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Michimura Lab
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The lab pursues the nature of gravity through ultra-precise measurements with large laser interferometers.
AboutAbout the lab
Testing what gravity is through experiments.
The Michimura Lab studies the nature of gravity through ultra-precise measurements using large laser interferometers.
Gravity is a familiar force, yet it is extremely weak compared with the other forces, and it has the curious property of acting equally on everything.
Aiming to test theories of gravity and cosmology through gravitational wave observations, the lab is developing KAGRA, a large cryogenic gravitational wave telescope.
Making use of this interferometer technology, the lab also works on searches for dark matter, searches for the quantum nature of gravity, and tests of the theory of relativity.
Key terms
- Gravitational waves
- A phenomenon in which distortions of spacetime, produced when massive objects move violently, propagate as waves
- Laser interferometers
- A device that superimposes two split laser beams and reads out extremely small differences in the distances they have traveled
- Dark matter
- Matter of unknown nature that emits no light and hardly interacts with other matter except through gravity
NewsLab news
Developed a method to evaluate how improvements in KAGRA's performance affect the localization of gravitational wave sources
A student from the lab won the Gold Award at the student poster session
Developed a method to evaluate the birefringence of gravitational wave telescope mirrors, in joint research with Institute of Science Tokyo
Presented the lab's research at the FY2027 admissions guidance for the Department of Physics
Associate Professor Michimura received the Young Scientists' Prize of the Commendation for Science and Technology by the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
ResearchResearch themes
The lab conducts experimental research that addresses the question of what gravity is. It develops gravitational wave telescopes with the aim of testing theories of gravity and cosmology through gravitational wave observations, and it also carries out small-scale experiments that make use of the same interferometer technology.
*Illustrative imageGravitational Waves
Gravitational waves are a phenomenon in which distortions of spacetime propagate as waves. The lab is carrying out research and development on KAGRA, a large cryogenic gravitational wave telescope built underground in Kamioka, Gifu Prefecture, which cools its mirrors to suppress thermal vibrations.
*Illustrative imageDark Matter Searches
Focusing on the slight interaction between laser interferometers and dark matter, the lab searches for ultralight dark matter. It has proposed a new method for searching for axions by measuring the rotation of the polarization plane of laser light.
*Illustrative imageSearches for the Quantum Nature of Gravity
The lab investigates whether quantum mechanical superposition states can appear even in large objects. It has proposed a technique called optical levitation, in which a mirror is supported solely by the pressure of laser light so that it is isolated from its environment.
*Illustrative imageSearches for Violations of Lorentz Invariance
The lab tests Lorentz invariance, the principle that the speed of light does not depend on direction. Focusing on the anisotropy of the one-way speed of light, which has been difficult to measure until now, it has developed a new type of optical ring cavity.
MembersFaculty
The members of the Michimura Lab consist of faculty, project researchers, doctoral and master's students, and visiting collaborators.As of 2026
- Associate ProfessorYuta MichimuraPublications ↗
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Report an errorAbout the images
For images provided to us or used with permission, the source is listed on each line. Wikimedia Commons images are illustrative and were not taken at the lab (they are cropped). Cropped CC BY-SA images are provided under the same CC BY-SA license as the original (version shown on each line).
- Top image: “In-construction KAGRA gravitational-wave detector” Christopher Berry / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Gravitational Waves: “LIGO-NASA-Goddard Space Flight Center” NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center / Public domain (cropped)
- Dark Matter Searches: “Gravitational lensing in the galaxy cluster Abell 370 (captured by the Hubble Space Telescope)” NASA, ESA, the Hubble SM4 ERO Team and ST-ECF / CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
- Searches for the Quantum Nature of Gravity: “Nd-YAG laser” Thctamm / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Searches for Violations of Lorentz Invariance: “Ring laser gyroscope at MAKS-2011 airshow” Nockson / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Cannon Lab): “Maya-NR-Simulation-with-Waveform-frame788” Deborah Ferguson ほか、
Georgia Tech MAYA Collaboration / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped) - Related lab (Liang Lab): “NuclideMap stitched 2” NuclideMap.PNG: The viewer derivative work: Neokortex (talk) / Public domain (cropped)
- Related lab (Ushiroda Lab (Interdisciplinary Science Unit, The University of Tokyo / KEK Belle Group)): “SuperKEKB accelerator and Belle II detector, near the collision point” 高エネルギー加速器研究機構 / © KEK
- Related lab (Ando Lab): “NS binary merger simulation 323” NASA/AEI/ZIB/M. Koppitz and L. Rezzolla / Public domain (cropped)
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