DATES Monday 23 Dec, 2013 - Saturday 28 Dec, 2013

VENUE Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology, Indore

Invited lecturers 

  • Peter R Saulson, Syracuse University 
  • Rana Adhikari, California Institute of Technology 
  • Oliver Puncken, University of Texas at Brownsville 

Topics 

1.    Overview of gravitational waves and detectors

         A. Waves and sources (Peter Saulson)
         B. Survey of past and present detectors (Rana Adhikari)

2.    Interaction of waves and detectors
         A. Ground based and space based and bars (Peter Saulson)

3.    Shot noise and Radiation Pressure noise
         A. classic view / Poisson fluctuations (Peter Saulson)
         B. Vacuum fluctuations / quantum noise propagation in interferometers (Rana Adhikari)

4.    Theory of Linear Systems
         A. Basics   (Peter Saulson)
         B. network synthesis method for electronics (Rana Adhikari)

5.    Vibration isolation
         A. passive systems (Peter Saulson)
         B. active platforms, limits of seismometers,
            issues w/ optical, magnetic, and electrostatic levitation (Rana Adhikari)

6.    Thermal noise
          A. Brownian noise, Zener damping, thermo-elastic noise (Peter Saulson)
          B. Coatings, noise cancellation, generalized coordinates (Rana Adhikari)

7.    Optics of Fabry-Perot cavities
         A. plane wave picture, static response, audio frequency transfer functions (Peter Saulson)
         B. higher order transverse modes, geometric stability, ray matrix approach to gaussian beams (Rana Adhikari)
         C. Matrix approach for interferometer fields (Rana Adhikari)

8.   Control Systems
     A. Basics (feedback) (Peter Saulson)
     B. other topics, e.g. feed-forward, adaptive FF, MIMO,
        optimal feedback, state-space methods, H-infinity (Rana Adhikari)

9.   Details of current detectors
        A. specs (Peter Saulson)
        B. stories about current and past detectors (Rana Adhikari)

10.   Future detectors
        A. space (Peter Saulson)
        B. ET (Rana Adhikari)
        C. LIGO - III (Rana Adhikari)

11.  The advanced LIGO pre-stabilized laser (PSL) (Oliver Puncken)
12.  Laser diagnostics and developmental tools  (Oliver Puncken)
13.  Thermo-optical effects  (Oliver Puncken)
14.  Stabilization of the PSL  (Oliver Puncken)
15.  Installation and Integration of the PSL  (Oliver Puncken)

Schedule 

  • 0930-1030 First Lecture
  • 1030-1100 Tea Break
  • 1100-1200 Second Lecture
  • 1200-1300 Third Lecture
  • 1300-1400 Lunch
  • 1400-1600 Lab
  • 1600-1630 Tea Break
  • 1630-1730 Fourth Lecture
  • 1730-1830 Fifth Lecture
  • 1830-1930/2000 Question hour
  • 1930/2000 - Dinner

Preparatory material 

Participants are strongly encouraged to get familiarized with some of the basics of gravitational-wave physics and detection before coming to the school. Here are some suggested resources.