SearcharxivSearch

arXiv · dg-ga/9702020

Differential Geometry of Time-Dependent Mechanics

Abstract

The usual formulations of time-dependent mechanics start from a given splitting $Y=R\times M$ of the coordinate bundle $Y\to R$. From physical viewpoint, this splitting means that a reference frame has been chosen. Obviously, such a splitting is broken under reference frame transformations and time-dependent canonical transformations. Our goal is to formulate time-dependent mechanics in gauge-invariant form, i.e., independently of any reference frame. The main ingredient in this formulation is a connection on the bundle $Y\to R$ which describes an arbitrary reference frame. We emphasize the following peculiarities of this approach to time-dependent mechanics. A phase space does not admit any canonical contact or presymplectic structure which would be preserved under reference frame transformations, whereas the canonical Poisson structure is degenerate. A Hamiltonian fails to be a function on a phase space. In particular, it can not participate in a Poisson bracket so that the evolution equation is not reduced to the Poisson bracket. This fact becomes relevant to the quantization procedure. Hamiltonian and Lagrangian formulations of time-dependent mechanics are not equivalent. A degenerate Lagrangian admits a set of associated Hamiltonians, none of which describes the whole mechanical system given by this Lagrangian.

Explore related subjects

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeXRIS

G. Giachetta, L. Mangiarotti, G. Sardanashvily. 1997-02-25. Differential Geometry of Time-Dependent Mechanics. https://arxiv.org/abs/dg-ga/9702020

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related papers

A Simple Geometric Representative for $μ$ of a Point

For $SU(2)$ (or $SO(3)$) Donaldson theory on a 4-manifold $X$, we construct a simple geometric representative for $μ$ of a point. Let $p$ be a generic point in $X$. Then the set $\{ [A] | F_A^-(p) $ is reducible $\}$, with coefficient -1/4 and appropriate orientation, is our desired geometric representative.

dg-ga

Moduli spaces of PU(2)-monopoles

The goal of this article was the S^1-equivariant transversality-problem and the compactification-problem for the moduli spaces of (perturbed) PU(2)-monopoles. A substantially improved version entitled "Moduli spaces of PU(2)-monopoles (revised version)" which gives simpler, clearer proofs of the transversality results, has been published on arxiv in June 99 and appeared in Asian J. Math, see Moduli spaces of PU(2)-Monopoles, Asian J. Math. Vol. 4, No. 2 (2000), 391-436.

dg-ga

L^2-torsion of hyperbolic manifolds of finite volume

Suppose $\bar{M}$ is a compact connected odd-dimensional manifold with boundary, whose interior $M$ comes with a complete hyperbolic metric of finite volume. We will show that the $L^2$-topological torsion of $\bar{M}$ and the $L^2$-analytic torsion of the Riemannian manifold $M$ are equal. In particular, the $L^2$-topological torsion of $\bar{M}$ is proportional to the hyperbolic volume of $M$, with a constant of proportionality which depends only on the dimension and which is known to be nonzero in dimension 3, 5 and 7. In dimension 3 this proves the conjecture Of Lott and Lueck which gives a complete calculation of the $L^2$-topological torsion of compact $L^2$-acyclic 3-manifolds which admit a geometric torus-decomposition. In an appendix we give a counterexample to an extension of the Cheeger-Mueller theorem to manifolds with boundary: if the metric is not a product near the boundary, in general analytic and topological torsion are not equal, even if the Euler characteristic of the boundary vanishes. Keywords: L^2-torsion, hyperbolic manifolds, 3-manifolds

dg-ga