Weighing the Universe using fast radio bursts. Fast radio bursts are a newly-discovered astronomical phenomenon whose millisecond-timescale emission occurs at cosmological distances, rendering them exceptional probes of the matter that lies in intergalactic space. This project aims to measure the positions and obtain the distances to these bursts to make a direct measurement of the density of ordinary matter in the Universe, at least 50 per cent of which is believed to remain undetected in inter ....Weighing the Universe using fast radio bursts. Fast radio bursts are a newly-discovered astronomical phenomenon whose millisecond-timescale emission occurs at cosmological distances, rendering them exceptional probes of the matter that lies in intergalactic space. This project aims to measure the positions and obtain the distances to these bursts to make a direct measurement of the density of ordinary matter in the Universe, at least 50 per cent of which is believed to remain undetected in intergalactic space. This project will measure the distribution of this missing matter, and find how it has evolved throughout the history of the Universe. This will provide significant benefits, such as addressing two fundamental questions about our Universe: how much matter does it contain, and has a large fraction of it hitherto evaded detection in intergalactic space?Read moreRead less
Enhancing gravitational wave detector sensitivity and bandwidth for astronomy. This project aims to create small optomechanical devices that amplify the signals in gravitational wave detectors, increasing their sensitivity, especially for higher frequency signals. Calibrated against the 2015 first detection of gravitational waves from black hole mergers, this technology could allow humanity to listen to black holes merging up to 30 times every day, while giving much greater sensitivity to signal ....Enhancing gravitational wave detector sensitivity and bandwidth for astronomy. This project aims to create small optomechanical devices that amplify the signals in gravitational wave detectors, increasing their sensitivity, especially for higher frequency signals. Calibrated against the 2015 first detection of gravitational waves from black hole mergers, this technology could allow humanity to listen to black holes merging up to 30 times every day, while giving much greater sensitivity to signals from smaller black holes and neutron stars. The new technology, which uses nano-scale suspended tiny mirrors controlled by laser light, is likely to have applications in making sensors and quantum devices for advanced instrumentation, improve mineral exploration and measure tiny electromagnetic signals.Read moreRead less