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Sensitivity of the Advanced LIGO detectors at the beginning of gravitational wave astronomy

Physical review. D/Physical review. D. · 2016 · Vol. 93(11)

Д. В. Мартынов✉(California Institute of Technology)E. D. Hall(California Institute of Technology)B. P. Abbott(California Institute of Technology)R. Abbott(California Institute of Technology)T. D. Abbott(Louisiana State University)C. Adams(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)R. X. Adhikari(California Institute of Technology)R. A. Anderson(California Institute of Technology)S. B. Anderson(California Institute of Technology)K. Arai(California Institute of Technology)M. A. Arain(University of Florida)S. M. Aston(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)Larry Austin(California Institute of Technology)S. Ballmer(Syracuse University)M. Barbet(University of Florida)D. BarkerB. Barr(University of Glasgow)L. Barsotti(Massachusetts Institute of Technology)J. BartlettM. A. BartonI. Bartos(Columbia University)J. C. BatchA. S. Bell(University of Glasgow)Ilya Belopolski(Columbia University)J. BergmanJ. Betzwieser(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)G. Billingsley(California Institute of Technology)J. Birch(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)Sébastien Biscans(Massachusetts Institute of Technology)C. Biwer(Syracuse University)E. Black(California Institute of Technology)C. D. Blair(The University of Western Australia)C. Bogan(Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics)C. Bond(University of Birmingham)R. Bork(California Institute of Technology)D. O. Bridges(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)A. F. Brooks(California Institute of Technology)D. Brown(University of Birmingham)L. Carbone(University of Birmingham)C. Celerier(Stanford University)G. Ciani(University of Florida)F. ClaraD. CookS. T. Countryman(Columbia University)M. J. Cowart(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)D. C. Coyne(California Institute of Technology)A. Cumming(University of Glasgow)L. Cunningham(University of Glasgow)M. Damjanic(Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics)R. Dannenberg(California Institute of Technology)K. Danzmann(Leibniz University Hannover)C. F. Da Silva Costa(University of Florida)E. J. Daw(University of Sheffield)D. DeBra(Stanford University)R. T. DeRosa(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)R. DeSalvo(University of Sannio)K. L. Dooley(University of Mississippi)S. Doravari(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)Jennifer C DriggersS. E. DwyerA. Effler(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)T. Etzel(California Institute of Technology)Michael N. Evans(Massachusetts Institute of Technology)T. M. Evans(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)M. Factourovich(Columbia University)H. Fair(Syracuse University)D. Feldbaum(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)R. P. Fisher(Syracuse University)S. Foley(Massachusetts Institute of Technology)M. Frede(Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics)A. Freise(University of Birmingham)P. Fritschel(Massachusetts Institute of Technology)V. V. Frolov(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)P. Fulda(University of Florida)M. Fyffe(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)Vincenzo Galdi(University of Sannio)J. A. Giaime(Louisiana State University)K. D. Giardina(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)Joseph Gleason(University of Florida)E. Goetz(University of Florida)S. Gras(Massachusetts Institute of Technology)C. GrayR. J. S. Greenhalgh(Rutherford Appleton Laboratory)H. Grote(Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics)C. Guido(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)K. E. Gushwa(California Institute of Technology)E. K. Gustafson(California Institute of Technology)R. Gustafson(University of Michigan)G. Hammond(University of Glasgow)J. HanksJ. Hanson(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)T. Hardwick(Louisiana State University)I. W. Harry(American University)K. Haughian(University of Glasgow)J. Heefner(California Institute of Technology)M. C. Heintze(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)A. Heptonstall(California Institute of Technology)D. Hoak(University of Massachusetts Amherst)J. Hough(University of Glasgow)A. Ivanov(California Institute of Technology)K. IzumiM. Jacobson(California Institute of Technology)E. James(California Institute of Technology)R. Jones(University of Glasgow)S. Kandhasamy(University of Mississippi)S. Karki(University of Oregon)M. Kasprzack(Louisiana State University)S. Kaufer(Leibniz University Hannover)K. KawabeW. Kells(California Institute of Technology)N. KijbunchooE. J. King(The University of Adelaide)Peter KingD. L. Kinzel(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)J. S. KisselK. Kokeyama(Louisiana State University)W. Z. Korth(California Institute of Technology)G. Kuehn(Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics)P. Kwee(Massachusetts Institute of Technology)M. LandryB. Lantz(Stanford University)A. Le Roux(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)B. M. LevineJ. B. Lewis(California Institute of Technology)V. LhuillierN. A. Lockerbie(University of Strathclyde)M. Lormand(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)M. LubinskiA. P. Lundgren(Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics)T. MacDonald(Stanford University)M. MacInnis(Massachusetts Institute