"Breaking Boundaries: LIGO Shatters Quantum Limit"

Researchers at LIGO have made a significant advance in quantum squeezing technology, allowing them to measure undulations in space-time across the entire range of gravitational frequencies detected by LIGO. This new "frequency-dependent squeezing" technology improves LIGO's sensitivity and enables it to probe a larger volume of the universe, potentially detecting 60% more mergers than before. The development has implications for astronomy, quantum technologies, and fundamental physics experiments. The technology involves squeezing light to make more precise measurements, but there is a tradeoff as it introduces noise at lower frequencies. LIGO's new frequency-dependent squeezing cavity addresses this issue by selectively moving the quantum noise into different features of light depending on the frequency range of gravitational waves.