Related papers: Revisiting the Hamilton theory for second order La…
We consider a Hamiltonian system made of $N$ classical particles moving in two dimensions, coupled via an {\it infinite-range interaction} gauged by a parameter $A$. This system shows a low energy phase with most of the particles trapped in…
In the generalized Hamiltonian formalism by Dirac, the method of constructing the generator of local-symmetry transformations for systems with first- and second-class constraints (without restrictions on the algebra of constraints) is…
Several alternative formulations of the first order approach to unimodular gravity are presented. There is always a particular one such that it is {\em classically} equivalent to the second order formulation; this we call {\em educated}. It…
In order to derive a large set of Hamiltonian dynamical systems, but with only first order Lagrangian, we resort to the formulation in terms of Lagrange-Souriau 2-form formalism. A wide class of systems derived in different phenomenological…
We analyze the relation between the concept of auxiliary variables and the Inverse problem of the calculus of variations to construct a Lagrangian from a given set of equations of motion. The problem of the construction of a consistent…
We review the fate of the Ostrogradsky ghost in higher-order theories. We start by recalling the original Ostrogradsky theorem and illustrate, in the context of classical mechanics, how higher-derivatives Lagrangians lead to unbounded…
An alternative version of Hamiltonian formalism for higher-derivative theories is presented. It is related to the standard Ostrogradski approach by a canonical transformation. The advantage of the approach presented is that the Lagrangian…
Most of the laws of Nature involve derivatives up to the second order. Ostrogradski was the first to seek a formulation of the equations of higher-order derivatives. He extended Hamilton's equations by considering Lagrangians that depend on…
We consider the classical momentum- or velocity-dependent two-dimensional Hamiltonian given by $$\mathcal H_N = p_1^2 + p_2^2 +\sum_{n=1}^N \gamma_n(q_1 p_1 + q_2 p_2)^n ,$$ where $q_i$ and $p_i$ are generic canonical variables, $\gamma_n$…
We present a method for the Hamiltonian formulation of field theories that are based on Lagrangians containing second derivatives. The new feature of our formalism is that all four partial derivatives of the field variables are initially…
Hamiltonians are 2-by-2 positive semidefinite real symmetric matrix-valued functions satisfying certain conditions. In this paper, we solve the inverse problem for which recovers a Hamiltonian from the solution of a first-order system…
Using Dirac's approach to constrained dynamics, the Hamiltonian formulation of regular higher order Lagrangians is developed. The conventional description of such systems due to Ostrogradsky is recovered. However, unlike the latter, the…
Hamilton's principle of stationary action lies at the foundation of theoretical physics and is applied in many other disciplines from pure mathematics to economics. Despite its utility, Hamilton's principle has a subtle pitfall that often…
In this work we will develop the canonical structure of Podolsky's generalized electrodynamics on the null-plane. This theory has second-order derivatives in the Lagrangian function and requires a closer study for the definition of the…
Second-order Lagrangian densities admitting a first-order Hamiltonian formalism are studied; namely, i) for each second-order Lagrangian density on an arbitrary fibred manifold $p\colon E\to N$ the Poincar\'e-Cartan form of which is…
It is demonstrated that energy conservation allows for a straight derivation of Newtonian mechanics without an apriori definition of the concept of work. Furthermore it is shown that energy must be depicted as a function of position and…
Ostrogradsky instability generally appears in nondegenerate higher-order derivative theories and this issue can be resolved by removing any existing degeneracy present in such theories. We consider an action involving terms that are at most…
It is shown that a given non-autonomous system of two first-order ordinary differential equations can be expressed in Hamiltonian form. The derivation presented here allow us to obtain previously known results such as the infinite number of…
Shortcomings of Dirac's constrained analysis in the context of fourth order Pais-Uhlenbeck oscillator action and the appearance of badly affected phase-space Hamiltonian for a generalized fourth order oscillator action, following…
Based on a recent paper by Rothe and Sch\"afer on compact binary systems, explicit expressions for canonical center and relative coordinates in terms of standard canonical coordinates are derived for spinless objects up to second…