International Summer Research Program in Gravitational-Wave Physics:
Research Experiences for Undergraduates around the world


2010 PROJECTS


Characterization of the Virgo Seismic Environment
Mentor: Irene Fiori (Virgo site, at the EGO, Casina, Italy)

Search for Gravitational Waves from Rotating Core Collapse Supernova using Principal Component Analysis
Mentor: Patrick Sutton (Cardiff University, Wales)

Loss Measurements of Waveguide Grating Cantilevers
Mentor: Iain Martin (University of Glasgow, Scotland)

Development of a Mach-Zehnder interferometer to improve the small torsion pendulum angular readout on the 1TM pendulum
Mentors: Daniele Nicolodi and Bill Weber (Dipartimento di Fisica, Universit?di Trento, Italy)

Measuring the Quantum Efficiency of a Photo Diode using Radiation Pressure
Mentors: Stefan Ballmer and Seiji Kawamura (National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, Tokyo, Japan)

Mechanical Quality Factor of Sapphire Membranes
Mentors: Flavio Travasso and Luca Gammaitoni (Universit?di Perugia, Italy)

Characterizing the Temperature Sensitivity of the Hartmann Sensor
Mentors: Peter Veitch and Won Kim (University of Adelaide, Australia)

Development of an inspiral search pipeline using the nested sampling technique
Mentor: John Veitch (Cardiff University, Wales)

Wave Front Detection for Virgo
Mentors: David Rabeling and Jo van den Brand (NIKHEF, Amsterdam, Holland)

Building a State Space Model of the GEO600 Control Architechture
Mentors: Bruce Allen and Jonathan Leong (Albert Einstein Institute, Hannover, Germany)

Ground Testing for LISA Test Masses with a Torsion Pendulum
Mentor: Bill Weber (University of Trento, Italy)

Reflectance of Coated Mirrors in the 10m Prototype Interferometer
Mentor: Harald Lueck (Albert Einstein Institute, Hannover, Gernmany)

Applications of Noise in Physical Systems
Mentors: Luca Gammaittoni and Helios Vocca (University of Perugia, Italy)

Quality Factor of a Single Pendulum for Use in Gravitational Wave Interferometry
Mentors: Kazuhiro Agatsuma and Seiji Kawamura (NAOJ, Tokyo, Japan)


2009 PROJECTS


Quantum Noise, Squeezed Light and other adventures at ANU
Mentor: David McClelland (ANU, Canberra, Australia)

Optical Resonator Calculator: Gravitational Wave Detector Cavity Simulations with Processing
Mentor: Andreas Freise (University of Birmingham, Birmingham, England)

Simulations of Gravitational Wave Generating Transient Objects on Telescope Images
Mentor: Eric Chassande-Mottin (APC, University of Paris 7, Paris France)

Ranging Implementation for LISA: Signal Processing Development
Mentors: Roland Fleddermann and Gerhard Heinzel (AEI, Hannover, Germany)

Progress Towards A Squeezed Light Enhanced Zero-Area Sagnac Interferometer
Mentor: Roman Schnabel (AEI, Hannover, Germany)

Installation and Characterization of the AdvLIGO 200W PSL
Mentor: Benno Willke (AEI, Hannover, Germany)

Optimized Mirror Coatings for LIGO
Mentor: Innocenzo Pinto (University of Sannio, Benevento, Italy)

A Method and Algorithm for Detecting GW Signals in Strong Noise
Mentors: Leopoldo Milano and Luca Forte (University of Naples, "Federico II", Naples, Italy)

Modeling Gravitational Waveforms from Stellar Encounters
Mentor: Salvatore Capozziello (University of Naples, "Federico II", Naples, Italy)

Detecting and Characterizing Nonlinear Signal Components in VIRGO Data Channels
Mentor: Giancarlo Cella (Universit?di Pisa, Pisa, Italy)

Noise-hunting during the VSR2 run at Virgo
Mentor: Irene Fiori (Virgo Interferometer at EGO, Cascina, Italy)

Loss Processes at Elevated Temperature
Mentor: Iain Martin (University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland)

Kelvin Probe Charging Research: A look at test mass charging problems in the field of gravitational-wave interferometry
Mentor: Giles Hammond (National Astronomical Obsertory of Japan, Tokyo, Japan)

Einstein Telescope Mock Data Challenge
Mentor: B.S. Sathyaprakash (Cardiff University, Cardiff, Wales)

Principle Component Analysis Decomposition of Core Collapse Supernovae Gravitational Waveforms
Mentor: Patrick Sutton (Cardiff University, Cardiff, Wales)


2008 PROJECTS


Back-Reflected Light and the Reduction of Nonreciprocal Phase Noise in the Fiber Back-Link on LISA
Mentor: Roland Fleddermann and Gerhard Heinzel (Albert Einstein Institute, Hannover, Germany)

Designing Optical Layouts for the AEI 10 meter Prototype
Mentors: Stefan Go?er and Katrin Dahl (Albert Einstein Institute, Hannover, Germany)

An Application of Matching-Pursuit for the Characterization of Glitch Noise in Gravitational Wave Interferometers
Mentor: Innocenzo Pinto (University of Sannio, Benevento, Italy)

Virgo's New Cryogenic Payload: Modal frequency analysis
Mentor: Fulvio Ricci (Virgo Interferometer at EGO, Cascina, Italy)

Computer Analysis of Thermal Lensing in TGG and DKDP
Mentor: Eric Genin (Virgo Interferometer at EGO, Cascina, Italy)

Environmental Noise in the Virgo Interferometer
Mentors: Irene Fiori and Francesco Fidecaro (Virgo Interferometer at EGO, Cascina, Italy)

Measurement of Quantum Efficiency of a Photo Diode Using Radiation Pressure
Mentor: Shihori Sakata and Seiji Kawamura (National Astronomical Obsertory of Japan, Tokyo, Japan)

3D Displacement and Frequency Noise Free Interferometry
Mentors: Keiko Kokeyama and Seiji Kawamura (National Astronomical Obsertory of Japan, Tokyo, Japan)

Ellipsometry, Optical Spectrum Analyser and Atomic Force Microscope: measuring surface layer properties
Mentor: Liam Cunningham and Sheila Rowan (University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland)

Vacuum Kelvin Force Probe Research
Mentors: Giles Hammond and Ken Strain (University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland)

NINJA Data Analysis
Mentor: B.S. Sathyaprakash and Stephen Fairhurst (Cardiff University, Cardiff, Wales)

Searching for Gravitational Waves in LIGO Data: Using Tools in Multivariate Analysis
Mentors: Patrick Sutton (Cardiff University, Cardiff, Wales)


2007 PROJECTS


Improving and characterizing the burst-hardware injection pipeline for GEO600
Mentor: Martin Hewitson (Albert Einstein Institute, Hannover, Germany)

Mode Matching a Nd:YAG laser to Reference Cavity
Mentor: David Blair (Australian International Gravitational Observatory, Gingin, Western Australia)

DSP filter system
Mentor: David Blair (Australian International Gravitational Observatory, Gingin, Western Australia)

Digitally Enhanced Heterodyne Interferometry
Mentor: David McClelland (Australian National University, Canberra, Australia)



Proposed Projects, 2023
Other Prior Projects