CLASH-VLT: The Inner Slope of the MACS J1206.2-0847 Dark Matter Density Profile

The inner slope ( γ DM ) of the dark matter (DM) density profile of cosmological halos carries information about the properties of DM and/or baryonic processes affecting the halo gravitational potential. Cold DM cosmological simulations predict steep inner slopes, γ DM ≃ 1. We test this prediction o...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Astrophysical journal 2023-12, Vol.958 (2), p.148
Main Authors: Biviano, Andrea, Pizzuti, Lorenzo, Mercurio, Amata, Sartoris, Barbara, Rosati, Piero, Ettori, Stefano, Girardi, Marisa, Grillo, Claudio, Caminha, Gabriel B., Nonino, Mario
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Astrophysics
Baryons
Brightest cluster galaxies
Cold dark matter
Confidence intervals
Dark matter
Density
Galactic clusters
Galaxies
Galaxy clusters
Galaxy distribution
Halos
Mathematical models
Numerical simulations
Red shift
Slopes
Stellar mass
Sums
Velocity
Velocity distribution
X-ray astronomy
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Summary:The inner slope ( γ DM ) of the dark matter (DM) density profile of cosmological halos carries information about the properties of DM and/or baryonic processes affecting the halo gravitational potential. Cold DM cosmological simulations predict steep inner slopes, γ DM ≃ 1. We test this prediction on the MACS J1206.2-0847 cluster at redshift z = 0.44, whose DM density profile has been claimed to be cored at the center. We determine the cluster DM density profile from 2 kpc from the cluster center to the virial radius (∼2 Mpc), using the velocity distribution of ≃500 cluster galaxies and the internal velocity dispersion profile of the Brightest Cluster Galaxy (BCG), obtained from VIMOS@VLT and MUSE@VLT data. We solve the Jeans equation of dynamical equilibrium using an upgraded version of the MAMPOSSt method. The total mass profile is modeled as a sum of a generalized Navarro–Frenk–White profile that describes the DM component, allowing for a free inner slope of the density profile, a Jaffe profile that describes the BCG stellar mass component, and a nonparametric baryonic profile that describes the sum of the remaining galaxy stellar mass and of the hot intra-cluster gas mass. Our total mass profile is in remarkable agreement with independent determinations based on X-ray observations and strong lensing. We find γ DM = 0.7 − 0.1 + 0.2 (68% confidence levels), consistent with predictions from recent Lambda cold dark matter cosmological numerical simulations.
ISSN:0004-637X
1538-4357
DOI:10.3847/1538-4357/acf832