[en] We use high-resolution adaptive optics (AO) imaging on the Keck II telescope to study the gravitational lens B0128+437 in unprecedented detail, allowing us to resolve individual lensed quasar components and, for the first time, detect and measure properties of the lensing galaxy. B0128+437 is a small-separation lens with known flux-ratio and astrometric anomalies. We discuss possible causes for these anomalies, including the presence of substructure in the lensing galaxy, propagation effects due to dust and a turbulent interstellar medium, and gravitational microlensing. This work demonstrates that AO will be an essential tool for studying the many new small-separation lenses expected from future surveys.

[en] We present new evidence for a variable stellar initial mass function (IMF) in massive early-type galaxies, using high-resolution, near-infrared spectroscopy from the Folded-port InfraRed Echellette spectrograph (FIRE) on the Magellan Baade Telescope at Las Campanas Observatory. In this pilot study, we observe several gravity-sensitive metal lines between 1.1 and 1.3 μm in eight highly luminous ($L\sim <!--\; ???\; -->10L_{\ast <!--\; ???\; -->}$) nearby galaxies. Thanks to the broad wavelength coverage of FIRE, we are also able to observe the Ca ii triplet feature, which helps with our analysis. After measuring the equivalent widths (EWs) of these lines, we notice mild to moderate trends between EW and central velocity dispersion (σ), with some species (K i, Na i, Mn i) showing a positive EW–σ correlation and others (Mg i, Ca ii, Fe i) a negative one. To minimize the effects of metallicity, we measure the ratio R = [EW(K i)/EW(Mg i)], finding a significant systematic increase in this ratio with respect to σ. We then probe for variations in the IMF by comparing the measured line ratios to the values expected in several IMF models. Overall, we find that low-mass galaxies ($\mathrm{\sigma <!--\; ??\; -->}\sim <!--\; ???\; -->100$ km s⁻¹) favor a Chabrier IMF, while high-mass galaxies ($\mathrm{\sigma <!--\; ??\; -->}\sim <!--\; ???\; -->350$ km s⁻¹) are better described with a steeper (dwarf-rich) IMF slope. While we note that our galaxy sample is small and may suffer from selection effects, these initial results are still promising. A larger sample of galaxies will therefore provide an even clearer picture of IMF trends in this regime.

[en] We present a mid-infrared Tully-Fisher (TF) relation using photometry from the 3.4 μm W1 band of the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) satellite. The WISE TF relation is formed from 568 galaxies taken from the all-sky 2MASS Tully-Fisher (2MTF) galaxy catalog, spanning a range of environments including field, group, and cluster galaxies. This constitutes the largest mid-infrared TF relation constructed to date. After applying a number of corrections to galaxy magnitudes and line widths, we measure a master TF relation given by M_corr = –22.24 – 10.05[log (W_corr) – 2.5], with an average dispersion of σ_WISE = 0.686 mag. There is some tension between WISE TF and a preliminary 3.6 μm relation, which has a shallower slope and almost no intrinsic dispersion. However, our results agree well with a more recent relation constructed from a large sample of cluster galaxies. We additionally compare WISE TF to the near-infrared 2MTF template relations, finding a good agreement between the TF parameters and total dispersions of WISE TF and the 2MTF K-band template. This fact, coupled with typical galaxy colors of (K – W1) ∼ 0, suggests that these two bands are tracing similar stellar populations, including the older, centrally-located stars in the galactic bulge which can (for galaxies with a prominent bulge) dominate the light profile.