of Technology)D. M. Macleod(Louisiana State University)M. Mageswaran(California Institute of Technology)K. Mailand(California Institute of Technology)S. Márka(Columbia University)Z. Márka(Columbia University)A. S. Markosyan(Stanford University)E. Maros(California Institute of Technology)I. W. Martin(University of Glasgow)R. M. Martin(University of Florida)J. N. Marx(California Institute of Technology)K. Mason(Massachusetts Institute of Technology)T. J. Massinger(Syracuse University)F. Matichard(Massachusetts Institute of Technology)N. Mavalvala(Massachusetts Institute of Technology)R. McCarthyD. E. McClelland(Australian National University)S. McCormick(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)G. McIntyre(California Institute of Technology)J. McIver(California Institute of Technology)E. L. MerilhM. S. Meyer(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)P. M. Meyers(University of Minnesota)J. Miller(Massachusetts Institute of Technology)R. Mittleman(Massachusetts Institute of Technology)G. MorenoC. Mueller(University of Florida)G. Mueller(University of Florida)A. Mullavey(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)J. Munch(The University of Adelaide)P. G. Murray(University of Glasgow)L. K. Nuttall(Syracuse University)J. OberlingJ. O’Dell(Rutherford Appleton Laboratory)P. Oppermann(Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics)Richard J. Oram(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)B. O’Reilly(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)C. Osthelder(California Institute of Technology)D. J. Ottaway(The University of Adelaide)H. Overmier(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)J. R. Palamos(University of Oregon)H. R. Paris(Stanford University)W. Parker(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)Z. Patrick(Stanford University)A. Pele(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)S. Penn(Hobart and William Smith Colleges)M. Phelps(University of Glasgow)M. Pickenpack(Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics)V. Pierro(University of Sannio)I. M. Pinto(University of Sannio)J. Poeld(Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics)M. Principe(University of Sannio)L. Prokhorov(Lomonosov Moscow State University)O. Puncken(Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics)V. Quetschke(The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley)E. A. Quintero(California Institute of Technology)F. J. RaabH. RadkinsP. Raffai(Eötvös Loránd University)C. Ramet(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)C. M. ReedS. Reid(University of the West of Scotland)D. H. Reitze(California Institute of Technology)N. A. Robertson(California Institute of Technology)J. G. Rollins(California Institute of Technology)V. J. Roma(University of Oregon)J. H. Romie(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)S. Rowan(University of Glasgow)K. RyanT. SadeckiE. J. Sanchez(California Institute of Technology)V. SandbergV. Sannibale(California Institute of Technology)R. L. SavageR. M. S. Schofield(University of Oregon)Brad Schultz(Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics)P. SchwinbergJames A. Sellers(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)A. SêvignyD. A. Shaddock(Australian National University)Z. Shao(California Institute of Technology)B. Shapiro(Stanford University)P. Shawhan(University of Maryland, College Park)D. H. Shoemaker(Massachusetts Institute of Technology)D. SiggB. J. J. Slagmolen(Australian National University)J. R. Smith(California State University, Fullerton)M. R. Smith(California Institute of Technology)N. D. Smith-Lefebvre(California Institute of Technology)B. Sorazu(University of Glasgow)A. Staley(Columbia University)A. J. Stein(Massachusetts Institute of Technology)A. Stochino(California Institute of Technology)K. A. Strain(University of Glasgow)R. Taylor(California Institute of Technology)M. Thomas(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)P. ThomasK. A. Thorne(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)E. Thrane(Monash University)K. V. Tokmakov(University of Glasgow)C. I. Torrie(California Institute of Technology)G. Traylor(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)G. Vajente(California Institute of Technology)G. Valdes(The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley)D. C. Vander‐Hyde(University of Glasgow)M. Vargas(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)A. Vecchio(University of Birmingham)J. Veitch(The University of Adelaide)K. Venkateswara(University of Washington)T. Vo(Syracuse University)C. VorvickS. J. Waldman(Massachusetts Institute of Technology)M. Walker(Louisiana State University)R. L. Ward(Australian National University)J. WarnerB. WeaverR. Weiss(Massachusetts Institute of Technology)T. Welborn(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)P. Weßels(Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics)C. WilkinsonP. A. Willems(California Institute of Technology)L. Williams(University of Florida)B. Willke(Leibniz University Hannover)I. Wilmut(Rutherford Appleton Laboratory)L. Winkelmann(Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics)C. C. Wipf(California Institute of Technology)J. WordenG. Wu(LIGO Scientific Collaboration)H. Yamamoto(California Institute of Technology)C. C. Yancey(University of Maryland, College Park)H. F. Yu(Massachusetts Institute of Technology)L. Zhang(California Institute of Technology)M. E. Zucker(California Institute of Technology)J. Zweizig(California Institute of Technology)

