Mapping the distribution of luminous and dark matter in strong lensing galaxies

Ignacio Ferreras, Prasenjit Saha, Liliya L.R. Williams, Scott Burles

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

1 Scopus citations

Abstract

We present the distribution of luminous and dark matter in a set of strong lensing (early-type) galaxies. By combining two independent techniques stellar population synthesis and gravitational lensing we can compare the baryonic and dark matter content in these galaxies within the regions that can be probed using the images of the lensed background source. Two samples were studied, extracted from the CASTLES and SLACS surveys. The former probes a wider range of redshifts and allows us to explore the mass distribution out to ~ 5Re. The high resolution optical images of the latter (using HST/ACS) are used to show a pixellated map of the ratio between total and baryonic matter. We find dark matter to be absent in the cores of these galaxies, with an increasing contribution at projected radii R Re. The slopes are roughly compatible with an isothermal slope (better interpreted as an adiabatically contracted NFW profile), but a large scatter in the slope exists among galaxies. There is a trend suggesting most massive galaxies have a higher content of dark matter in the regions probed by this analysis.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)206-215
Number of pages10
JournalProceedings of the International Astronomical Union
Volume3
Issue numberS244
DOIs
StatePublished - Jun 2007

Keywords

  • CD
  • Cosmology: dark matter
  • Galaxies: elliptical and lenticular
  • Galaxies: halos
  • Galaxies: stellar content
  • Gravitational lensing

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