Related papers: Maximum-Likelihood Cluster Recontruction
The lensing information provided by multiple images, arclets, and statistical distortions can all be formulated as linear constraints on the arrival-time surface, and hence on the mass distribution. This reduces cluster lens reconstruction…
Non-parametric lensing methods are a useful way of reconstructing the lensing mass of a cluster without making assumptions about the way the mass is distributed in the cluster. These methods are particularly powerful in the case of galaxy…
We introduce a novel approach to reconstruct dark matter mass maps from weak gravitational lensing measurements. The cornerstone of the proposed method lies in a new modelling of the matter density field in the Universe as a mixture of two…
A synopsis of the recent results from our study of galaxy-galaxy lensing in clusters is presented. We have applied our analysis techniques to the sample of HST cluster-lenses that span a redshift range from redshift 0.18 to 0.58. We find…
We develop a general theory for estimating the probability that a galaxy cluster of a given shape exists. The theory is based on the observed result that the distribution of galaxies is very close to quasi-equilibrium, in both its linear…
We propose a new, two-stage algorithm for inverting strong gravitational lenses. The key to the algorithm is decoupling the effects of lens magnification and intrinsic structure in the background source in the appearance of lensed arcs.…
The existence of galaxy intrinsic clustering severely hampers the weak lensing reconstruction from cosmic magnification. In paper I \citep{Yang2011}, we proposed a minimal variance estimator to overcome this problem. By utilizing the…
Using a non-parametric procedure developed by Kaiser \& Squires (1993), we analyse the statistical image distortions of faint field galaxies to $I\ls25.5$ in two distant X-ray luminous clusters 1455+22 ($z_{cl}=0.26$) and 0016+16…
We introduce a new, non-parametric method to infer deprojected 3D mass profiles $M(r)$ of galaxy clusters from weak gravitational lensing observations. The method assumes spherical symmetry and a moderately small convergence, $\kappa…
Exploiting the powerful tool of strong gravitational lensing by galaxy clusters to study the highest-redshift Universe and cluster mass distributions relies on precise lens mass modelling. In this work, we present the first attempt at…
We present a new algorithm to generate a random (unclustered) version of an magnitude limited observational galaxy redshift catalogue. It takes into account both galaxy evolution and the perturbing effects of large scale structure. The key…
Galaxies acting as gravitational lenses are surrounded by, at most, a handful of images. This apparent paucity of information forces one to make the best possible use of what information is available to invert the lens system. In this…
We explore three different methods based on weak lensing to extract cosmological constraints from the large-scale structure. In the first approach (method I), small-scale galaxy lensing measurements of their halo mass provide a constraint…
Weak gravitational lensing is considered to be one of the most powerful tools to study the mass and the mass distribution of galaxy clusters. However, weak lensing mass reconstructions are plagued by the so-called mass-sheet degeneracy--the…
The gravitational slip parameter is an important discriminator between large classes of gravity theories at cosmological and astrophysical scales. In this work we use a combination of simulated information of galaxy cluster mass profiles,…
It is shown in this paper that deviations of galaxy cluster lenses from spherical symmetry can render mass estimates for galaxy clusters based on the formation of large arcs systematically to high. Numerical models show that the mass needed…
Weak gravitational lensing of background galaxies is a unique, direct probe of the distribution of matter in clusters of galaxies. We review several important aspects of cluster weak gravitational lensing together with recent advances in…
Gravitational lensing can be used to analyze the redshift distribution of faint galaxies. In particular the magnification bias modifies locally the galaxy number density of lensed sources observed in lensing clusters. This depletion area…
We propose the novel method of ``gravitational imaging'' to detect and quantify luminous and dark-matter substructure in gravitational-lens galaxies. The method utilizes highly-magnified Einstein rings and arcs as sensitive probes of small…
We have previously reported the discovery of strong gravitational lensing by faint elliptical galaxies using the WFPC2 on HST and here we investigate their potential usefulness in putting constraints on lens mass models. We compare various…