The LISA pathfinder mission

Armano, M. et al. (2015) The LISA pathfinder mission. Journal of Physics: Conference Series, 610, 012005. (doi: 10.1088/1742-6596/610/1/012005)

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Abstract

ISA Pathfinder (LPF), the second of the European Space Agency's Small Missions for Advanced Research in Technology (SMART), is a dedicated technology validation mission for future spaceborne gravitational wave detectors, such as the proposed eLISA mission. LISA Pathfinder, and its scientific payload - the LISA Technology Package - will test, in flight, the critical technologies required for low frequency gravitational wave detection: it will put two test masses in a near-perfect gravitational free-fall and control and measure their motion with unprecedented accuracy. This is achieved through technology comprising inertial sensors, high precision laser metrology, drag-free control and an ultra-precise micro-Newton propulsion system. LISA Pathfinder is due to be launched in mid-2015, with first results on the performance of the system being available 6 months thereafter. The paper introduces the LISA Pathfinder mission, followed by an explanation of the physical principles of measurement concept and associated hardware. We then provide a detailed discussion of the LISA Technology Package, including both the inertial sensor and interferometric readout. As we approach the launch of the LISA Pathfinder, the focus of the development is shifting towards the science operations and data analysis - this is described in the final section of the paper.

Item Type:Articles
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Perreur-Lloyd, Mr Michael and Killow, Dr Christian and Ward, Professor Henry and Robertson, Dr David
Authors: Armano, M., Audley, H., Auger, G., Baird, J., Binetruy, P., Born, M., Bortoluzzi, D., Brandt, N., Bursi, A., Caleno, M., Cavalleri, A., Cesarini, A., Cruise, M., Danzmann, K., Diepholz, I., Dolesi, R., Dunbar, N., Ferraioli, L., Ferroni, V., Fitzsimons, E., Freschi, M., Gallegos, J., Marirrodriga, C. G., Gerndt, R., Gesa, L. I., Gibert, F., Giardini, D., Giusteri, R., Grimani, C., Harrison, I., Heinzel, G., Hewitson, M., Hollington, D., Hueller, M., Huesler, J., Inchauspé, H., Jennrich, O., Jetzer, P., Johlander, B., Karnesis, N., Kaune, B., Korsakova, N., Killow, C., Lloro, I., Maarschalkerweerd, R., Madden, S., Mance, D., Martín, V., Martin-Porqueras, F., Mateos, I., McNamara, P., Mendes, J., Mendes, L., Moroni, A., Nofrarias, M., Paczkowski, S., Perreur-Lloyd, M., Petiteau, A., Pivato, P., Plagnol, E., Prat, P., Ragnit, U., Ramos-Castro, J., Reiche, J., Perez, J. A. R., Robertson, D., Rozemeijer, H., Russano, G., Sarra, P., Schleicher, A., Slutsky, J., Sopuerta, C. F., Sumner, T., Texier, D., Thorpe, J., Trenkel, C., Tu, H. B., Vetrugno, D., Vitale, S., Wanner, G., Ward, H., Waschke, S., Wass, P., Wealthy, D., Wen, S., Weber, W., Wittchen, A., Zanoni, C., Ziegler, T., and Zweifel, P.
College/School:College of Science and Engineering > School of Physics and Astronomy
Research Centre:College of Science and Engineering > School of Physics and Astronomy > Institute for Gravitational Research
Journal Name:Journal of Physics: Conference Series
Publisher:Institute of Physics Publishing Ltd.
ISSN:1742-6588
ISSN (Online):1742-6596
Copyright Holders:Copyright © 2015 The Authors
First Published:First published in Journal of Physics: Conference Series 610:012005
Publisher Policy:Reproduced under a Creative Commons License

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