TDCOSMO: XX. WFI2033--4723, the First Quadruply-Imaged Quasar Modeled with JWST Imaging

Abstract

Gravitational time delays offer unique, independent measurements of the Hubble constant, $H_0$. Precise measurements of $H_0$ stand as one of the most pressing challenges in modern cosmology, and to do so with time delays requires precise lens models. While much work has focused on streamlining the modeling process to keep pace with the erumpent discovery of strongly-lensed systems, a critical step toward reducing uncertainty in $H_0$ comes from increasing the precision of individual lens models themselves. In this work, we demonstrate that the unprecedented imaging capabilities of JWST make this goal attainable. We present the first lens model for time-delay cosmography derived from JWST data, applied to the quadruply-imaged quasar WFI2033--4723. While the primary source of systematic uncertainty in time-delay cosmography is currently the mass-sheet degeneracy (MSD), the sensitivity of models to this MSD varies on how the point spread function (PSF) errors are mitigated. As the PSF is also the primary source of uncertainty in lens modeling, we focus on a comparison of different PSF modeling methods. Within the context of power-law models, we recover results in agreement with previous Hubble Space Telescope (HST)-based models, but with better precision of key lensing parameters through implementation of new PSF modeling techniques. Despite the record-holding precision of this system's HST modeling, we achieve an additional 22% increase in precision of the Fermat potential difference, directly reducing uncertainties of cosmological inference. These results would produce a 3% ($1\sigma$ of the modeling error) shift of $H_0$ towards a higher value for this lens, keeping all else constant. This work substantiates the groundbreaking potential of JWST for time-delay cosmography and lays the groundwork for modeling systems previously too faint to provide meaningful constraints on $H_0$.