Weak-Light Phase-Locking Time Delay Interferometry with Optical Frequency Combs

Area of Science:

• Astrophysics
• Optical Physics
• Metrology

Background:

• Space-borne gravitational wave (GW) detectors require high signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) for sensitive measurements.
• The optical transponder, or phase-locking, scheme is proposed for future missions to maintain SNR.
• Time Delay Interferometry (TDI) combinations are crucial for data analysis in GW detection.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the phase-locking scheme in conjunction with optical frequency combs (OFCs) for space-borne GW detectors.
• To investigate the transfer characteristics of noises, particularly weak-light phase-locking (WLPL) noise, within this scheme.
• To assess the potential of OFCs to simplify data streams by synchronizing laser frequency and clock noise.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of the phase-locking scheme in the context of space-borne GW detection.
• Characterization of noise transfer functions, focusing on WLPL noise.
• Evaluation of TDI combinations for noise reduction and data simplification.

Main Results:

• The proposed phase-locking scheme with a shared laser simplifies TDI combinations.
• Optical frequency combs (OFCs) effectively synchronize laser frequency and clock noise, simplifying data streams.
• Specific TDI combinations can efficiently reduce WLPL noise.
• The synergy between phase-locking and OFCs significantly simplifies post-processing.

Conclusions:

• The combination of phase-locking and OFCs offers a promising approach for future space-borne GW detectors.
• This integrated scheme enhances SNR and simplifies data analysis, overcoming challenges posed by WLPL noise.
• The technology paves the way for more efficient and simplified gravitational wave data processing in space missions.