Undistorted Lensed Images in Galaxy Clusters

Abstract

To date, the study of high-magnification gravitational lensing effects of galaxy clusters has focused upon the grossly distorted, luminous arc-like features formed in massive, centrally condensed clusters. We investigate the formation of a different type of image, highly magnified yet undistorted, in two widely employed cluster mass density profiles; an isothermal sphere with a core, and a universal dark matter halo profile derived from numerical simulations of Navarro et al. We examine the properties of images of extended sources produced by these two cluster profiles, paying particular attention to the undistorted images. Using simple assumptions about the source and lens population, we estimate the relative frequency of occurrence of highly magnified, undistorted images and the more commonly known giant arcs.

8 pages including 5 figs, LaTeX, To appear in MNRAS

Cited by in corpus (2)

• The Strongest Cluster Lenses: An Analysis of the Relation Between Strong Gravitational Lensing Strength and the Physical Properties of Galaxy Clusters
• Generalised model-independent characterisation of strong gravitational lenses VII: impact of source properties and higher-order lens properties on the local lens reconstruction