859 research outputs found
Selective readout and back-action reduction for wideband acoustic gravitational wave detectors
We present the concept of selective readout for broadband resonant mass
gravitational wave detectors. This detection scheme is capable of specifically
selecting the signal from the contributions of the vibrational modes sensitive
to the gravitational waves, and efficiently rejecting the contribution from non
gravitationally sensitive modes. Moreover this readout, applied to a dual
detector, is capable to give an effective reduction of the back-action noise
within the frequency band of interest. The overall effect is a significant
enhancement in the predicted sensitivity, evaluated at the standard quantum
limit for a dual torus detector. A molybdenum detector, 1 m in diameter and
equipped with a wide area selective readout, would reach spectral strain
sensitivities 2x10^{-23}/sqrt{Hz} between 2-6 kHz.Comment: 9 pages, 4 figure
Flying with the right principles at hand: An interactive lab to understand the physical origin of lift
A set of simple laboratory experiments aimed to understand the physical origin of lift is presented. The experiments are realized with simple materials and the use of multimedia reference sources (movies, computer simulations,
flow visualizations) is extensively applied in order to put forward otherwise complex fluid dynamical concepts. Emphasis is put in the individuation and correction of
commonly found misconceptions or wrong principles regarding, in particular, the concept of pressure, the role of viscosity, the flow behavior around an airfoil, the
domain of applicability of fluid dynamical principles, the role of flow curvature in attaining lift and the dynamical mechanisms at the basis of flight
Familial Uncombable Hair Syndrome: Ultrastructural Hair Study and Response toBiotin
Abstract: We report a family affected to the fourth generation by uncombable
hair syndrome. This syndrome is characterized by unruly, dry,
blond hair with a tangled appearance. The family pedigree strongly supports
the hypothesis of autosomal dominant inheritance; some members of the
family had, apart from uncombable hair, minor signs of atopy and ectodermal
dysplasia, such as abnormalities of the nails. The diagnosis was confirmed
by means of extensive scanning electron microscopy. A trial with oral biotin
5 mg/daywas started on two young patients with excellent results as regards
the hair appearance, although scanning electron microscopy did not show
structural changes in the hair. After a 2-year-period of follow-up, hair normality
was maintained without biotin, while nail fragility still required biotin
supplementation for control
Feedback cooling of the normal modes of a massive electromechanical system to submillikelvin temperature
We apply a feedback cooling technique to simultaneously cool the three
electromechanical normal modes of the ton-scale resonant-bar gravitational wave
detector AURIGA. The measuring system is based on a dc Superconducting Quantum
Interference Device (SQUID) amplifier, and the feedback cooling is applied
electronically to the input circuit of the SQUID. Starting from a bath
temperature of 4.2 K, we achieve a minimum temperature of 0.17 mK for the
coolest normal mode. The same technique, implemented in a dedicated experiment
at subkelvin bath temperature and with a quantum limited SQUID, could allow to
approach the quantum ground state of a kilogram-scale mechanical resonator.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Correlation between Gamma-Ray bursts and Gravitational Waves
The cosmological origin of -ray bursts (GRBs) is now commonly
accepted and, according to several models for the central engine, GRB sources
should also emit at the same time gravitational waves bursts (GWBs). We have
performed two correlation searches between the data of the resonant
gravitational wave detector AURIGA and GRB arrival times collected in the BATSE
4B catalog. No correlation was found and an upper limit \bbox{} on the averaged amplitude of gravitational waves
associated with -ray bursts has been set for the first time.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
ON-LINE CONSISTENCY TESTS FOR BAR DETECTORS
In order to detect gravitational wave signals with resonant bar detectors using Wiener–Kolmogorov (WK) filters, both a model for the power spectrum density (PSD) of the noise and a signal template should be provided. As the analysis is not meant to handle non-gaussian data, we have to discriminate (and constrain to) time periods where the noise follows a quasi-stationary gaussian model. Within these periods, candidate events are selected in the WK filter output, and their fundamental parameters (time of arrival and amplitude) are computed. A necessary and sufficient condition for the reliability of such estimates is the consistency of the signal shape with the template. This is done performing a goodness-of-the-fit test
General relativistic Sagnac formula revised
The Sagnac effect is a time or phase shift observed between two beams of
light traveling in opposite directions in a rotating interferometer. We show
that the standard description of this effect within the framework of general
relativity misses the effect of deflection of light due to rotational inertial
forces. We derive the necessary modification and demonstrate it through a
detailed analysis of the square Sagnac interferometer rotating about its
symmetry axis in Minkowski space-time. The role of the time shift in a Sagnac
interferometer in the synchronization procedure of remote clocks as well as its
analogy with the Aharanov-Bohm effect are revised.Comment: 11 pages, 3 figure
Testing of optimal filters for gravitational wave signals: An experimental implementation
We have implemented likelihood testing of the performance of an optimal filter within the online analysis of AURIGA, a sub-Kelvin resonant-bar gravitational wave detector. We demonstrate the effectiveness of this technique in discriminating between impulsive mechanical excitations of the resonant-bar and other spurious excitations. This technique also ensures the accuracy of the estimated parameters such as the signal-to-noise ratio. The efficiency of the technique to deal with non-stationary noise and its application to data from a network of detectors are also discussed
The challenge of infrared imaging of frescos: Thermal Quasi-Reflectography unveils hidden features of artworks
Thermal Quasi-Reflectography is a new optical technique, based on Mid-IR, which is demonstrated to have a great potential in the diagnostics of frescoes. Here we address the key-points: 1) basic principles and instrumentation to enable operative measurements; 2) main diagnostic results
Robust vetoes for gravitational-wave burst triggers using known instrumental couplings
The search for signatures of transient, unmodelled gravitational-wave (GW)
bursts in the data of ground-based interferometric detectors typically uses
`excess-power' search methods. One of the most challenging problems in the
burst-data-analysis is to distinguish between actual GW bursts and spurious
noise transients that trigger the detection algorithms. In this paper, we
present a unique and robust strategy to `veto' the instrumental glitches. This
method makes use of the phenomenological understanding of the coupling of
different detector sub-systems to the main detector output. The main idea
behind this method is that the noise at the detector output (channel H) can be
projected into two orthogonal directions in the Fourier space -- along, and
orthogonal to, the direction in which the noise in an instrumental channel X
would couple into H. If a noise transient in the detector output originates
from channel X, it leaves the statistics of the noise-component of H orthogonal
to X unchanged, which can be verified by a statistical hypothesis testing. This
strategy is demonstrated by doing software injections in simulated Gaussian
noise. We also formulate a less-rigorous, but computationally inexpensive
alternative to the above method. Here, the parameters of the triggers in
channel X are compared to the parameters of the triggers in channel H to see
whether a trigger in channel H can be `explained' by a trigger in channel X and
the measured transfer function.Comment: 14 Pages, 8 Figures, To appear in Class. Quantum Gra
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