Cristian E. Rusu

H0LiCOW - V. New COSMOGRAIL time delays of HE 0435-1223: H0 to 3.8 per cent precision from strong lensing in a flat ΛCDM model

We present a new measurement of the Hubble Constant H-0 and other cosmological parameters based on the joint analysis of three multiply imaged quasar systems with measured gravitational time delays. First, we measure the time delay of HE 0435-1223 from 13-yr light curves obtained as part of the COSMOGRAIL project. Companion papers detail the modelling of the main deflectors and line-of-sight effects, and how these data are combined to determine the time-delay distance of HE 0435-1223. Crucially, the measurements are carried out blindly with respect to cosmological parameters in order to avoid confirmation bias. We then combine the time-delay distance of HE 0435-1223 with previous measurements from systems B1608+656 and RXJ1131-1231 to create a Time Delay Strong Lensing probe (IDSL). In flat A cold dark matter (ACDM) with free matter and energy density, we find H-0 = 71.9(-3.0)(+2.4) km s(-1) Mpc(-1) and Omega(Lambda) = 0.62(-0.35)(+0.24) This measurement is completely independent of, and in agreement with, the local distance ladder measurements of H-0. We explore more general cosmological models combining TDSL with other probes, illustrating its power to break degeneracies inherent to other methods. The joint constraints from IDSL and Planck are H-0 = 69.2(-2.2)(+1.4) km s(-1) Mpc(-1), Omega(Lambda) = 0.70(-0.01)(+0.01) and Omega(k) = 0.003(-0.006)(+0.004) in open ACDM and H-0 = 79.0(-4.2)(+4.4) km s(-1) Mpc(-1), Omega(de) = 0.77(-0.03)(+0.02) and w = -1.38(-0.16)(+0.14) in flat wCDM. In combination with Planck and baryon acoustic oscillation data, when relaxing the constraints on the numbers of relativistic species we find N-eff = 3.34(-0.21)(+0.21) in N-eff Lambda CDM and when relaxing the total mass of neutrinos we find Sigma rn(nu) <= 0.182 eV in m(nu) Lambda CDM. Finally, in an open wCDM in combination with Planck and cosmic microwave background lensing, we find H-0 = 77.9(-4.2)(+5.0) km s(-1) Mpc(-1), Omega(de) = 0.77(-0.03)(+0.03), Omega(k) = -0.003(-0.004)(+0.004) and w = -1.37(-0.23)(+0.18).

The stellar and dark matter distributions in elliptical galaxies from the ensemble of strong gravitational lenses

We derive the average mass profile of elliptical galaxies from the ensemble of 161 strong gravitational lens systems selected from several surveys, assuming that the mass profile scales with the stellar mass and effective radius of each lensing galaxy. The total mass profile is well fitted by a power-law \rho(r) \propto r^\gamma with best-fit slope \gamma = -2.11+/-0.05. The decomposition of the total mass profile into stellar and dark matter distributions is difficult due to a fundamental degeneracy between the stellar initial mass function (IMF) and the dark matter fraction f_DM. We demonstrate that this IMF-f_DM degeneracy can be broken by adding direct stellar mass fraction measurements by quasar microlensing observations. Our best-fit model prefers the Salpeter IMF over the Chabrier IMF, and a smaller central dark matter fraction than that predicted by adiabatic contraction models.

H0LiCOW - I. H0 Lenses in COSMOGRAIL's Wellspring: program overview

Strong gravitational lens systems with time delays between the multiple images allow measurements of time-delay distances, which are primarily sensitive to the Hubble constant that is key to probing dark energy, neutrino physics and the spatial curvature of the Universe, as well as discovering new physics. We present H0LiCOW (H-0 Lenses in COSMOGRAILs Wellspring), a program that aims to measure H-0 with <3.5 per cent uncertainty from five lens systems (B1608+ 656, RXJ1131-1231, HE 0435-1223, WFI2033-4723 and HE 1104-1805). We have been acquiring (1) time delays through COSMOGRAIL and Very Large Array monitoring, (2) high-resolution Hubble Space Telescope imaging for the lens mass modelling, (3) wide-field imaging and spectroscopy to characterize the lens environment and (4) moderate-resolution spectroscopy to obtain the stellar velocity dispersion of the lenses for mass modelling. In cosmological models with one-parameter extension to flat Lambda cold dark matter, we expect to measure H-0 to <3.5 per cent in most models, spatial curvature Omega(k) to 0.004, w to 0.14 and the effective number of neutrino species to 0.2 (1s uncertainties) when combined with current cosmic microwave background (CMB) experiments. These are, respectively, a factor of similar to 15, similar to 2 and similar to 1.5 tighter than CMB alone. Our data set will further enable us to study the stellar initial mass function of the lens galaxies, and the co-evolution of supermassive black holes and their host galaxies. This program will provide a foundation for extracting cosmological distances from the hundreds of time-delay lenses that are expected to be discovered in current and future surveys.

