Related papers: Cluster Density Profiles as a Test of Modified Gra…
The inner slope (gammadm) of the dark matter (DM) density profile of cosmological halos carries information about the properties of DM and/or baryonic processes affecting the halo gravitational potential. Cold DM cosmological simulations…
We present a Markov chain Monte Carlo pipeline which can be used for unbiased large-scale tests of gravity using galaxy cluster observations. The pipeline, which currently uses cluster number counts to constrain the present-day background…
If dark matter interacts, even weakly, via non-gravitational forces, simulations predict that it will be preferentially scattered towards the trailing edge of the halo during collisions between galaxy clusters. This will temporarily create…
The lensing signal around galaxy clusters can, in principle, be used to test detailed predictions for their average mass profile from numerical simulations. However, the intrinsic shape of the profiles can be smeared out when a sample that…
We present the first sample of 882 optically selected galaxy clusters in the Deep Lens Survey (DLS), selected with the Bayesian Cluster Finder. We create mock DLS data to assess completeness and purity rates, and find that both are at least…
The properties of nearby galaxy clusters limit the range of cosmological parameters consistent with our universe. We describe the limits which arise from studies of the intracluster medium (ICM) mass fraction fICM and consideration of the…
Direct evidence for the existence of dark matter and measurements of its interaction cross-section have been provided by the physical offset between dark matter and intra- cluster gas in merging systems like the Bullet Cluster. Although a…
We revisit the cosmological viability of the Hu $\&$ Sawicki modified gravity scenario. The impact of such a modification on the different cosmological observables, including gravitational waves, is carefully described. The most recent…
If the accelerated expansion of the universe is due to a modification of general relativity at late times, it is likely that the growth of structure on large scales would also display deviations from the standard cosmology. We investigate…
Two colour photometry of the cluster A1689 reveals a `relative magnification-bias' between lensed blue and red background galaxies, arising from a dependence of the faint galaxy count-slope on colour. The colour distribution is skewed…
Large area surveys have detected significant samples of galaxy clusters that can be used to constrain cosmological parameters, provided that the masses of the clusters are measured robustly. To improve the calibration of cluster masses…
The statistics of gravitational lensing can provide us with a very powerful probe of the mass distribution of matter in the universe. By comparing predicted strong lensing probabilities with observations, we can test the mass distribution…
The different regimes of gravitational lensing constitutes an interesting tool in order to map the mass distribution in galaxy clusters on different scales. In this proceedings article, I review some work I have performed on this topic.…
We develop a new method to predict the density associated with weak lensing maps of (un)relaxed clusters in a range of theories interpolating between GR and MOND (General Relativity and Modified Newtonian Dynamics). We apply it to fit the…
The core structure of galaxy clusters is fundamentally important. Even though self-gravitating systems have no stable equilibrium state due to their negative heat capacity, numerical simulations find density profiles which are universal in…
Recent simulations have indicated that the dark matter halos of galaxy clusters should feature steep density jumps near the virial radius. Since the member galaxies are expected to follow similar collisionless dynamics as the dark matter,…
We propose a simple estimator for the gravitational potential of cluster-size halos using the temperature and density profiles of the intracluster gas based on the assumptions of hydrostatic equilibrium and spherical symmetry. Using high…
We develop an improved mass tracer for clusters of galaxies from optically observed parameters, and calibrate the mass relation using weak gravitational lensing measurements. We employ a sample of ~ 13,000 optically-selected clusters from…
We directly construct model-independent mass profiles of galaxy clusters from combined weak-lensing distortion and magnification measurements within a Bayesian statistical framework,which allows for a full parameter-space extraction of the…
Next-generation optical imaging surveys will revolutionise the observations of weak gravitational lensing by galaxy clusters and provide stringent constraints on growth of structure and cosmic acceleration. In these experiments, accurate…