Search Publications
Precision measurements of the magnetic parameters of LISA Pathfinder test masses
Mendes, L.; Russano, G.; Nofrarias, M. +76 more
A precise characterization of the magnetic properties of LISA Pathfinder free falling test-masses is of special interest for future gravitational wave observatory in space. Magnetic forces have an important impact on the instrument sensitivity in the low frequency regime below the millihertz. In this paper we report on the magnetic injection exper…
Magnetic-Induced Force Noise in LISA Pathfinder Free-Falling Test Masses
Mendes, L.; Russano, G.; Nofrarias, M. +76 more
LISA Pathfinder was a mission designed to test key technologies required for gravitational wave detection in space. Magnetically driven forces play a key role in the instrument sensitivity in the low-frequency regime, which corresponds to the measurement band of interest for future space-borne gravitational wave observatories. Magnetically induced…
Analysis and interpretation of the in-flight dynamics of a critical space mechanism
Dalla Ricca, Edoardo; Bortoluzzi, Daniele; Vignotto, Davide
The study hereby presented develops a mechatronic model of a critical space mechanism for a comprehensive interpretation of its in-flight performance. The mechanism was operated in the LISA Pathfinder European Space Agency mission, which was flown to test key technologies developed for detecting gravitational waves from space. The mission accompli…
Improved bounds on collapse models from rotational noise of the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna Pathfinder mission
Carlesso, Matteo; Vinante, Andrea; Altamura, Davide Giordano Ario
We study spontaneous wave-function collapse models, which modify the Schrödinger equation with nonlinear and stochastic terms offering a solution to the quantum measurement problem. We find that constraints on the phenomenological parameters of the continuous spontaneous localization (CSL) model can be tightened using the recent analysis of the La…
Advanced charge control dynamics simulation for the LISA gravitational reference sensor
Kenyon, Samantha Parry; Apple, Stephen; Siu, John +2 more
A gravitational wave detector in space, the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) will be able to detect gravitational waves in the frequency range of 0.1 mHz–1 Hz, adding to humanity's knowledge of the dark cosmos. The LISA gravitational reference sensor contains a test mass (TM) and is used to determine the local inertial reference frame and…
In-depth analysis of LISA Pathfinder performance results: Time evolution, noise projection, physical models, and implications for LISA
Mendes, L.; Russano, G.; Nofrarias, M. +78 more
We present an in-depth analysis of the LISA Pathfinder differential acceleration performance over the entire course of its science operations, spanning approximately 500 days. We find: (1) The evolution of the Brownian noise that dominates the acceleration amplitude spectral density (ASD), for frequencies f≳1 mHz, is consistent with the decaying p…
Riding the dark matter wave: Novel limits on general dark photons from LISA Pathfinder
Jaeckel, Joerg; Frerick, Jonas; Kahlhoefer, Felix +1 more
We note the possibility to perform a parametrically improved search for gauged baryon (B) and baryon minus lepton (
Sensor noise in L I S A P a t h f i n d e r : Laser frequency noise and its coupling to the optical test mass readout
Mendes, L.; Russano, G.; Sanjuan, J. +84 more
The LISA Pathfinder (LPF) mission successfully demonstrated the feasibility of the technology needed for the future space borne gravitational wave observatory LISA. A key subsystem under study was the laser interferometer, which measured the changes in relative distance in between two test masses (TMs). It achieved a sensitivity of 32.0-1.7
Nano-Newton electrostatic force actuators for femto-Newton-sensitive measurements: System performance test in the LISA Pathfinder mission
Mendes, L.; Russano, G.; Nofrarias, M. +89 more
Electrostatic force actuation is a key component of the system of geodesic reference test masses (TM) for the LISA orbiting gravitational wave observatory and in particular for performance at low frequencies, below 1 mHz, where the observatory sensitivity is limited by stray force noise. The system needs to apply forces of order 10-9 N …
Tilt-to-length coupling in LISA Pathfinder: Long-term stability
Mendes, L.; Russano, G.; Sanjuan, J. +75 more
The tilt-to-length coupling during the LISA Pathfinder mission has been numerically and analytically modeled for particular time spans. In this work, we investigate the long-term stability of the coupling coefficients of this noise. We show that they drifted slowly (by