Michele's wiki/blog

Authors: Lee Samuel Finn

Date: 24 Oct 2008

Abstract: The standard derivation of the response of interferometric gravitational wave detectors makes a series of erroneous approximations regarding the coordinate trajectory of the light and the parameterization of the null geodesic it travels along. These errors appear to have remained unrecognized for at least thirty five years. We provide, in full detail, a correct derivation of the response of a single-bounce Michelson interferometer to gravitational waves, compare it to the "standard", but incorrect, derivation, and show where the earlier mistakes were made. By a fortuitous set of circumstances, not generally so, the final result is the same.

abs pdf