Dark Matter in Spiral Halos and the Halo Mass Function

Evidence that low-luminosity spirals have a higher dark matter fraction than their high-luminosity counterparts is discussed. The empirical correlation between dark matter fraction and luminosity is used, in conjunction with the galaxy luminosity function of spirals, to derive the dark halo mass function of these galaxies. The mass function is shown to be consistent with hierarchical clustering models of galaxy formation. This contrasts with previous results based on the assumption of a constant mass-to-light ratio for all spirals, which predict too many low-luminosity galaxies.