arXiv subjects

Narciso Román-Roy

Publications and source records attributed to Narciso Román-Roy.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2025

The evolution operator connecting the Lagrangian and Hamiltonian formalisms for contact systems

Some mechanical systems with dissipation can be described within the framework of the so-called contact mechanics: a modified form of the Euler-Lagrange equations stemming from Herglotz's variational principle, which admits a geometric formulation in terms of contact geometry. On the other hand, the study of singular Lagrangian systems and Dirac's theory of constraints can be enhanced by using the evolution operator $K$ that connects the Lagrangian and Hamiltonian formalisms. The main purpose of this paper is to transpose this evolution operator to the case of contact mechanics, and to study some of its main properties. In particular, we show that it provides a geometric description of the evolution equations and it relates the Hamiltonian and Lagrangian constraints. To illustrate the theory, we provide examples of singular contact systems based on modified versions of the simple pendulum and the Cawley Lagrangian.

math-ph↗

arXiv2025

Skinner--Rusk formalism of action-dependent multicontact field theories

The newly developed multicontact structure, based on contact and multisymplectic geometries, provides a very general geometrical framework suitable for the treatment of action-dependent classical field theories. Having successfully applied it to formulate the Lagrangian and Hamiltonian descriptions of these theories, in the present work, the well-known Skinner--Rusk formalism is presented in this multicontact setting, which allows us to provide a combined version of both Lagrangian and Hamiltonian formalisms particularly suitable for the study and description of singular theories. As an application of this last situation, we study a modification of Maxwell's Lagrangian of classical electromagnetism, which incorporates action-dependent terms and allows us to describe electromagnetism in material media.

math-ph↗

arXiv2025

A survey on geometric frameworks for action-dependent classical field theories and their relationship

This work presents a comprehensive overview of three recently developed geometric frameworks for the study of classical action-dependent field theories. Specifically, the three underlying geometric structures - namely, k-contact, k-cocontact, and multicontact - are first introduced, and then used to develop the Lagrangian and Hamiltonian formalisms of the aforementioned theories. Finally, the relationship among these three types of structures is analyzed in the case of trivial bundles; as well as the comparison with other alternative definitions of multicontact structure presented in the literature.

math-ph↗

arXiv2025

Geometry of Mechanics

The aim of this work is to study the geometry underlying mechanics and its application to describe autonomous and nonautonomous conservative dynamical systems of different types; as well as dissipative dynamical systems. We use different geometric descriptions to study the main properties and characteristics of these systems; such as their Lagrangian, Hamiltonian and unified formalisms, their symmetries, the variational principles, and others. The study is done mainly for the regular case, although some comments and explanations about singular systems are also included.

math-ph↗

arXiv2025

Practical Introduction to Action-Dependent Field Theories

Action-dependent field theories are systems where the Lagrangian or Hamiltonian depends on new variables that encode the action. They model a larger class of field theories, including non-conservative behavior, while maintaining a well-defined notion of symmetries and a Noether theorem. This makes them especially suited for open systems. After a conceptual introduction, we make a quick presentation of a new mathematical framework for action-dependent field theory: multicontact geometry. The formalism is illustrated with a variety of action-dependent Lagrangians, some of which are regular and others singular, derived from well-known theories whose Lagrangians have been modified to incorporate action-dependent terms. Detailed computations are provided, including the constraint algorithm for the singular cases, in both the Lagrangian and Hamiltonian formalisms. These are the one-dimensional wave equation, the Klein-Gordon equation and the telegrapher equation, Maxwell's electromagnetism, Metric-affine gravity, the heat equation and Burguers' equation, the Bosonic string theory, and (2+1)-dimensional gravity and Chern-Simons equation.

hep-th↗

arXiv2025

Symmetries and Noether's theorem for multicontact field theories

A geometric framework, called multicontact geometry, has recently been developed to study action-dependent field theories. In this work, we use this framework to analyze symmetries in action-dependent Lagrangian and Hamiltonian field theories, as well as their associated dissipation laws. Specifically, we establish the definitions of conserved and dissipated quantities, define the general symmetries of the field equations and the geometric structure, and examine their properties. The latter ones, referred to as Noether symmetries, lead to the formulation of a version of Noether's Theorem in this setting, which associates each of these symmetries with the corresponding dissipated quantity and the resulting conservation law.

