On the mechanical quality factors of cryogenic test masses from fused silica and crystalline quartz

Current interferometric gravitational wave detectors (IGWDs) are operated at room temperature with test masses made from fused silica. Fused silica shows very low absorption at the laser wavelength of 1064 nm. It is also well suited to realize low thermal noise floors in the detector signal band since it offers low mechanical loss, i. e. high quality factors (Q factors) at room temperature. However, for a further reduction of thermal noise, cooling the test masses to cryogenic temperatures may prove an interesting technique. Here we compare the results of Q factor measurements at cryogenic temperatures of acoustic eigenmodes of test masses from fused silica and its crystalline counterpart. Our results show that the mechanical loss of fused silica increases with lower temperature and reaches a maximum at 30 K for frequencies of slightly above 10 kHz. The losses of crystalline quartz generally show lower values and even fall below the room temperature values of fused silica below 10 K. Our results show that in comparison to fused silica, crystalline quartz has a considerably narrower and lower dissipation peak on cooling and thus has more promise as a test mass material for IGDWs operated at cryogenic temperatures. The origin of the different Q factor versus temperature behavior of the two materials is discussed.Comment: 11 pages, 2 figures, submitted to Class. Quantum Gra

Temperature variation in distribution of relaxation times in aluminosilicate glasses

The distribution of relaxation times for the alkali peak in a Li₂ O·A1₂O₃ ·2.0SiO₂ glass and for the mixed alkali peak in a 0.5Li₂O·0.5Na₂O·A1₂O₃·2.OSiO₂ glass was studied using the internal friction technique. A lognormal distribution of relaxation times provided the best agreement with the experimental data. The ß parameter of the lognormal distribution function, which is related to the half-height peak width, varied with temperature, indicating that the distribution of relaxation times is dependent upon the activation energy and the activation entropy of the relaxation mechanism. The major contributor to the distribution of relaxation times is a wide distribution in the activation entropy, while the distribution in activation energy is relatively narrow. No noticeable change in internal friction was found when precautions were taken to eliminate any surface water on a specimen --Abstract, Page ii