A Search for Lensed Lyman-Alpha Emitters within the Early HETDEX Data Set

TL;DR

This study utilizes early HETDEX data to identify potential lensed Lyman-alpha emitters, discovering 26 candidates and highlighting 12 with strong lensing magnification, paving the way for detailed follow-up observations.

Contribution

The paper presents the first search for lensed LAEs within HETDEX data, providing a catalog of candidates and estimating their lensing magnifications, which is a novel application of this survey.

Findings

Identified 26 potential lensed LAEs in HETDEX data.

Found 12 candidates with strong lensing magnification (μ > 2).

Demonstrated the feasibility of using wide-volume spectroscopic surveys for lensing studies.

Abstract

The Hobby-Eberly Telescope Dark Energy Experiment (HETDEX) is a large-volume spectroscopic survey without pre-selection of sources, searching ~ 540 deg^2 for Lyman-alpha emitting galaxies (LAEs) at 1.9 < z < 3.5. Taking advantage of such a wide-volume survey, we perform a pilot study using early HETDEX data to search for lensed Lyman-alpha emitters. After performing a proof-of-concept using a previously known lensed LAE covered by HETDEX, we perform a search for previously unknown lensed LAEs in the HETDEX spectroscopic sample. We present a catalog of 26 potential LAEs lensed by foreground, red, non-star-forming galaxies at z ~ 0.4 - 0.7. We estimate the magnification for each candidate system, finding 12 candidates to be within the strong lensing regime (magnification $\mu$ > 2). Follow-up observations of these potential lensed LAEs have the potential to confirm their lensed nature and explore these distant galaxies in more detail.