LISA Pathfinder test-mass charging during galactic cosmic-ray flux short-term variations
Journal
Date Issued
2015
Author(s)
Abstract
Metal free-floating test masses aboard the future interferometers devoted to gravitational wave detection in space are charged by galactic and solar cosmic rays with energies \gt 100 MeV/n. This process represents one of the main sources of noise in the lowest frequency band (\lt 10-3 Hz) of these experiments. We study here the charging of the LISA Pathfinder (LISA-PF) gold-platinum test masses due to galactic cosmic-ray (GCR) protons and helium nuclei with the Fluka Monte Carlo toolkit. Projections of the energy spectra of GCRs during the LISA-PF operations in 2015 are considered. This work was carried out on the basis of the solar activity level and solar polarity epoch expected for LISA-PF. The effects of GCR short-term variations are evaluated here for the first time. Classical Forbush decreases, GCR variations induced by the Sun rotation, and fluctuations in the LISA-PF frequency bandwidth are discussed.
Volume
32
Issue
3
Start page
035001
Issn Identifier
0264-9381
Ads BibCode
2015CQGra..32c5001G
Rights
open.access
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