arXiv subjects

Sung Kei Li

Publications and source records attributed to Sung Kei Li.

26 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2024

Dark Matter distinguished by skewed microlensing in the "Dragon Arc"

Microlensed stars recently discovered by JWST & HST follow closely the winding critical curve of A370 along all sections of the ``Dragon Arc" traversed by the critical curve. These transients are fainter than $m_{AB}>26.5$, corresponding to the Asymptotic Giant Branch (AGB) and microlensed by diffuse cluster stars observed with $\simeq 18M_\odot/pc^2$, or about $\simeq 1$\% of the projected dark matter density. Most microlensed stars appear along the inner edge of the critical curve, following an asymmetric band of width $\simeq 4$kpc that is skewed by $-0.7\pm0.2$kpc. Some skewness is expected as the most magnified images should form along the inner edge of the critical curve with negative parity, but the predicted shift is small $\simeq -0.04$kpc and the band of predicted detections is narrow, $\simeq 1.4$kpc. Adding CDM-like dark halos of $10^{6-8}M_\odot$ broadens the band as desired but favours detections along the outer edge of the critical curve, in the wrong direction, where sub-halos generate local Einstein rings. Instead, the interference inherent to ``Wave Dark Matter" as a Bose-Einstein condensate ($ψ$DM) forms a symmetric band of critical curves that favours negative parity detections. A de Broglie wavelength of $\simeq 10$pc matches well the observed $4$kpc band of microlenses and predicts negative skewness $\simeq -0.6$kpc, similar to the data. The implied corresponding boson mass is $\simeq 10^{-22}$eV, in good agreement with estimates from dwarf galaxy cores when scaled by momentum. Further JWST imaging may reveal the pattern of critical curves by simply ``joining the dots" between microlensed stars, allowing wave corrugations of $ψ$DM to be distinguished from CDM sub-halos

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2024

Imaging dark matter at the smallest scales with $z\approx1$ lensed stars

Observations of caustic-crossing galaxies at redshift $0.7 2$ and the number density of events is greater around substructureand the number density of events is greater around substructures, and (ii) negative imaging regime where $β<2$. We study the particular case of seven microlensing events found by HST in the Dragon arc (at z=0.725). We find that a population of supergiant stars with a steep LF with $β=2.55$ fits the distribution of these events. We identify a small region of high density of microlensing events, and interpret it as evidence of a possible invisible substructure, for which we derive a mass of $\sim 1.3 \times 10^8\,\Msun$ (within its Einstein radius).

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2023

Flashlights: Properties of Highly Magnified Images Near Cluster Critical Curves in the Presence of Dark Matter Subhalos

Dark matter subhalos with extended profiles and density cores, and globular stars clusters of mass $10^6-10^8 M_\odot$, that live near the critical curves in galaxy cluster lenses can potentially be detected through their lensing magnification of stars in background galaxies. In this work we study the effect such subhalos have on lensed images, and compare to the case of more well studied microlensing by stars and black holes near critical curves. We find that the cluster density gradient and the extended mass distribution of subhalos are important in determining image properties. Both lead to an asymmetry between the image properties on the positive and negative parity sides of the cluster that is more pronounced than in the case of microlensing. For example, on the negative parity side, subhalos with cores larger than about $50\,$pc do not generate any images with magnification above $\sim 100$ outside of the immediate vicinity of the cluster critical curve. We discuss these factors using analytical and numerical analysis, and exploit them to identify observable signatures of subhalos: subhalos create pixel-to-pixel flux variations of $\gtrsim 0.1$ magnitudes, on the positive parity side of clusters. These pixels tend to cluster around (otherwise invisible) subhalos. Unlike in the case of microlensing, signatures of subhalo lensing can be found up to $1''$ away from the critical curves of massive clusters.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2023

Einstein rings modulated by wavelike dark matter from anomalies in gravitationally lensed images

