We present measurements of an optomechanical accelerometer for monitoring low-frequency noise in gravitational wave detectors, such as ground motion. Our device measures accelerations by tracking the test-mass motion of a 4.7 Hz mechanical resonator using a heterodyne interferometer. This resonator is etched from monolithic fused silica, an under-explored design in low-frequency sensors, allowing a device with a noise floor competitive with existing technologies but with a lighter and more compact form. In addition, our heterodyne interferometer is a compact optical assembly that can be integrated directly into the mechanical resonator wafer to further reduce the overall size of our accelerometer. We anticipate this accelerometer to perform competitively with commercial seismometers, and benchtop measurements show a noise floor reaching 82 pico-g Hz−1/2 sensitivities at 0.4 Hz. Furthermore, we present the effects of air pressure, laser fluctuations, and temperature to determine the stability requirements needed to achieve thermally limited measurements.
Skip Nav Destination
Article navigation
27 February 2023
Research Article|
February 28 2023
Compact optomechanical accelerometers for use in gravitational wave detectors
Special Collection:
Gravitational Wave Detectors
A. Hines
;
A. Hines
(Conceptualization, Data curation, Formal analysis, Investigation, Methodology, Visualization, Writing – original draft)
Aerospace Engineering and Physics
, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843, USA
Search for other works by this author on:
A. Nelson
;
A. Nelson
(Investigation, Methodology, Writing – review & editing)
Aerospace Engineering and Physics
, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843, USA
Search for other works by this author on:
Y. Zhang
;
Y. Zhang
(Investigation)
Aerospace Engineering and Physics
, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843, USA
Search for other works by this author on:
G. Valdes
;
G. Valdes
(Conceptualization, Investigation, Methodology, Supervision, Writing – review & editing)
Aerospace Engineering and Physics
, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843, USA
Search for other works by this author on:
J. Sanjuan
;
J. Sanjuan
(Formal analysis, Methodology, Supervision, Writing – review & editing)
Aerospace Engineering and Physics
, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843, USA
Search for other works by this author on:
F. Guzman
F. Guzman
a)
(Conceptualization, Funding acquisition, Methodology, Project administration, Resources, Supervision, Writing – review & editing)
Aerospace Engineering and Physics
, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843, USA
a)Author to whom correspondence should be addressed: felipe@tamu.edu
Search for other works by this author on:
a)Author to whom correspondence should be addressed: felipe@tamu.edu
Note: This paper is part of the APL Special Collection on Gravitational Wave Detectors.
Appl. Phys. Lett. 122, 094101 (2023)
Article history
Received:
January 11 2023
Accepted:
February 16 2023
Citation
A. Hines, A. Nelson, Y. Zhang, G. Valdes, J. Sanjuan, F. Guzman; Compact optomechanical accelerometers for use in gravitational wave detectors. Appl. Phys. Lett. 27 February 2023; 122 (9): 094101. https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0142108
Download citation file:
Sign in
Don't already have an account? Register
Sign In
You could not be signed in. Please check your credentials and make sure you have an active account and try again.
Sign in via your Institution
Sign in via your InstitutionPay-Per-View Access
$40.00