München 2006 – wissenschaftliches Programm
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GR: Gravitation und Relativitätstheorie
GR 202: Experimentelle Tests
GR 202.1: Hauptvortrag
Dienstag, 21. März 2006, 14:00–14:40, K
A modern Michelson-Morley experiment using ultrastable optical resonators — •Achim Peters — Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Institut für Physik, Hausvogteiplatz 5-7, 10117 Berlin
This talk will present a modern version of the classic Michelson-Morley experiment testing the isotropy of light propagation and thus the foundations of Special Relativity. From a modern perspective, this measurement is one out of a more general class of experiments investigating the validity of Lorentz-Invariance in the light of new theoretical approaches — such as string theory or loop quantum gravity — suggesting small violations.
The experiment itself is performed by monitoring the resonance frequency of an optical resonator continuously rotating on a precision turntable, making it possible to achieve a sensitivity at the Δ c( θ )/c ∼ 10−16 level for a direction dependent variation of the speed of light. I will analyze the experimental results in the context of modern test theories and discuss the potential for improvements in sensitivity by up to three orders of magnitude.