ABSTRACT
We have designed, built and tested a high-performance phase camera, which can observe laser wavefronts in a large range of sideband frequencies. Our phase camera scans the laser beam over a pinhole diode and uses a heterodyne technique to independently assess the information in the upper and lower sidebands of up to five different modulation frequencies. Amplitude and phase images, consisting of 214 points each, are obtained every second for each of the 11 demodulated frequencies in parallel. The achieved sensitivity is about 4×10-3 rad (λ/1600 at λ = 1064 nm) at the center of the beam, corresponding to a wavefront deformation of 0.7 nm, and drops to about 3 nm over the beam size. This sensitivity is extremely useful for diagnostic purposes in gravitational wave detectors and fits the requirements for control loops in Advanced Virgo. We report on the design, realization and performance of our phase camera.
ABSTRACT
KAGRA is a cryogenic interferometric gravitational wave detector currently under construction in the Kamioka mine in Japan. Besides the cryogenic test masses, KAGRA will also rely on room temperature optics which will hang at the bottom of vibration isolation chains. The payload of each chain comprises an optic, a system to align it, and an active feedback system to damp the resonant motion of the suspension itself. This article describes the performance of a payload prototype that was assembled and tested in vacuum at the TAMA300 site at the NAOJ in Mitaka, Tokyo. We describe the mechanical components of the payload prototype and their functionality. A description of the active components of the feedback system and their capabilities is also given. The performance of the active system is illustrated by measuring the quality factors of some of the resonances of the suspension. Finally, the alignment capabilities offered by the payload are reported.
