Douglas Lin | Mass-period distribution of cold planets and origin of freely-floating planets

Core-Accretion and gravitational instability models are two leading scenarios for planet formation. They have distinguishable implications on the mass-period distribution of long-period, cold planets. I will discuss how micro-lensing, direct imaging, astrometric, and time-domain surveys may provide constraints on the likelihood of these planet-formation channels. A closely related issue is the possibility of detachment of cold planets from their host stars. I will discuss various physical mechanisms which may have contributed to the launch of freely floating planets and some potentially observable signatures.