Proposal for a geophysical search for dilatonic waves

Abstract

We propose a new method of searching for the composition-dependent dilatonic waves, predicted by unified theories of strings. In this method, Earth's surface-gravity changes due to translational motions of its inner core, excited by dilatonic waves, are searched for by using superconducting gravimeters. This method has its best sensitivity at the frequency of $\sim$ 7 $\times$ 10$^{-5}$ Hz, which is lower than the sensitive frequencies of previous proposals using gravitational-wave detectors: $\sim$ 10 to 1000 Hz. Using available results of surface-gravity measurements with superconducting gravimeters and assuming a simple Earth model, we present preliminary upper limits on the energy density of a stochastic background of massless dilatons at the low frequency. Though the results are currently limited by the uncertainty in the Earth model, this method has a potential of detecting dilatonic waves in a new window.