Broadband Measurement and Reduction of Quantum Radiation Pressure Noise in the Audio Band, 1st ed. 2020 Springer Theses Series

This book presents a direct measurement of quantum back action, or radiation pressure noise, on a macroscopic object at room temperature across a broad bandwidth in the audio range. This noise source was predicted to be a limitation for gravitational wave interferometers in the 1980s, but it has evaded direct characterization in the gravitational wave community due to the inherent difficult of reducing thermal fluctuations below the quantum back action level. This back action noise is a potential limitation in Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo, and Cripe?s experiment has provided a platform for the demonstration of quantum measurement techniques that will allow quantum radiation pressure noise to be reduced in these detectors. The experimental techniques Cripe developed for this purpose are also applicable to any continuous measurement operating near the quantum limit, and could lead to the possibility of observing non-classical behavior of macroscopic objects. 

Gravitational Waves and Gravitational Wave Detectors.- Optical Springs.- Cantilever Micro-Mirror and Optomechanical Cavity Design.- Radiation-Pressure-Mediated Control of an Optomechanical Cavity.- Observation of an Optical Spring from a Beamsplitter.- Broadband Measurement of Quantum Radiation Pressure Noise at Room Temperature.- Quantum Radiation Pressure Noise Reduction and Evasion.- Future Work and Conclusion.

Nominated as an outstanding Ph.D. thesis by the Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana Awarded the 2018 GWIC Stefano Braccini Thesis Prize for the most outstanding thesis in gravitational waves by the Gravitational Waves International Committee Demonstrates the first measurement of quantum radiation pressure noise at frequencies relevant to gravitational wave detectors Provides an informative introduction to the exciting field of gravitational waves