Discovery of two gravitationally lensed quasars in the Dark Energy Survey

We present spectroscopic confirmation of two new gravitationally lensed quasars, discovered in the Dark Energy Survey (DES) and Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) based on their multiband photometry and extended morphology in DES images. Images of DES J0115-5244 show a red galaxy with two blue point sources at either side, which are images of the same quasar at zs = 1.64 as obtained by our long-slit spectroscopic data. The Einstein radius estimated from the DES images is 0.51 arcsec. DES J2146-0047 is in the area of overlap between DES and the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). Two blue components are visible in the DES and SDSS images. The SDSS fibre spectrum shows a quasar component at zs = 2.38 and absorption by Mg II and Fe II at zl = 0.799, which we tentatively associate with the foreground lens galaxy. Our long-slit spectra show that the blue components are resolved images of the same quasar. The Einstein radius is 0.68 arcsec, corresponding to an enclosed mass of 1.6 × 1011 Ms. Three other candidates were observed and rejected, two being low-redshift pairs of starburst galaxies, and one being a quasar behind a blue star. These first confirmation results provide an important empirical validation of the data mining and model-based selection that is being applied to the entire DES data set.

H0LiCOW – III. Quantifying the effect of mass along the line of sight to the gravitational lens HE 0435−1223 through weighted galaxy counts

Based on spectroscopy and multiband wide-field observations of the gravitationally lensed quasar HE 0435-1223, we determine the probability distribution function of the external convergence K-ext for this system. We measure the under/overdensity of the line of sight towards the lens system and compare it to the average line of sight throughout the Universe, determined by using the CFHTLenS (The Canada France Hawaii Lensing Survey) as a control field. Aiming to constrain K-ext as tightly as possible, we determine under/overdensities using various combinations of relevant informative weighting schemes for the galaxy counts, such as projected distance to the lens, redshift and stellar mass. We then convert the measured under/overdensities into K-ext distribution, using ray-tracing through the Millennium Simulation. We explore several limiting magnitudes and apertures, and account for systematic and statistical uncertainties relevant to the quality of the observational data, which we further test through simulations. Our most robust estimate of K-ext has a median value K-ext(med)= 0.004 and a standard deviation sigma(k)= 0.025. The measured sigma(k) corresponds to 2.5 per cent relative uncertainty on the time delay distance, and hence the Hubble constant H-0 inferred from this system. The median K-ext(med) value varies by similar to 0.005 with the adopted aperture radius, limiting magnitude and weighting scheme, as long as the latter incorporates galaxy number counts, the projected distance to the main lens and a prior on the external shear obtained from mass modelling. This corresponds to just similar to 0.5 per cent systematic impact on H-0. The availability of a well-constrained.ext makes HE 0435-1223 a valuable system for measuring cosmological parameters using strong gravitational lens time delays.

Subaru Telescope adaptive optics observations of gravitationally lensed quasars in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey

We present the results of an imaging observation campaign conducted with the Subaru Telescope adaptive optics system (IRCS+AO188) on 28 gravitationally lensed quasars (23 doubles, 1 quad, and 1 possible triple, and 3 candidates) from the SDSS Quasar Lens Search. We develop a novel modelling technique that fits analytical and hybrid point spread functions (PSFs), while simultaneously measuring the relative astrometry, photometry, as well as the lens galaxy morphology. We account for systematics by simulating the observed systems using separately observed PSF stars. The measured relative astrometry is comparable with that typically achieved with the Hubble Space Telescope, even after marginalizing over the PSF uncertainty. We model for the first time the quasar host galaxies in 5 systems, without a-priory knowledge of the PSF, and show that their luminosities follow the known correlation with the mass of the supermassive black hole. For each system, we obtain mass models far more accurate than those previously published from low-resolution data, and we show that in our sample of lensing galaxies the observed light profile is more elliptical than the mass, for ellipticity > 0.25. We also identify eight doubles for which the sources of external and internal shear are more reliably separated, and should therefore be prioritized in monitoring campaigns aimed at measuring time-delays in order to infer the Hubble constant.

