Direct observation of cosmic strings via their strong gravitational lensing effect - I. Predictions for high-resolution imaging surveys

M. Alice Gasparini, Phil Marshall, Tommaso Treu, Eric Morganson, Florian Dubath

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

We use present theoretical estimates for the density of long cosmic strings to predict the number of strong gravitational lensing events in astronomical imaging surveys as a function of the angular resolution and survey area. We show that angular resolution is the single most important factor, and that interesting limits on the dimensionless string tension Gμ/c2 can be obtained by existing and planned surveys. At the resolution of the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) (0.14 arcsec), it is sufficient to survey of the order of a few square degrees - well within reach of the current HST archive - to probe the regime Gμ/c2 ∼ 10-7. If lensing by cosmic strings is not detected, such a survey would improve the limit on the string tension by a factor of two over that available from the cosmic microwave background. Future high resolution imaging surveys, covering a few hundred square degrees or more, either from space in the optical or from large-format radio telescopes on the ground, would be able to further lower this limit to Gμ/c2 ∼ 10-8. These limits will not be improved significantly by increasing the solid angle of the survey.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)1959-1964
Number of pages6
JournalMonthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Volume385
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 2008
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Cosmology: observations
  • Gravitational lensing
  • Surveys

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Astronomy and Astrophysics
  • Space and Planetary Science

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