A 10 minute test of the weak equivalence principle

ORAL

Abstract

We are developing a payload for detecting a possible violation of the weak equivalence principle while on a sounding rocket's free-fall trajectory. We estimate an uncertainty of $\sigma (\eta )=10^{-16}$ from a single night-time flight. A quick experiment with this accuracy is possible because: 1) The principal measurement is by a laser gauge that has a projected measurement uncertainty of 0.1 pm$/\sqrt {Hz} $; 2) The thermal environment is stable; 3) Payload inversions cancel most systematic error and; 4) The test masses are in unrestrained free fall. I will provide an overview of the project with an emphasis on the features that enable a quick experiment.

*This work was supported by NASA grant NNX08AO04G.

Authors

  • Robert Reasenberg

    • SAO/CfA
  • Eiichi Hirose

    • SAO/CfA
  • Enrico Lorenzini

    • U. Padova, Italy
  • Biju Patla

    • SAO/CFA
    • SAO/CfA
  • James Phillips

    • SAO/CfA
    • SAO/CFA
  • Eugeniu Popescu

    • SAO/CfA
  • Emanuele Rocco

    • SAO/CfA
  • Rajesh Thapa

    • SAO/CfA