H0LiCOW VI. Testing the fidelity of lensed quasar host galaxy reconstruction

The empirical correlation between the mass of a supermassive black hole (M-BH) and its host galaxy properties is widely considered to be an evidence of their co-evolution. A powerful way to test the co-evolution scenario and learn about the feedback processes linking galaxies and nuclear activity is to measure these correlations as a function of redshift. Unfortunately, currently M-BH can only be estimated in active galaxies at cosmological distances. At these distances, bright active galactic nuclei (AGNs) can outshine the host galaxy, making it extremely difficult to measure the hosts luminosity. Strongly lensed AGNs provide in principle a great opportunity to improve the sensitivity and accuracy of the host galaxy luminosity measurements as the host galaxy is magnified and more easily separated from the point source, provided the lens model is sufficiently accurate. In order to measure the M-BH-L correlation with strong lensing, it is necessary to ensure that the lens modelling is accurate, and that the host galaxy luminosity can be recovered to at least a precision and accuracy better than that of the typical M-BH measurement. We carry out extensive and realistic simulations of deep Hubble Space Telescope observations of lensed AGNs obtained by our collaboration. We show that the host galaxy luminosity can be recovered with better accuracy and precision than the typical uncertainty in M-BH(similar to 0.5 dex) for hosts as faint as 2-4 mag dimmer than the AGN itself. Our simulations will be used to estimate bias and uncertainties in the actual measurements to be presented in a future paper.

H0LiCOW - II. Spectroscopic survey and galaxy-group identification of the strong gravitational lens system HE 0435-1223

Galaxies located in the environment or along the line of sight towards gravitational lenses can significantly affect lensing observables, and can lead to systematic errors on the measurement of H-0 from the time-delay technique. We present the results of a systematic spectroscopic identification of the galaxies in the field of view of the lensed quasar HE 0435-1223 using the W. M. Keck, Gemini and ESO-Very Large telescopes. Our new catalogue triples the number of known galaxy redshifts in the direct vicinity of the lens, expanding to 102 the number of measured redshifts for galaxies separated by less than 3 arcmin from the lens. We complement our catalogue with literature data to gather redshifts up to 15 arcmin from the lens, and search for galaxy groups or clusters projected towards HE 0435-1223. We confirm that the lens is a member of a small group that includes at least 12 galaxies, and find 8 other group candidates near the line of sight of the lens. The flexion shift, namely the shift of lensed images produced by high-order perturbation of the lens potential, is calculated for each galaxy/group and used to identify which objects produce the largest perturbation of the lens potential. This analysis demonstrates that (i) at most three of the five brightest galaxies projected within 12 arcsec of the lens need to be explicitly used in the lens models, and (ii) the groups can be treated in the lens model as an external tidal field (shear) contribution.

Discovery of the Lensed Quasar System DES J0408-5354

We report the discovery and spectroscopic confirmation of the quad-like lensed quasar system DES J0408-5354 found in the Dark Energy Survey (DES) Year 1 (Y1) data. This system was discovered during a search for DES Y1 strong lensing systems using a method that identified candidates as red galaxies with multiple blue neighbors. DES J0408-5354 consists of a central red galaxy surrounded by three bright (i < 20) blue objects and a fourth red object. Subsequent spectroscopic observations using the Gemini South telescope confirmed that the three blue objects are indeed the lensed images of a quasar with redshift z = 2.375, and that the central red object is an early-type lensing galaxy with redshift z = 0.597. DES J0408-5354 is the first quad lensed quasar system to be found in DES and begins to demonstrate the potential of DES to discover and dramatically increase the sample size of these very rare objects.

Discovery of the First Quadruple Gravitationally Lensed Quasar Candidate with Pan-STARRS

We report the serendipitous discovery of the first gravitationally lensed quasar candidate from Pan-STARRS. The grizy images reveal four point-like images with magnitudes between 14.9 mag and 18.1 mag. The colors of the point sources are similar, and they are more consistent with quasars than with stars or galaxies. The lensing galaxy is detected in the izy bands, with an inferred photometric redshift of ~0.6, lower than that of the point sources. We successfully model the system with a singular isothermal ellipsoid with shear, using the relative positions of the five objects as constraints. While the brightness ranking of the point sources is consistent with that of the model, we find discrepancies between the model-predicted and observed fluxes, likely due to microlensing by stars and millilensing due to the dark matter substructure. In order to fully confirm the gravitational lens nature of this system and add it to the small but growing number of the powerful probes of cosmology and astrophysics represented by quadruply lensed quasars, we require further spectroscopy and high-resolution imaging.