Microlensing of the broad-line region in the quadruply imaged quasar HE0435-1223

Abstract

Using infrared spectra of the z = 1.693 quadruply lensed quasar HE0435-1223 acquired in 2009 with the spectrograph SINFONI at the ESO Very Large Telescope, we have detected a clear microlensing effect in images A and D. While microlensing affects the blue and red wings of the Hα line profile in image D very differently, it de-magnifies the line core in image A. The combination of these different effects sets constraints on the line-emitting region; these constraints suggest that a rotating ring is at the origin of the Hα line. Visible spectra obtained in 2004 and 2012 indicate that the MgII line profile is microlensed in the same way as the Hα line. Our results therefore favour flattened geometries for the low-ionization line-emitting region, for example, a Keplerian disk. Biconical models cannot be ruled out but require more fine-tuning. Flux ratios between the different images are also derived and confirm flux anomalies with respect to estimates from lens models with smooth mass distributions.

The different origins of high- and low-ionization broad emission lines revealed by gravitational microlensing in the Einstein cross

“…We emphasize that a similar red/blue microlensing magnification has been detected in the Balmer broad emission line of the image D of the HE0435-1223 gravitationally lensed quasar (Braibant et al 2014), which makes the interpretations involving caustic fine-tuning less likely and further supports the Keplerian disk model for the low-ionization region. By contrast, the polar wind model is the only one that leads to comparable magnification of the very blueshifted and redshifted parts of the line profile when seen at intermediate inclination, whatever the magnifying caustic structure.…”

Probing the Broad-Line Region and the Accretion Disk in the Lensed Quasars HE 0435-1223, WFI 2033-4723, and HE 2149-2745 Using Gravitational Microlensing

“…Following our procedure, on the contrary, continuum microlensing is removed by continuum subtraction, and macro-magnification is corrected for by normalization to the core of the emission line (assumed to be insensitive to microlensing). In fact, the re-normalization of the emission line profiles of Braibant et al (2014) to match the core of the lines would likely result in an enhancement of the red wing of the D emission line profile with respect to that of B. In the same manner, the blue wing enhancements reported by Braibant et al (2014) in the Mg II emission line will also likely disappear after normalization to the line cores.…”

Constraining the geometry and kinematics of the quasar broad emission line region using gravitational microlensing

“…In this paper, we extend those works, focusing on the interpretation of the observed line profile distortions caused by microlensing, such as those reported in Braibant et al (2014Braibant et al ( , 2016. The main purpose of our study is to determine whether simple BLR and microlensing models can reproduce the observations and then if it is possible to discriminate between the BLR models based on the observed microlensinginduced line profile distortions.…”

“…Microlensing-induced line profile deformations are now commonly observed in gravitationally lensed quasar spectra, exhibiting various symmetric and asymmetric distortions in both low-and high-ionization line profiles (Richards et al 2004;Wayth et al 2005;Sluse et al 2007Sluse et al , 2011Sluse et al , 2012O'Dowd et al 2011;Guerras et al 2013;Braibant et al 2014Braibant et al , 2016. The size of the BLR has been estimated in a few objects and found compatible with reverberation mapping measurements (Wayth et al 2005;Sluse et al 2011;Guerras et al 2013).…”