Related papers: Shape, Color and Distance in Weak Gravitational Fl…
Intrinsic galaxy alignments constitute the major astrophysical systematic of forthcoming weak gravitational lensing surveys but also yield unique insights into galaxy formation and evolution. We build analytic models for the distribution of…
Understanding the properties of the first generation of galaxies is an ongoing challenge in observational astrophysics. While advances in deep field observation have led to the identification of large numbers of galaxies within the Epoch of…
This paper reviews the most recent developments related to the use of lensing clusters of galaxies as Gravitational Telescopes in deep Universe studies. We summarize the state of the art and the most recent results aiming at studying the…
We present results from a systematic search for strong gravitational lenses in the GOODS ACS data. The search technique involves creating a sample of likely lensing galaxies, which we define as massive early-type galaxies in a redshift…
Intrinsic alignments of galaxies can mimic to an extent the effects of shear caused by weak gravitational lensing. Previous studies have shown that for shallow surveys with median redshifts z_m = 0.1, the intrinsic alignment dominates the…
Current theories of structure formation predict specific density profiles of galaxy dark matter haloes, and with weak gravitational lensing we can probe these profiles on several scales. On small scales, higher-order shape distortions known…
Clusters of galaxies as gravitational lenses allow to study the stellar content and properties of high-z galaxies much fainter than the usual spectroscopic field surveys. We review the recent results obtained on the identification and study…
Gravitational lensing has long been considered as a valuable tool to determine the total mass of galaxy clusters. The shear profile as inferred from the statistics of ellipticity of background galaxies allows to probe the cluster…
In studies of star-forming regions, near-infrared excess (NIRX) sources--objects with intrinsic colors redder than normal stars--constitute both signal (young stars) and noise (e.g. background galaxies). We hunt down (identify) galaxies…
A computer code is described for the simulation of gravitational lensing data. The code incorporates adaptive mesh refinement in choosing which rays to shoot based on the requirements of the source size, location and surface brightness…
Weak gravitational lensing has proven to be a powerful tool to map directly the distribution of dark matter in the Universe. The technique, currently used, relies on the accurate measurement of the gravitational shear that corresponds to…
We present different methods used to identify high redshift (z>5) objects in the high-magnification regions of lensing galaxy clusters, taking advantage of very well constrained lensing models. The research procedures are explained and…
Most surveys for multiply-imaged gravitational lenses, outside of rich galaxy clusters, are based on sifting through large samples of distant sources to identify the rare examples of lensing. An alternative strategy, based on the selection…
Studies of weak gravitational lensing by large-scale structures require the measurement of the distortions introduced to the shapes of distant galaxies at the few percent level by anisotropic light deflection along the line of sight. To…
Foreground galaxies that amplify the light from background quasars may also dim that light if the galaxies contain enough dust. Extinction by dust in lenses could hide the large number of lensed systems predicted for a flat universe with a…
We present the results of a study of weak gravitational lensing by galaxies using imaging data that were obtained as part of the second Red Sequence Cluster Survey (RCS2). In order to compare to the baryonic properties of the lenses we…
The subject of this paper is to build a physical model describing shape and size correlations of galaxies due to weak gravitational lensing and due to direct tidal interaction of elliptical galaxies with gravitational fields sourced by the…
We present and analyse near-infrared spectroscopy for a sample of 28 gravitationally- lensed star-forming galaxies in the redshift range 1.5 < z < 5, observed mostly with the Keck II telescope. With typical magnifications of ~1.5-4…
Luminosity profiles of galaxies acting as strong gravitational lenses can be tricky to study. Indeed, strong gravitational lensing images display several lensed components, both point-like and diffuse, around the lensing galaxy. Those…
We use 118 strong gravitational lenses observed by the SLACS, BELLS, LSD and SL2S surveys to constrain the total mass profile and the profile of luminosity density of stars (light-tracers) in elliptical galaxies up to redshift $z \sim 1$.…