The Mass Distribution of Transiting Exoplanets Corrected for Observational Selection Effects

Abstract

The mass distribution of transiting exoplanets has been corrected for observational selection effects: the probability of a mass determination (for planets detected by the Kepler Space Telescope) and the probability of a transiting configuration. The corrected mass distribution of exoplanets can be fitted by a power law with an exponent of \( - 2_{ - 0.16}^{ + 0.1}:\;{\textstyle{{dN} \over {dm}}} \propto {m^{ - 2_{ - 0.16}^{ + 0.1}}}\). Two minima corresponding to 0.3–0.7 and 4–7 Jupiter masses have been revealed.