1 km
1 m
1 mm
1 µm
1 nm
1 pm
1 fm
1 am
Long-Baseline Interferometry

Precision optical systems spanning kilometer-scale baselines.

LIGO Livingston Observatory

Advanced LIGO uses 4 km Fabry–Pérot arm cavities to measure extraordinarily small changes in optical path length.

INTERFEROMETRY · OPTICAL SYSTEMS · LIGO
Experimental Optical Systems

Building and aligning complex optical experiments.

Precision mechanical design and optical hardware

Design, assembly and alignment of meter-scale optical systems integrating lasers, imaging, sensing and controls.

OPTICS · ALIGNMENT · EXPERIMENTAL PHYSICS
Precision Mechanical Design

Small components, fixtures and optical hardware.

Annular mask for precision optical system

Designing and machining precision components for experimental optical systems and instrumentation.

CAD · MACHINING · PROTOTYPING
Micro-Scale Optical Physics

Understanding localized behavior in precision optics.

Dark-field microscope image of a point absorber on an Advanced LIGO optic

Investigation of microscopic features and defects that influence the performance of precision optical systems.

OPTICAL MATERIALS · COATINGS · CHARACTERIZATION
Wavefront Sensing

Nanometer-scale measurement of optical wavefront distortion.

Hartmann wavefront sensor measurement

Hartmann wavefront sensing and imaging techniques for measuring optical-path distortion in precision interferometric systems.

IMAGING · OPTICS · SENSING
Precision Cavity Control

Suppressing residual motion in optical cavities.

IMAGE

Feedback sensing and control for maintaining resonance and suppressing residual length noise in precision optical cavities.

CONTROLS · INTERFEROMETRY · NOISE
Gravitational-Wave Detection

Measuring differential length changes at extraordinary precision.

IMAGE

Kilometer-scale interferometers measuring gravitational-wave strains corresponding to differential length changes on the attometer scale.

GRAVITATIONAL WAVES · LIGO · PRECISION MEASUREMENT