Concordance of Kinematics and Lensing of Elliptical Galaxies with WMAP Cosmology

We explore degeneracies in strong lensing model so to make time delay data consistent with the WMAP (Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe) cosmology. Previous models using a singular isothermal lens often yield a time delay between the observed multiple images too small than the observed value if we "hardwire" the now widely quoted post-WMAP "high" value of the Hubble constant (H0 - 71 ± 4km s-1 Mpc-1). Alternatively, the lens density profile (star plus dark matter) is required to be locally steeper than r-2 (isothermal) profile near the Einstein radius (of the order 3 kpc) to fit the time delays; a naive extrapolation of a very steep profile to large radius would imply a lens halo with a scale length of the order only 3 kpc, too compact to be consistent with CDM. We explore more sophisticated, mathematically smooth, positive lens mass density profiles which are consistent with a large halo and the post-WMAP H0. Thanks to the spherical monopole degeneracy, the "reshuffling" of the mass in a lens model does not affect the quality of the fit to the image positions, amplifications, and image time delays. Even better, unlike the better-known mass sheet degeneracy, the stellar mass-to-light and the HO value are not affected either. We apply this monopole degeneracy to the quadruple imaged time-delay system PG1115 080. Finally we discuss the implications of the time delay data on the newly proposed relativistic MOND theory.

Concordance of Kinematics and Lensing of Elliptical Galaxies with WMAP Cosmology