Far-UV sensitivity of the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph

Abstract

We demonstrate that the G140L segment B channel of the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph (COS) recently installed on the {\it Hubble Space Telescope (HST)} has an effective area consistent with $\sim$ 10 cm${}^2$ in the bandpass between the Lyman edge at 912 Åand Lyman $\beta$, rising to a peak in excess of 1000 cm${}^2$ longward of 1130 Å. This is a new wavelength regime for {\it HST} and will allow opportunities for unique science investigations. In particular, investigations seeking to quantify the escape fraction of Lyman continuum photons from galaxies at low redshift, determine the scale-length of the hardness variation in the metagalactic ionizing background over the redshift range 2 $<z\lesssim$ 2.8, measure the ratio of CO to H${}_2$ in dense interstellar environments with $A_V>$ 3, or harness the high temperature diagnostic power of the \ion{O}{6} $\lambda \lambda$ 1032, 1038 doublet can now be carried out with unprecedented sensitivity.

5 pages, 2 figures, 2 tables, submitted to apjl 09/21/2009