Unveiling the true nature of Dark Matter (DM), which manifests itself only through gravity, is one of the principal quests in physics. Leading candidates for DM are weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) or ultralight bosons (axions), at opposite extremes in mass scales, that have been postulated by competing theories to solve deficiencies in the Standard Model of particle physics. Whereas DM WIMPs behave like discrete particles ($\varrho$DM), quantum interference between DM axions is manifested as waves ($ψ$DM). Here, we show that gravitational lensing leaves signatures in multiply-lensed images of background galaxies that reveal whether the foreground lensing galaxy inhabits a $\varrho$DM or $ψ$DM halo. Whereas $\varrho$DM lens models leave well documented anomalies between the predicted and observed brightnesses and positions of multiply-lensed images, $ψ$DM lens models correctly predict the level of anomalies left over by $\varrho$DM lens models. More challengingly, when subjected to a battery of tests for reproducing the quadruply-lensed triplet images in the system HS 0810+2554, $ψ$DM is able to reproduce all aspects of this system whereas $\varrho$DM often fails. The ability of $ψ$DM to resolve lensing anomalies even in demanding cases like HS 0810+2554, together with its success in reproducing other astrophysical observations, tilt the balance toward new physics invoking axions.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2023

A Lens Finder Map to check claimed High-z Galaxies behind SMACS J0723.3-7327

The first science image released by the JWST reveals numerous galaxies in the distant background of the galaxy cluster SMACS J0723.3-7327. Some have claimed redshifts of up to $z \simeq 20$, challenging standard cosmological models for structure formation. Here, we present a lens model for SMACS J0723.3-7327 anchored on five spectroscopically-confirmed systems at $1.38 \leq z \leq 2.21$ that are multiply lensed, along with twelve other systems with proposed image counterparts sharing common colours, spectral energy distributions, and morphological features, but having unknown redshifts. Constrained only by their image positions and, where available, redshifts, our lens model correctly reproduces the positions and correctly predicts the morphologies and relative brightnesses of all these image counterparts, as well as providing geometrically-determined redshifts spanning $1.4 \lesssim z \lesssim 6.7$ for the twelve candidate multiply-lensed galaxies lacking spectroscopic measurements. From this lens model, we create a lens finder map that defines regions over which galaxies beyond a certain redshift are predicted to be multiply lensed. Applying this map to three galaxies claimed to be at $10 \lesssim z \lesssim 20$, we find no image counterparts at locations (with an uncertainty of $\sim$$0.^{\prime\prime}5$) where they ought to be sufficiently magnified to be detectable - suggesting instead that these galaxies lie at $z \lesssim 1.7-3.2$. In lieu of spectroscopy, the creation of reliable lens finder maps for cluster fields are urgently needed to test and constrain redshifts inferred from photometry for a rapidly increasing number of candidate high-$z$ galaxies found with the JWST.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2023

BUFFALO/Flashlights: Constraints on the abundance of lensed supergiant stars in the Spock galaxy at redshift 1

We present a constraint on the abundance of supergiant (SG) stars at redshift z approx. 1, based on recent observations of a strongly lensed arc at this redshift. First we derive a free-form model of MACS J0416.1-2403 using data from the BUFFALO program. The new lens model is based on 72 multiply lensed galaxies that produce 214 multiple images, making it the largest sample of spectroscopically confirmed lensed galaxies on this cluster. The larger coverage in BUFFALO allows us to measure the shear up to the outskirts of the cluster, and extend the range of lensing constraints up to ~ 1 Mpc from the central region, providing a mass estimate up to this radius. As an application, we make predictions for the number of high-redshift multiply-lensed galaxies detected in future observations with JWST. Then we focus on a previously known lensed galaxy at z=1.0054, nicknamed Spock, which contains four previously reported transients. We interpret these transients as microcaustic crossings of SG stars and compute the probability of such events. Based on simplifications regarding the stellar evolution, we find that microlensing (by stars in the intracluster medium) of SG stars at z=1.0054 can fully explain these events. The inferred abundance of SG stars is consistent with either (1) a number density of stars with bolometric luminosities beyond the Humphreys-Davidson (HD) limit (L ~ $6\times10^5 L_{\odot}$) that is below 400 stars per sq. kpc, or (2) the absence of stars beyond the HD limit but with a SG number density of ~ 9000 per sq. kpc for stars with luminosities between $10^5$ and $6\times10^5$. This is equivalent to one SG star per 10x10 pc$^2$. We finally make predictions for future observations with JWST's NIRcam. We find that in observations made with the F200W filter that reach 29 mag AB, if cool red SG stars exist at z~1 beyond the HD limit, they should be easily detected in this arc

