Cluster Mass Estimators from CMB Temperature and Polarization Lensing

Abstract

Upcoming Sunyaev-Zel'dovich surveys are expected to return ~10^4 intermediate mass clusters at high redshift. Their average masses must be known to same accuracy as desired for the dark energy properties. Internal to the surveys, the CMB potentially provides a source for lensing mass measurements whose distance is precisely known and behind all clusters. We develop statistical mass estimators from 6 quadratic combinations of CMB temperature and polarization fields that can simultaneously recover large-scale structure and cluster mass profiles. The performance of these estimators on idealized NFW clusters suggests that surveys with a ~1' beam and 10uK' noise in uncontaminated temperature maps can make a ~10sigma detection, or equivalently a ~10% mass measurement for each 10^3 set of clusters. With internal or external acoustic scale E-polarization measurements, the ET cross correlation estimator can provide a stringent test for contaminants on a first detection at \~1/3 the significance. For surveys that reach below 3muK', the EB cross correlation estimator should provide the most precise measurements and potentially the strongest control over contaminants.