Introduction

Resonant-bar detectors are designed to measure the acoustic signal induced in a massive bar due to its coupling to a gravitational wave. The large amplitude of thermal vibration in the bar normally considerably exceeds the amplitudes expected from astrophysical sources, and without methods to suppress this noise the principle of detection by resonant masses would be impossible. Weber's key contribution was the realisation that in a high Q antenna-one with a low acoustic loss – the effective noise energy is reduced by a factor ∽τi/τa where τi is the effective measurement integration time, and τa is the antenna ring down time. The advantage from using a low acoustic loss antenna is a direct result of the fluctuation-dissipation theorem. A high Q antenna approaches an ideal harmonic oscillator, whose motion is exactly predictable at a time in the future from the observed amplitude, frequency and phase at an earlier time.

In this chapter we will examine the key concepts of resonant-bar detectors, and provide the framework for the following chapters on different aspects of resonant-bar technology.

Intrinsic noise in resonant-mass antennas

In 1971, Gibbons and Hawking gave an analysis of resonant-mass antennas which led to improved techniques and better understanding of the noise sources. They noted that Weber had monitored the energy or RMS amplitude of the fundamental mode of his antennas.