Use this URL to cite or link to this record in EThOS: https://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.545406
Title: Blind and pointed Sunyaev-Zel'dovich observations with the Arcminute Microkelvin Imager
Author: Shimwell, Timothy William
ISNI:       0000 0004 2712 3668
Awarding Body: University of Cambridge
Current Institution: University of Cambridge
Date of Award: 2011
Availability of Full Text:
Access from EThOS:
Full text unavailable from EThOS. Please try the link below.
Access from Institution:
Abstract:
In this thesis I discuss my work on the Arcminute Microkelvin Imager (AMI). I focus on the detection of Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SZ) signatures at 14-18GHz. Once the background science and operation of the instrument are described I proceed to present my contribution to the calibration of AMI, including: primary beam measurements; refinements to the known antenna geometry and flagging geostationary satellite interference. This is followed by an outline of the software that I have developed to subtract sources from visibilities, concatenate data from multiple observations, simulate data, and perform jack-knife tests to evaluate the magnitude of systematic errors. The Bayesian analysis that I use to obtain parameter estimates and to quantify the significance of putative SZ detections is described. I perform realistic simulations of clusters and use these to characterisethe analysis. I then, for the first time, apply the analysis to data from the AMI blind cluster survey. I identify several previously unknownSZ decrements. Finally, I conduct pointed observations towards a high luminosity subsample of eight clusters from the Local Cluster Substructure Survey(LoCuSS). For each of these I provide probability distributions of parameters such as mass, radius, and temperature. I compare myresults to those in the literature and find an overall agreement.
Supervisor: Grainge, Keith Sponsor: Not available
Qualification Name: Thesis (Ph.D.) Qualification Level: Doctoral
EThOS ID: uk.bl.ethos.545406  DOI:
Keywords: Observationjal cosmology ; Interferometry
Share: