A Quantum Trick for Spotting Gravitational Waves

A new NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts (NIAC) grant is funding a concept from a team led by Paul Stankus at Brookhaven National Laboratory that could potentially solve some of the engineering problems in gravitational wave detection. The team proposes a method that uses quantum mechanics to detect gravitational waves without the need for a physical laser link between spacecraft. Instead of measuring the distance between spacecraft, they watch the astrometric signature of the gravitational waves themselves, by observing stars wobble due to the gravitational wave's influence. The method uses a quantum phenomenon called the Hanbury Brown and Twiss (HBT) effect, which the team has reduced to practice in a "two-photon amplitude interferometer." The concept involves launching two spacecraft into free-fall orbits, with no laser connection, and measuring the wobble of stars using single-photon detectors. The supercomputers compare the arrival times of photons from the two spacecraft to calculate phase interference, which indicates the presence of a gravitational wave. The team already produced a tabletop version of the concept in a 2023 paper, and their goal is to scale it to satellites in space over the next nine months. If successful, the technology could underlie a new way to probe the universe's most elusive phenomena.

• The team uses a quantum phenomenon called the HBT effect to detect gravitational waves without a physical laser link.
• The concept involves two spacecraft in free-fall orbits, measuring star wobbles using single-photon detectors.
• The supercomputers compare photon arrival times to calculate phase interference, indicating gravitational waves.
• The team has already created a tabletop version of the concept in a 2023 paper.
• The goal is to scale the concept to satellites in space over the next nine months.
• If successful, the technology could underlie a new way to probe the universe's most elusive phenomena.

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