Quantum locking of mirrors in interferometers

Phys Rev Lett. 2003 Feb 28;90(8):083601. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.90.083601. Epub 2003 Feb 24.

Abstract

We show that quantum noise in very sensitive interferometric measurements such as gravitational-wave detectors can be drastically modified by quantum feedback. We present a new scheme based on active control to lock the motion of a mirror to a reference mirror at the quantum level. This simple technique allows one to reduce quantum effects of radiation pressure and to greatly enhance the sensitivity of the detection.