A detector of high frequency gravitational waves based on coupled microwave cavities

Superconducting microwave cavities have been proposed for the detection of gravitational waves in the high frequency range of the spectrum. The interaction of the gravitational wave with the cavity walls, and the resulting motion, induces the transition of some electromagnetic energy from an initially excited cavity mode to an empty one. The energy transfer is maximum when the frequency of the wave is equal to the frequency difference of the two cavity modes. In this paper, some ideas for the development of a tunable detector of gravitational waves around 10 kHz are discussed; the outline of a possible detector design and its expected sensitivity are also shown.