PSILOGO

Laboratory for Particle Physics (LTP)


LTP Colloquium

The Einstein Telescope: a Next-Generation gravitational Wave Detector in Europe

Thursday, September 26, 2024, 16:00
WHGA Auditorium

Steven Schramm, Genève University

Abstract:
The discovery of gravitational waves, first observed in September 2015 following the merger of a pair of black holes, has already revolutionised our understanding of the Universe. This individual signal has been followed by the observation of several other mergers per year, indicating that sources of gravitational waves are not isolated rarities, but rather represent a new window on the Universe. The current generation of gravitational-wave instruments have reached the required sensitivity to observe the most striking events, but they are limited to very energetic phenomena that occur in relatively close proximity to the Earth. The proposed next generation of ground-based gravitational-wave observatories, such as the Einstein Telescope in Europe, will dramatically increase the sensitivity: they will target both more-distant and less-energetic mergers, with the number of observations of gravitational wave signals expected to increase to roughly 100'000 per year. Such a change would redefine the scientific potential of gravitational waves, and open up exciting new possibilities to learn about the physics of our Universe - including particle physics.