Gravitational lens 2026-10-14
A gravitational lens is a foreground distribution of matter whose gravitational field deflects light from a background source. Its projected surface mass density determines the mapping in the thin-lens approximation. The lens is the deflecting object; gravitational lensing is the resulting optical process.
For the singular isothermal sphere, integrate its projected surface mass density inside a circle of proper radius :
With this gives the reduced deflection magnitude
independent of . Hence the singular isothermal sphere lens has
The spherical three-dimensional mass would give the wrong coefficient here; the thin gravitational lens equation needs the projected cylindrical mass.
Using the same and , the one-dimensional velocity dispersion is
Thus within the idealized SIS model.