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If a spherical parent and its fragments have the same mass density, substitute $m=\pi \rho D_c^3/6$ into the endpoint-dominated cross-section of a power-law fragment population. The diameter obeysThis inversion requires specified fragment cutoffs. If $D_{\max }=\eta D_c$ instead, solving that dependence changes the power of $D_c$ to $\alpha -1$. It is useful for estimating the parent comet needed to supply an observed debris disk, subject to the assumed fragment model.

Write the power-law size distribution as $n(D)=k{D}^{-\alpha }$. The total geometric cross-section of the optically thin debris disk isBecause blackbody grains at radius $r$ intercept the fraction ${\sigma }_{\mathrm{tot}}/(4\pi r^2)$ of the stellar luminosity, the fractional luminosity of a debris disk givesAnother integral then yieldsfor $D_{\min }\ll D\ll D_{\max }$.

An inclined inner planet causes exterior debris disk rings to undergo nodal precession at different rates. In the quadrupole approximation, $\nu \simeq (3/4)n(M_p/M_{\star })(a_p/a{)}^2\propto a^{-7/2}$. Rings that have precessed appreciably tilt away from their original orbital plane, whereas distant rings remain near it, making an evolving warp. Conservative secular perturbations alone do not damp every ring into the planet's plane; unresolved phase mixing can instead produce a thick inner disk whose mean normal is near the forced plane.