A&A 529, A65 (2011) Astronomy DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361/201016236 & c ESO 2011 Astrophysics Measuring redshifts using X-ray spectroscopy of galaxy clusters: results from Chandra data and future prospects H. Yu1,2,P.Tozzi2,3, S. Borgani4,3,P.Rosati5,andZ.-H.Zhu1 1 Department of Astronomy, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, PR China e-mail:
[email protected] 2 INAF Osservatorio Astronomico di Trieste, via G.B. Tiepolo 11, 34143 Trieste, Italy 3 INFN – National Institute for Nuclear Physics, Trieste, Italy 4 Dipartimento di Fisica dell’Università di Trieste, via G.B. Tiepolo 11, 34131 Trieste, Italy 5 ESO – European Southern Observatory, Karl-Schwarzschild Str. 2, 85748 Garching b. Munchen, Germany Received 30 November 2010 / Accepted 9 February 2011 ABSTRACT Context. The ubiquitous presence of the Fe line complex in the X-ray spectra of galaxy clusters offers the possibility of measuring their redshift without resorting to spectroscopic follow-up observations. In practice, the blind search of the Fe line in X-ray spectra is adifficult task and is affected not only by limited S/N (particularly at high redshift), but also by several systematic errors, associated with varying Fe abundance values, ICM temperature gradients, and instrumental characteristics. Aims. We assess the accuracy with which the redshift of galaxy clusters can be recovered from an X-ray spectral analysis of Chandra archival data. We present a strategy to compile large surveys of clusters whose identification and redshift measurement are both based on X-ray data alone. Methods. We apply a blind search for K-shell and L-shell Fe line complexes in X-ray cluster spectra using Chandra archival obser- vations of galaxy clusters.