The Mass Function of Primordial Rogue Planet MACHOs in quasar nanolensing

Abstract

The recent Sumi et al (2010, 2011) detection of free roaming planet mass MACHOs in cosmologically significant numbers recalls their original detection in quasar microlening studies (Schild 1996, Colley and Schild 2003). We consider the microlensing signature of such a population, and find that the nano-lensing (microlensing) would be well characterized by a statistical microlensing theory published previously by Refsdal and Stabel (1991). Comparison of the observed First Lens microlensing amplitudes with the theoretical prediction gives close agreement and a methodology for determining the slope of the mass function describing the population. Our provisional estimate of the power law exponent in an exponential approximation to this distribution is $2.98^{+1.0}_{-0.5}.$ where a Salpeter slope is 2.35.