title: Generation of a flat-top laser beam for gravitational wave detectors by means of a nonspherical Fabry-Perot resonator.
abstract: We have tested a new kind of Fabry-Perot long-baseline optical resonator proposed to reduce the thermal noise sensitivity of gravitational wave interferometric detectors--the "mesa beam" cavity--whose flat top beam shape is achieved by means of an aspherical end mirror. We present the fundamental mode intensity pattern for this cavity and its distortion due to surface imperfections and tilt misalignments, and contrast the higher order mode patterns to the Gauss-Laguerre modes of a spherical mirror cavity. We discuss the effects of mirror tilts on cavity alignment and locking and present measurements of the mesa beam tilt sensitivity.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Fisica, Università di Pisa, Italy. marco.tarallo@pi.infn.it
authors.forename: Marco G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Tarallo
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Miller
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Agresti
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: D'Ambrosio
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: DeSalvo
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Forest
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Lagrange
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Mackowsky
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Michel
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Montorio
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Morgado
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Pinard
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Remilleux
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Simoni
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Willems