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    Searching for New Physics with a Levitated-Sensor-Based Gravitational-Wave Detector

    Nancy Aggarwal1,2, George P. Winstone1, Mae Teo3, Masha Baryakhtar4,5, Shane L. Larson2, Vicky Kalogera2, and Andrew A. Geraci1,2,*

    • 1Center for Fundamental Physics, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, USA
    • 2Center for Interdisciplinary Exploration and Research in Astrophysics (CIERA), Department of Physics and Astronomy, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, USA
    • 3Stanford Institute for Theoretical Physics, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305, USA
    • 4Center for Cosmology and Particle Physics, Department of Physics, New York University, New York, New York 10003, USA
    • 5Department of Physics, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA

    • *Corresponding author. andrew.geraci@northwestern.edu
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    Phys. Rev. Lett. 128, 111101 – Published 16 March, 2022

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.128.111101

    Abstract

    The levitated sensor detector (LSD) is a compact resonant gravitational-wave (GW) detector based on optically trapped dielectric particles that is under construction. The LSD sensitivity has more favorable frequency scaling at high frequencies compared to laser interferometer detectors such as LIGO and VIRGO. We propose a method to substantially improve the sensitivity by optically levitating a multilayered stack of dielectric discs. These stacks allow the use of a more massive levitated object while exhibiting minimal photon recoil heating due to light scattering. Over an order of magnitude of unexplored frequency space for GWs above 10 kHz is accessible with an instrument 10 to 100 meters in size. Particularly motivated sources in this frequency range are gravitationally bound states of the axion from quantum chromodynamics with decay constant near the grand unified theory scale that form through black hole superradiance and annihilate to GWs. The LSD is also sensitive to GWs from binary coalescence of sub-solar-mass primordial black holes and as-yet unexplored new physics in the high-frequency GW window.

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    Phys. Rev. Lett. 128, 111101– Published 16 March, 2022
    • Received 25 October 2020
    • Revised 13 November 2021
    • Accepted 9 February 2022
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