Progress in the development of a position sensor for LISA drag-free control
Antonella Cavalleri, R. Dolesi, Giorgio Fontana, M. Hueller, John P. Turneaure, Stefano Vitale, William Joseph Weber · Classical and Quantum Gravity · 2001
We report on progress in the development of free-falling moving test-masses for LISA and for the related technology demonstration mission. We present simple formulae to evaluate the performance of the device as a function of the various design parameters, and we compare them with preliminary experimental results from a test prototype we are developing. Quantitative agreement is found. Finally, we present a control law, along with a performance simulation, for low-frequency electrostatic suspension of the test-mass with minimal perturbation of the motion within the measuring frequency band.