Core Mass Estimates in Strong Lensing Galaxy Clusters: A Comparison between Masses Obtained from Detailed Lens Models, Single-halo Lens Models, and Einstein Radii

Remolina González, J.D.; Sharon, K.; Mahler, G.; Fox, C.; Garcia Diaz, C.A.; Napier, K.; Bleem, L.E.; Gladders, M.D.; Li, N.; Niemiec, A.

Abstract

The core mass of galaxy clusters is both an important anchor of the radial mass distribution profile and a probe of structure formation. With thousands of strong lensing galaxy clusters being discovered by current and upcoming surveys, timely, efficient, and accurate core mass estimates are needed. We assess the results of two efficient methods to estimate the core mass of strong lensing clusters: the mass enclosed by the Einstein radius (M(<θE), where θE is approximated from arc positions, and a single-halo lens model (MSHM), compared with measurements from publicly available detailed lens models (MDLM) of the same clusters. We use data from the Sloan Giant Arc Survey, the Reionization Lensing Cluster Survey, the Hubble Frontier Fields, and the Cluster Lensing and Supernova Survey with Hubble. We find a scatter of 18.1% (8.2%) with a bias of −7.1% (1.0%) between ${M}_{\mathrm{corr}}\left(\lt {\theta }_{\mathrm{arcs}}\right)$ (MSHM) and MDLM. Last, we compare the statistical uncertainties measured in this work to those from simulations. This work demonstrates the successful application of these methods to observational data. As the effort to efficiently model the mass distribution of strong lensing galaxy clusters continues, we need fast, reliable methods to advance the field.

Citation

Remolina González, J., Sharon, K., Mahler, G., Fox, C., Garcia Diaz, C., Napier, K., Bleem, L., Gladders, M., Li, N., & Niemiec, A. (2021). Core Mass Estimates in Strong Lensing Galaxy Clusters: A Comparison between Masses Obtained from Detailed Lens Models, Single-halo Lens Models, and Einstein Radii. Astrophysical Journal, 920(2), Article 98. https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ac16d8

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jul 20, 2021
• Online Publication Date: Oct 20, 2021
• Publication Date: 2021-10
• Deposit Date: Nov 23, 2021
• Publicly Available Date: Nov 23, 2021
• Journal: Astrophysical Journal
• Print ISSN: 0004-637X
• Electronic ISSN: 1538-4357
• Publisher: American Astronomical Society
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 920
• Issue: 2
• Article Number: 98
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ac16d8
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1223637