[en] We measure the average mass properties of a sample of 41 strong gravitational lenses at moderate redshift (z ∼ 0.4-0.9) and present the lens redshift for six of these galaxies for the first time. Using the techniques of strong and weak gravitational lensing on archival data obtained from the Hubble Space Telescope, we determine that the average mass overdensity profile of the lenses can be fit with a power-law profile (ΔΣ ∝ R ^-0.86±0.16) that is within 1σ of an isothermal profile (ΔΣ ∝ R ^-1) with velocity dispersion σ_v = 260 ± 20 km s^-1. Additionally, we use a two-component de Vaucouleurs + Navarro-Frenk-White (NFW) model to disentangle the total mass profile into separate luminous and dark matter components and determine the relative fraction of each component. We measure the average rest frame V-band stellar mass-to-light ratio (Y_V = 4.0 ± 0.6 h M_sun/L_sun) and virial mass-to-light ratio (τ_V = 300 ± 90 h M_sun/L_sun) for our sample, resulting in a virial-to-stellar mass ratio of M_vir/M_* = 75 ± 25. Relaxing the NFW assumption, we estimate that changing the inner slope of the dark matter profile by ∼20% yields a ∼30% change in stellar mass-to-light ratio. Finally, we compare our results to a previous study using low-redshift lenses to understand how galaxy mass profiles evolve over time. We investigate the evolution of M_vir/M_*(z) = α(1 + z)^β, and find best-fit parameters of α = 51 ± 36 and β = 0.9 ± 1.8, constraining the growth of virial-to-stellar mass ratio over the last ∼7 Gyr. We note that, by using a sample of strong lenses, we are able to constrain the growth of M_vir/M_*(z) without making any assumptions about the initial mass function of the stellar population.

[en] The X-ray source CXOXBJ142607.6+353351 (CXOJ1426+35), which was identified in a 172 ks Chandra image in the Boötes field, shows double-peaked rest-frame optical/UV emission lines, separated by 0.''69 (5.5 kpc) in the spatial dimension and by 690 km s^–1 in the velocity dimension. The high excitation lines and emission line ratios indicate both systems are ionized by an active galactic nucleus (AGN) continuum, and the double-peaked profile resembles that of candidate dual AGNs. At a redshift of z = 1.175, this source is the highest redshift candidate dual AGN yet identified. However, many sources have similar emission line profiles for which other interpretations are favored. We have analyzed the substantial archival data available in this field as well as acquired near-infrared (NIR) adaptive optics (AO) imaging and NIR slit spectroscopy. The X-ray spectrum is hard, implying a column density of several 10²³ cm^–2. Though heavily obscured, the source is also one of the brightest in the field, with an absorption-corrected 2-10 keV luminosity of ∼10⁴⁵ erg s^–1. Outflows driven by an accretion disk may produce the double-peaked lines if the central engine accretes near the Eddington limit. However, we may be seeing the narrow line regions of two AGNs following a galactic merger. While the AO image reveals only a single source, a second AGN would easily be obscured by the significant extinction inferred from the X-ray data. Understanding the physical processes producing the complex emission line profiles seen in CXOJ1426+35 and related sources is important for interpreting the growing population of dual AGN candidates.

[en] Herschel Space Observatory photometry and extensive multiwavelength follow-up have revealed that the powerful radio galaxy (PRG) 3C 220.3 at z = 0.685 acts as a gravitational lens for a background submillimeter galaxy (SMG) at z = 2.221. At an observed wavelength of 1 mm, the SMG is lensed into three distinct images. In the observed near infrared, these images are connected by an arc of ∼1''.8 radius forming an Einstein half-ring centered near the radio galaxy. In visible light, only the arc is apparent. 3C 220.3 is the only known instance of strong galaxy-scale lensing by a PRG not located in a galaxy cluster and therefore it offers the potential to probe the dark matter content of the radio galaxy host. Lens modeling rejects a single lens, but two lenses centered on the radio galaxy host A and a companion B, separated by 1''.5, provide a fit consistent with all data and reveal faint candidates for the predicted fourth and fifth images. The model does not require an extended common dark matter halo, consistent with the absence of extended bright X-ray emission on our Chandra image. The projected dark matter fractions within the Einstein radii of A (1''.02) and B (0''.61) are about 0.4 ± 0.3 and 0.55 ± 0.3. The mass to i-band light ratios of A and B, M/L_i∼8±4 M_⊙ L_⊙⁻¹, appear comparable to those of radio-quiet lensing galaxies at the same redshift in the CfA-Arizona Space Telescope LEns Survey, Lenses Structure and Dynamics, and Strong Lenses in the Legacy Survey samples. The lensed SMG is extremely bright with observed f(250 μm) = 440 mJy owing to a magnification factor μ ∼ 10. The SMG spectrum shows luminous, narrow C IV λ1549 Å emission, revealing that the SMG houses a hidden quasar in addition to a violent starburst. Multicolor image reconstruction of the SMG indicates a bipolar morphology of the emitted ultraviolet (UV) light suggestive of cones through which UV light escapes a dust-enshrouded nucleus.