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Abstract

The Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory (LIGO) consists of two widely separated 4 km laser interferometers designed to detect gravitational waves from distant astrophysical sources in the frequency range from 10 Hz to 10 kHz. The first observation run of the Advanced LIGO detectors started in September 2015 and ended in January 2016. A strain sensitivity of better than ${10}^{\ensuremath{-}23}/\sqrt{\mathrm{Hz}}$ was achieved around 100 Hz. Understanding both the fundamental and the technical noise sources was critical for increasing the astrophysical strain sensitivity. The average distance at which coalescing binary black hole systems with individual masses of $30\text{ }\text{ }{M}_{\ensuremath{\bigodot}}$ could be detected above a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of 8 was 1.3 Gpc, and the range for binary neutron star inspirals was about 75 Mpc. With respect to the initial detectors, the observable volume of the Universe increased by a factor 69 and 43, respectively. These improvements helped Advanced LIGO to detect the gravitational wave signal from the binary black hole coalescence, known as GW150914.

Pulsars and Gravitational Waves Research Geophysics and Sensor Technology Gamma-ray bursts and supernovaeLIGOPhysicsGravitational waveAstrophysicsAstronomyGravitational-wave observatoryObservatoryInterferometryBinary numberAstronomical interferometer

Funding

National Science Foundation
Kavli Foundation
Research Corporation for Science Advancement
Canadian Institute for Advanced Research
Institut des Origines de Lyon
Ontario Ministry of Economic Development and Innovation
Leverhulme Trust
Royal Society
Scottish Funding Council
Scottish Universities Physics Alliance
European Commission
National Research Foundation
Department of Science and Technology, Ministry of Science and Technology, India
Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, India
Stichting voor Fundamenteel Onderzoek der Materie
Russian Foundation for Basic Research
Canadian Network for Research and Innovation in Machining Technology, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
Industry Canada
Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek
Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad
Hungarian Scientific Research Fund
National Research Foundation of Korea
Max-Planck-Gesellschaft
Narodowe Centrum Nauki
Ministry of Education, India
Ministry of Science and Technology, Taiwan
Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
Ministero dello Sviluppo Economico
Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare
Govern de les Illes Balears
Science and Technology Facilities Council
Australian Research Council
Science and Engineering Research Board
Instituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare
Seventh Framework Programme
Division of Human Resource Development