math-ph↗

arXiv2024

Canonical Lifts in Multisymplectic De Donder-Weyl Hamiltonian Field Theories

In this paper, we define canonical lifts of vector fields to the multisymplectic multimomentum bundles of De Donder-Weyl Hamiltonian first-order field theories and to the appropriate premultisymplectic embedded constraint submanifolds on which singular field theories are studied. These new canonical lifts are used to study the so-called natural Noether symmetries present in both regular and singular Hamiltonian field theories along with their associated conserved quantities obtained from Noether's theorem. The Klein-Gordon field, the Polyakov bosonic string, and Einstein-Cartan gravity in 3 + 1 dimensions are analyzed in depth as applications of these concepts; as a peripheral result obtained in the analysis of the bosonic string, we provide a new geometrical interpretation of the well-known Virasoro constraint.

math-ph↗

arXiv2023

On Darboux theorems for geometric structures induced by closed forms

This work reviews the classical Darboux theorem for symplectic, presymplectic, and cosymplectic manifolds (which are used to describe regular and singular mechanical systems), and certain cases of multisymplectic manifolds, and extends it in new ways to k-symplectic and k-cosymplectic manifolds (all these structures appear in the geometric formulation of first-order classical field theories). Moreover, we discuss the existence of Darboux theorems for classes of precosymplectic, k-presymplectic, k-precosymplectic, and premultisymplectic manifolds, which are the geometrical structures underlying some kinds of singular field theories. Approaches to Darboux theorems based on flat connections associated with geometric structures are given, while new results on polarisations for (k-)(pre)(co)symplectic structures arise.

math.DG↗

arXiv2023

Multisymplectic Constraint Analysis of Scalar Field Theories, Chern-Simons Gravity, and Bosonic String Theory

The (pre)multisymplectic geometry of the De Donder--Weyl formalism for field theories is further developed for a variety of field theories including a scalar field theory from the canonical Klein-Gordon action, the electric and magnetic Carrollian scalar field theories, bosonic string theory from the Nambu-Goto action, and $2+1$ gravity as a Chern-Simons theory. The Lagrangians for the scalar field theories and for $2+1$ Chern-Simons gravity are found to be singular in the De Donder--Weyl sense while the Nambu-Goto Lagrangian is found to be regular. Furthermore, the constraint structure of the premultisymplectic phase spaces of singular field theories is explained and applied to these theories. Finally, it is studied how symmetries are developed on the multisymplectic phase spaces in the presence of constraints.

math-ph↗

arXiv2023

More insights into symmetries in multisymplectic field theories

This work provides a general overview for the treatment of symmetries in classical field theories and (pre)multisymplectic geometry. The geometric characteristics of the relation between how symmetries are interpreted in theoretical physics and in the geometric formulation of these theories are clarified. Finally, a general discussion is given on the structure of symmetries in the presence of constraints appearing in singular field theories. Symmetries of some typical theories in theoretical physics are analyzed through the construction of the relevant multimomentum maps which are the conserved quantities (by Noether's theorem) on the (pre)multisymplectic phase spaces.

math-ph↗

arXiv2023

Multicontact formulation for non-conservative field theories

A new geometric framework is developed to describe non-conservative classical field theories, which is based on multisymplectic and contact geometries. Assuming certain additional conditions and using the forms that define this multicontact structure, as well as other geometric elements that are derived from them, we can introduce variational field equations in the multicontact manifolds. These equations are stated using different geometric tools; namely, sections, multivector fields and Ehresmann connections in fiber bundles. Then, this framework can be adapted to the jet bundle description of classical field theories and the field equations are stated both in the Lagrangian and the Hamiltonian formalisms, which are discussed in the regular and the singular cases.

math-ph↗

arXiv2023

Remarks on multisymplectic reduction

The problem of reduction of multisymplectic manifolds by the action of Lie groups is stated and discussed, as a previous step to give a fully covariant scheme of reduction for classical field theories with symmetries.

