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arXiv · 2606.23415

High-Stability Deformable Mirrors for Correcting Non-Axisymmetric Residual Aberrations in Thermal Compensation of Future Gravitational Wave Interferometers

Luciano Antonio Corubolo·Matteo Lorenzini·Lorenzo Aiello·Elisabetta Cesarini·Maria Cifaldi·Matteo Ianni·Diana Lumaca·Yury Minenkov·Ilaria Nardecchia·Alessio Rocchi·Claudia Taranto·Viviana Fafone
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Abstract

In gravitational wave detectors, optical aberrations arise mainly from laser absorption in coatings and production process defects in the optics along the laser path. If left uncorrected, these optical path distortions drive the interferometer away from its optimal working point, degrading both stability and sensitivity. Future instruments such as the Einstein Telescope high-frequency detector will operate with unprecedented circulating power, further amplifying the aberration budget. In the current detectors Advanced Virgo and Advanced LIGO, the axisymmetric distortions are corrected using thermal actuators and CO2 laser projectors, however, non-axisymmetric wavefront distortions remain unmitigated. Deformable mirrors are investigated as a flexible solution for mitigating such defects: by shaping the CO2 beam phase upon reflection, they can imprint the required asymmetric intensity pattern on the lensing optics without introducing frequency dependent noise. The target phase map is computed via a modified Gerchberg-Saxton algorithm. We present simulations of this projection strategy and experimental validation demonstrating consistent reproduction of the desired intensity patterns.

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Luciano Antonio Corubolo, Matteo Lorenzini, Lorenzo Aiello, Elisabetta Cesarini, Maria Cifaldi, Matteo Ianni, Diana Lumaca, Yury Minenkov, Ilaria Nardecchia, Alessio Rocchi, Claudia Taranto, Viviana Fafone. 2026-06-22. High-Stability Deformable Mirrors for Correcting Non-Axisymmetric Residual Aberrations in Thermal Compensation of Future Gravitational Wave Interferometers. https://arxiv.org/abs/2606.23415

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