Quasar variability limits on cosmological density of cosmic strings

We put robust upper limits on the average cosmological density Ωₛ of cosmic strings based on the variability properties of a large homogeneous sample of Sloan Digital Sky Survey quasars. We search for an excess of characteristic variations of quasar brightness that are associated with string lensing and use the observed distribution of these variations to constrain the density of strings. The limits obtained do not invoke any clustering of strings. They apply to both open segments and closed loops of strings, usefully extend over a wide range of tensions 10^-13<Gμ/c²<10^-9, and reach down to the level of Ωₛ=0.01 and below. Further progress in this direction will depend on better understanding of quasar intrinsic variability rather than a mere increase in the volume of data.