Dr. Evan Hall

Advanced LIGO is pushing toward its design sensitivity, seeking to double its circulating laser power while retaining stable, low noise operation. This has proven to be a challenge, and the Hanford and Livingston interferometers are now on the verge of uncontrollability due to accumulated wavefront errors induced by the high laser power. I will discuss the latest developments in the reworking of LIGO’s wavefront correction system, the road ahead to achieving full sensitivity, and the lessons that can be learned for the commissioning and operation of new observatories.