Mavalvala was among the team of scientists who, for the first time, observed ripples in the fabric of spacetime called gravitational waves. Mavalvala has been working on gravitational waves since 1991.[11] After the announcement of the observation, she became an instant celebrity scientist in her birthplace of Pakistan. A statement by the Prime Minister of PakistanNawaz Sharif praised Mavalvala, calling her a source of inspiration for Pakistani scientists and students aspiring to become future scientists. He also stated that "the entire nation is proud of her valuable contribution."[13]
Optical cooling of mirrors to nearly absolute zero can help eliminate measurement noise arising from thermal vibrations. A portion of Mavalvala's work focused on the extension of laser-cooling techniques to optically cool and trap more and more massive objects, both for the LIGO project and for other applications, such as to enable observation of quantum phenomena in macroscopic objects. Prominent results from her group in this area included the cooling of a centimeter-scale object to a temperature of 0.8 kelvin and the observation of a 2.7-kilogrampendulum near its quantum ground state. These experiments lay the foundations for observing quantum behavior in human-scale objects.[18][19]
Mavalvala has also worked on the development of exotic quantum states of light, and in particular the generation of light in squeezed coherent states.[20][21] By injecting such states into the kilometre-scale Michelson interferometer of the LIGO detectors, her group greatly improved the sensitivity of the detector by reducing quantum noise;[21] such squeezed states also have many other applications in experimental physics.[22] Her group was the first to generate squeezed light using optomechanics at room temperature,[23][24] compared to all previous optomechanical squeezed light sources that operated at cryogenic (very low) temperatures.
Mavalvala identifies as a lesbian and speaks openly on her sexual orientation and family history as a Pakistani immigrant, describing herself as an "out, queer person of color."[25] Mavalvala stated that she was not aware of her sexual orientation until after college. Mavalvala is frequently questioned about how she was able to break through the barrier of gender roles and pursue a career of her choice. In an interview with the Pakistani newspaper Dawn, Mavalvala states, "I grew up in a family where the stereotypical gender roles were not really observed. So I grew up thinking women can, must and should do anything and everything. That is very important for me."[7] She also speaks about the ability of individuals in Pakistan to break gender roles and stigmas: "Anybody should be able to do those things. And I am proof of that because I am all of those things. With the right combination of opportunity, it was possible for me to do."[25]
Mavalvala is often viewed as a role model for aspiring female scientists with roots in the Indian subcontinent. As a young child Mavalvala was frequently involved in handy work, and was not bound to stereotypical gender roles in subcontinent culture, due to the manner in which her sister and she were raised. Mavalvala states that much of her success is accredited to good mentors in both the United States and Pakistan that encouraged her academic ability. In a television interview in 2016, Mavalvala stated, "When everyone has access to education that's when all the other things come into place... [You've] got to do what gives you pleasure, gotta find a way to do it. People should just do what they enjoy most and I think for all of society whether it's in Pakistan or elsewhere we have to create opportunities for young girls to do what they're good at and do what they love to do must cultivate the sense of wonder in a child."[26]
Mavalvala and her partner have two children and reside in Cambridge, Massachusetts in the United States. Mavalvala has extended family in Karachi and visited the city in 2010.[10][14][27][28][29]
2017, the Carnegie Corporation of New York honored Mavalvala as one of its Great Immigrants awards recipients. The awards go to "naturalized citizens who have made notable contributions to the progress of American society."[33]