The ET R&D project is organized in five Work Packages:
- WP1, "ET’s scientific potential", chaired by Sathyaprakash (Cardiff University/UK), having the following objectives:
- Carry out a series of mock ET data and science challenges of increasing complexity
- Explore how well astrophysical models of GW sources could be tested with ET
- Investigate possible strong field tests of GR with ET
- Probe ET’s potential for understanding the geometry and dynamics of the Universe
- WP2, "Long term seismic and GGN studies of selected sites", chaired by Nikhef (Netherlands), having the following objectives:
- Studies at candidate sites
- Sensor and network development
- Modeling of seismic and GGN noise
- WP3, "Optical properties of silicon at cryogenic temperatures", chaired by Ronny Nawrodt (Friedrich Schiller Universität Jena, Germany), having the following objectives:
- Stress induced birefringence of silicon-based optic
- Homogeneity of optical properties within larger samples
- Homogeneity of optical properties within larger samples
- Investigation of Whispering Gallery Mode Oscillators made of silicon to probe absorption and scattering
- WP4, "ET Control systems", chaired by Andreas Freise (Birmingham University, UK)),having the following objectives:
- Mitigation scheme for radiation pressure effects for the ET-HF interferometer.
- Control scheme for the injection of frequency dependent squeezed light.
- Low-frequency control scheme for the ET-LF interferometer.
- Mitigation scheme for correlated noise in co-located interferometers.
- Contamination of potential null stream signals by technical noises.
- WP4, "Management", chaired by Harald Lück (Leibniz Universität Hannover, Germany), addressed to the overall management of the project