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Updated: Jan 1, 2026

The Generation of Higher-order Laguerre-Gauss Optical Beams for High-precision Interferometry
Published on: August 12, 2013
Quantum-Enhanced Advanced LIGO Detectors in the Era of Gravitational-Wave Astronomy
M Tse1, Haocun Yu1, N Kijbunchoo2
1Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA.
Abstract:
The Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory (LIGO) has been directly detecting gravitational waves from compact binary mergers since 2015. We report on the first use of squeezed vacuum states in the direct measurement of gravitational waves with the Advanced LIGO H1 and L1 detectors. This achievement is the culmination of decades of research to implement squeezed states in gravitational-wave detectors. During the ongoing O3 observation run, squeezed states are improving the sensitivity of the LIGO interferometers to signals above 50 Hz by up to 3 dB, thereby increasing the expected detection rate by 40% (H1) and 50% (L1).
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