math-ph↗

arXiv2022

Reduction and reconstruction of multisymplectic Lie systems

A Lie system is a non-autonomous system of first-order ordinary differential equations describing the integral curves of a non-autonomous vector field taking values in a finite-dimensional real Lie algebra of vector fields, a so-called Vessiot--Guldberg Lie algebra. In this work, multisymplectic structures are applied to the study of the reduction of Lie systems through their Lie symmetries. By using a momentum map, we perform a reduction and reconstruction procedure of multisymplectic Lie systems, which allows us to solve the original problem by analysing several simpler multisymplectic Lie systems. Conversely, we study how reduced multisymplectic Lie systems allow us to retrieve the form of the multisymplectic Lie system that gave rise to them. Our results are illustrated with examples occurring in physics, mathematics, and control theory.

math-ph↗

arXiv2022

The second-order problem for $k$-presymplectic Lagrangian field theories. Application to the Einstein--Palatini model

In general, the system of $2$nd-order partial differential equations made of the Euler-Lagrange equations of classical field theories are not compatible for singular Lagrangians. This is the so-called second-order problem. The first aim of this work is to develop a fully geometric constraint algorithm which allows us to find a submanifold where the Euler-Lagrange equations have solution, and split the constraints into two kinds depending on their origin. We do so using $k$-symplectic geometry, which is the simplest intrinsic description of classical field theories. As a second aim, the Einstein-Palatini model of General Relativity is studied using this algorithm.

math-ph↗

arXiv2022

Skinner-Rusk formalism for k-contact systems

In previous papers, a geometric framework has been developed to describe non-conservative field theories as a kind of modified Lagrangian and Hamiltonian field theories. This approach is that of $k$-contact Hamiltonian systems, which is based on the $k$-symplectic formulation of field theories as well as on contact geometry. In this work we present the Skinner--Rusk unified setting for these kinds of theories, which encompasses both the Lagrangian and Hamiltonian formalisms into a single picture. This unified framework is specially useful when dealing with singular systems, since: (i) it incorporates in a natural way the second-order condition for the solutions of field equations, (ii) it allows to implement the Lagrangian and Hamiltonian constraint algorithms in a unique simple way, and (iii) it gives the Legendre transformation, so that the Lagrangian and the Hamiltonian formalisms are obtained straightforwardly. We apply this description to several interesting physical examples: the damped vibrating string, the telegrapher's equations, and Maxwell's equations with dissipation terms.

math-ph↗

arXiv2022

Constrained Lagrangian dissipative contact dynamics

We show that the contact dynamics obtained from the Herglotz variational principle can be described as a constrained nonholonomic or vakonomic ordinary Lagrangian system depending on a dissipative variable with an adequate choice of one constraint. As a consequence we obtain the dynamics of contact nonholonomic and vakonomic systems as ordinary variational calculus with constraints on a Lagrangian with a dissipative variable. The variation of the energy and the other dissipative quantities are also obtained giving the usual results.

math-ph↗

arXiv2021

Symmetries and gauge symmetries in multisymplectic first and second-order Lagrangian field theories: electromagnetic and gravitational fields

Symmetries and, in particular, Cartan (Noether) symmetries and conserved quantities (conservation laws) are studied for the multisymplectic formulation of first and second order Lagrangian classical field theories. Noether-type theorems are stated in this geometric framework. The concept of gauge symmetry and its geometrical meaning are also discussed in this formulation. The results are applied to study Noether and gauge symmetries for the multisymplectic description of the electromagnetic and the gravitational theory; in particular, the Einstein--Hilbert and the Einstein--Palatini approaches.

math-ph↗

arXiv2021

Constraint algorithm for singular field theories in the $k$-cosymplectic framework

The aim of this paper is to develop a constraint algorithm for singular classical field theories in the framework of $k$-cosymplectic geometry. Since these field theories are singular, we need to introduce the notion of $k$-precosymplectic structure, which is a generalization of the $k$-cosymplectic structure. Next $k$-precosymplectic Hamiltonian systems are introduced in order to describe singular field theories, both in Lagrangian and Hamiltonian formalisms. Finally, we develop a constraint algorithm in order to find a submanifold where the existence of solutions of the field equations is ensured. The case of affine Lagrangians is studied as a relevant example.

math-ph↗