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dukesdj t1_iy1h5p6 wrote

Star mass only really effects the probability of a planet of a certain mass being formed.

 

We expect that lower mass objects are more common and so there is no theoretical reason to believe and star has a lower mass limit. At the opposite end of the spectrum, we have observed giant planets around M class stars. So we know that even the lower mass stars can form the more massive planets. With the exception of massive stars, we have observed giant planets around all stellar classifications of type A (from memory) or lower mass. However, we do not expect the most massive stars to have any real difference in the mass of planets that can form around them. The reason we do not observe them is simply because it is harder (the stars are very bright and the planets would need to have wider long period orbits). So we expect that all stars can host planets covering the full spectrum of planetary masses (up to 14 Jupiter masses where the classification of brown dwarf begins). What will be affected is the occurrence rate of certain planetary masses as a function of the stellar mass (for example we expect to see less giant planets around low mass stars, although metalicity also seems to play a role).

 

There is a slight caveat to this which is when one considers the grey area of brown dwarfs. Currently, despite what the IAU says, we are not sure if brown dwarfs should be classified as stars, planets, or something separate. At the heart of this issue is the fact that brown dwarfs can form through planetary formation pathways as well as stellar formation pathways (Jeans instability of an interstellar cloud). In particular, gravitational instability of the protoplanetary disc is a planetary formation pathway which can lead to the formation of the most massive brown dwarfs. The requirement for gravitational instability is that the disc is massive which would only be expected around the most massive stars. So if we define brown dwarfs as planets if they follow a planetary formation pathway, then the most massive planets could only form around massive stars.

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