Synthetic Hamiltonian mechanics

This paper deals with some infinitesimal aspects of Hamiltonian mechanics from the standpoint of synthetic differential geometry. Fundamental results concerning Hamiltonian vector fields, Poisson brackets, and momentum mappings are discussed. The significance of the Lie derivative in the synthetic context is also consistently stressed. In particular, the notion of an infinitesimally Euclidean space is introduced, and the Jacobi identity of vector fields with respect to Lie brackets is established naturally for microlinear, infinitesimally Euclidean spaces by using Lie derivatives instead of a highly combinatorial device such as P. Hall's 42-letter identity.