Agilent Vaclon Plus 1000

FEATURES:

Gravitational Waves Detected 100 Years

After Einstein’s Prediction

Agilent has contributed to the detection of gravitational waves 100 years after Einstein

predicted them.

The Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) is designed to open

the field of gravitational-wave astrophysics through the direct detection of gravitational

waves predicted by Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity. LIGO’s multikilometer-scale

gravitational wave detectors use laser interferometry to measure the minute ripples in

space-time caused by passing gravitational waves from cataclysmic cosmic sources.

These cosmic sources can include the mergers of pairs of neutron stars or black holes,

or supernovae. LIGO consists of two widely separated interferometers within the United

States, one in Hanford, Washington and the other in Livingston, Louisiana. These

interferometers are operated in unison to detect gravitational waves.

KAGRA is a Gravitational Wave detector under construction in Japan, where Agilent

VIP1000 Ion Pumps will be part of the vacuum system (assembled and tested at

MIRAPRO).

Creating ultraclean and stable high vacuum in these multikilometer detectors is instrumental

to the operation of the entire system and was one of the key technological challenges.

Furthermore uptime, reliability, and vibrationless operation are an absolute requirement for

such detectors.

Agilent designed and built customized ion pumps to fulfil all these stringent criteria,

providing the ideal vacuum conditions for the success of this experiment.

Agilent Ion Pumps mounted on LIGO

Gravitational Waves Detector and at MIRAPRO

for KAGRA Gravitational Wave Interferometer.

*The images are courtesy of

Caltech/MIT/LIGO Laboratory (USA)

and of MIRAPRO CO.LTD (Japan)

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