Accelerometers are a vital component in inertial sensing and geodesy, gravitational physics, seismic noise detection, hydrology, and other fields requiring precision measurements. Our group develops compact low and high frequency optomechanical inertial sensors to measure acceleration for various applications. Our sensors measure the linear displacement of an oscillating test mass with displacement laser interferometers that are fiber-coupled or free space. The observed external acceleration is recovered from the displacement of the test mass. Our compact 5 Hz resonator will operate as a relative gravimeter and be read out by a compact, highly sensitive free-space heterodyne laser interferometer. It has demonstrated low mechanical losses with quality factors above 4.77 × 105 and mQ-products greater than 1200 kg. Our millimeter scale higher frequency resonators are made of fused silica for operation at room temperature and Si for operation at cryogenic temperatures. They will be readout with fiber based Fabry-Perot cavities or waveguide ring resonators that are currently under development. We are working to fabricate the Si resonators and are optimizing the process using Bosch and cryo-Si DRIE etching. Here, we report our progress on design and fabrication along with preliminary measurement results for all resonator prototypes.
Precision displacement laser interferometry is crucial in various applications such as microlithography, high-performance profilometry, and gravitational wave detection. We are currently developing a fiber-based heterodyne laser interferometer that features compact size and low noise floor. Laser beams at two different wavelengths are utilized to construct a fiberbased interferometer system. Narrow band spectral filters are used to separate the beams of different wavelengths and to control their optical paths. The highly common optical paths between the two interferometers provide a high commonmode rejection ratio to instrument and environmental noise sources. In this paper we present the interferometer design, benchtop prototype system, and preliminary measurement results obtained in the lab environments. A benchtop prototype shows sub-nm/√Hz displacement sensitivities in air at frequencies above 100 mHz in our lab.
LISA is a space-based gravitational wave observatory aimed at detecting gravitational waves in the frequency range of 0.1 mHz to 0.1 Hz. The observatory is composed of three spacecraft, each separated by 2.5 million km in an equilateral triangle formation, trailing the Earth in a heliocentric orbit. One of the many crucial components to the mission is the LISA telescope, a bidirectional component used to expand an outgoing laser beam to the far spacecraft as well as compress a large incoming beam to a diameter of a few mm at the optical bench. Since the telescope is in the path of the long-baseline interferometer, its structure must be dimensionally stable at the pm/√Hz level at mHz frequencies. A way to measure the stability of the LISA telescope is with a compact optical truss interferometer (OTI), consisting of three Fabry-Perot cavities mounted along the telescope to monitor structural distortions over time. All three cavities are operated with a common laser source, and each cavity is equipped with an acousto-optic modulator to shift the nominal laser frequency as well as an electro-optical modulator to modulate the laser phase for Pound-Drever-Hall locking. Variations in each cavity’s length create variations in their corresponding laser frequency, which can be measured against a reference frequency that is locked to an external ultra-stable cavity. We will present the design and preliminary results in the fabrication and testing of firstgeneration OTI prototypes.
High sensitivity displacement interferometer has wide applications in gravitational wave detection area, performing as crucial part in test mass dynamics measurement and seismic motion monitoring for low-noise observatory operation. With advances in heterodyne laser interferometry, sensitivities at levels of sub-nm/√Hz over sub-Hz frequencies can be achieved. However, the breakthrough towards picometer level still needs various techniques in noise characterization and suppression. In this article, a compact heterodyne laser interferometer design as well as benchtop prototype system is presented. Common noise sources and their effects are investigated, including laser frequency noise, non-linear OPD noise, thermo-elastic noise, as well as readout noise from phasemeters and photoreceivers to determine the sensitivity limits in our system. Furthermore, each individual noise source is characterized with dedicated instruments and the coupling coefficients are determined respectively. By subtracting the individual noise contributions, the interferometer sensitivity reaches a sensitivity at the picometer level above 100 mHz frequency. We will present our progress and current results.
Multiple wavelength interferometry has long been considered an option for the measurement of large aspheric slope departures. In particular, a synthetic wavelength offers a variety of approaches by which large phase excursions can be unwrapped. Using multiple wavelengths can create collimation and magnification mismatch errors between the individual wavelengths that arise during beam expansion and propagation. Here, we present and analyze alignment and calibration methods for a dual-wavelength interferometer that can significantly reduce both misalignment errors and chromatic aberrations in the system. To correct for misalignment, a general method is described for the alignment of a dual-wavelength interferometer, including the alignment of lasers, beam expanders, beam splitters for combining beams and for compensating errors in the reference surface, and the fringe imaging system. A Fourier transform test at the detector surface was conducted to validate that there is essentially no magnification difference between two wavelengths resulting from misalignment of optical system. For the chromatic aberration introduced by the optical elements in the system, a ray-trace model of the interferometer has been established, to simulate the chromatic effect that optical elements will have on the measurement results. As an experimental test, we examine an off-axis spherical mirror in a non-null condition using a highly aliased interferogram. The above alignment methods and the results are analyzed based on the simulated system errors. Using this method, we demonstrate a measured surface profile of deviation of λ/25 which is comparable to a direct measurement profile of the surface on axis using a Fizeau interferometer.
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