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2023

Flashlights: An Off-Caustic Lensed Star at Redshift $z$ = 1.26 in Abell 370

We report the discovery of a transient seen in a strongly lensed arc at redshift $z_{\rm s}=1.2567$ in \emph{Hubble Space Telescope} imaging of the Abell 370 galaxy cluster. The transient is detected at $29.51\pm0.14$ AB mag in a WFC3/UVIS F200LP difference image made using observations from two different epochs, obtained in the framework of the \emph{Flashlights} program, and is also visible in the F350LP band ($m_{\rm F350LP} \approx 30.53\pm0.76$ AB mag). The transient is observed on the negative-parity side of the critical curve at a distance of $\sim 0.6"$ from it, greater than previous examples of lensed stars. The large distance from the critical curve yields a significantly smaller macromagnification, but our simulations show that bright, O/B-type supergiants can reach sufficiently high magnifications to be seen at the observed position and magnitude. In addition, the observed transient image is a trailing image with an observer-frame time delay of $\sim+0.8$ days from its expected counterpart, so that any transient lasting for longer than that should have also been seen on the minima side and is thus excluded. This, together with the blue colour we measure for the transient ($m_{\rm F200LP} - m_{\rm F350LP} \approx [-0.3,-1.6]$ AB), rules out most other transient candidates such as (kilo)novae, for example, and makes a lensed star the prime candidate. Assuming the transient is indeed a lensed star as suggested, many more such events should be detected in the near future in cluster surveys with the \emph{Hubble Space Telescope} and \emph{James Webb Space Telescope}.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2022

Flashlights: More than A Dozen High-Significance Microlensing Events of Extremely Magnified Stars in Galaxies at Redshifts z=0.7-1.5

Once only accessible in nearby galaxies, we can now study individual stars across much of the observable universe aided by galaxy-cluster gravitational lenses. When a star, compact object, or multiple such objects in the foreground galaxy-cluster lens become aligned, they can magnify a background individual star, and the timescale of a magnification peak can limit its size to tens of AU. The number and frequency of microlensing events therefore opens a window into the population of stars and compact objects, as well as high-redshift stars. To assemble the first statistical sample of stars in order to constrain the initial mass function (IMF) of massive stars at redshift z=0.7-1.5, the abundance of primordial black holes in galaxy-cluster dark matter, and the IMF of the stars making up the intracluster light, we are carrying out a 192-orbit program with the Hubble Space Telescope called "Flashlights," which is now two-thirds complete owing to scheduling challenges. We use the ultrawide F200LP and F350LP long-pass WFC3 UVIS filters and conduct two 16-orbit visits separated by one year. Having an identical roll angle during both visits, while difficult to schedule, yields extremely clean subtraction. Here we report the discovery of more than a dozen bright microlensing events, including multiple examples in the famous "Dragon Arc" discovered in the 1980s, as well as the "Spocks" and "Warhol" arcs that have hosted already known supergiants. The ultradeep observer-frame ultraviolet-through-optical imaging is sensitive to hot stars, which will complement deep James Webb Space Telescope infrared imaging. We are also acquiring Large Binocular Telescope LUCI and Keck-I MOSFIRE near-infrared spectra of the highly magnified arcs to constrain their recent star-formation histories.

astro-ph.CO↗