Passive, Nonlinear, Mechanical Structures for Seismic Attenuation

Abstract

Gravitational wave detectors aim to detect strain perturbations of space-time on the order of 10−21–10−22 at frequencies between 1Hz and a few kHz. This space-time strain, integrated over kilometer scale interferometers, will induce movements of suspended mirrors on the order of 10−18–10−19m. Seismic motion in this frequency band varies between 10−6m and 10−12m. Required seismic attenuation factors, as large as 10−12, by far exceed the performance of motion sensors, and are only obtained by means of a chain of passive attenuators. High quality springs in configurations yielding nonlinear response are used to generate attenuation at low frequency. Similarly, nonlinear mechanisms are used in the horizontal direction. A description of some of these systems and some of the technical challenges that they involve is presented.