The announcement of the first direct detection of gravitational waves (the merger of a binary black hole system) in February 2016 has heralded the new era of gravitational wave astronomy. It opens a new window to the universe, and will help reveal its “dark” secrets, inaccessible to astronomy in the electromagnetic spectrum and neutrino astronomy. After an introduction to gravitational waves and their effect on space-time I will explain the principle of interferometric gravitational wave detection. I will present advanced interferometer noise-reduction techniques and detector sensitivities. Finally, I will touch upon the current status of the field, including plans for spaceborne detectors.
Hosted by: Markus Aspelmeyer