Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-astrophysics-course-of-the-university-of-oxford/2018/5/c/solution
Past exam of the astrophysics course of the University of Oxford 2018 5 c Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-25
In the weak-field thin-lens limit, circular symmetry makes the physical deflection depend on the projected enclosed mass. With the mass calculated in b,For , this is , orIt is independent of impact radius in this ideal profile.
Enclosed-mass qualification. The source's appeal to Birkhoff's theorem must not be read as permission to use the mass of a three-dimensional sphere of radius here. Deflection accumulates along the light path. A concrete counterexample is a thin spherical shell of radius : its spherical enclosed mass at is zero, but its projected mass is , and it produces a nonzero deflection. The formula above is the axisymmetric projected-mass lens result; it is consistent with b and is not that incorrect spherical-mass interpretation.
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