Eight Arcsecond resolution images of the Sunyaev-zel'dovich effect

Measurements of the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich Effect (SZE) have long been used as probes of cosmology. The surface brightness of the SZE does not depend on redshift so blind searches for clusters, such as those currently underway with the ACT and SPT telescopes, offer an unbiased view of our Universe. However, so far observations of the SZE have been carried out at moderate to low angular resolution and our understanding of the physics of the intracluster medium (ICM) is incomplete making the interpretation of the results from such surveys difficult. For example, many calculations assume that the ICM is isothermal, yet x-ray data on nearby clusters show structure in the ICM. As its intensity falls off as density squared and distance squared, x-ray data tells us most about the cores of nearby clusters. The SZE is more sensitive to temperature variations in the ICM and to the lower-density, extended envelope of cluster plasma, thus providing a powerful and essential view to that obtained in the x-ray band. We have imaged the SZE in a preliminary sample of x-ray luminous clusters with MUSTANG, a 90 GHz, 64 pixel bolometer array on the 100-meter Green Bank Telescope (GBT). In this paper we present the highest angular resolution images of the SZE made to date. We then discuss the implications of our 8" resolution images on cluster physics.