http://arxiv.org/abs/2304.12352
The high-multiplicity exoplanet systems are generally more tightly packed when compared to the solar system. Such compact multi-planet systems are often susceptible to dynamical instability. We investigate the impact of dynamical instability on the final orbital architectures of multi-planet systems using N-body simulations. Our models initially consist of eight planets placed randomly according to a power-law distribution of mutual Hill separations. We find that almost all of our model planetary systems go through at least one phase of dynamical instability, losing at least one planet. The orbital architecture, including the distributions of mutual Hill separations, planetary masses, orbital periods, and period ratios, of the transit-detectable model planetary systems closely resemble those for the multi-planet systems detected by Kepler. We find that without any formation-dependent input, a dynamically active past can naturally reproduce important observed trends including multiplicity-dependent eccentricity distribution, smaller eccentricities for larger planets, and intra-system uniformity. These findings indicate that dynamical instabilities may have played a vital role in the final assembly of sub-Jovian planets.
T. Ghosh and S. Chatterjee
Wed, 26 Apr 23
61/62
Comments: 12 pages, 13 figures; submitted to MNRAS; comments welcome