listen ten times more sensitively for gravitational waves. © LZH

Hannover research team develops most powerful laser system yet for gravitational-wave detectors

Future gravitational-wave detectors on Earth will use laser light with even higher power than in current instruments. Researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics (Albert Einstein Institute, AEI), the Laser Zentrum Hannover e.V. (LZH), and Leibniz University Hannover have now developed a new laser system for this purpose. They combined the custom tailored light from two high-power lasers so precisely that it meets the requirements for use in gravitational-wave detectors. In a next step, the researchers will improve their system so that it can be used as a centerpiece for next-generation detectors. The results have now been published in the journal Optics Express.

Full news on the website of the Max Planck Institute.