Sufficiency conditions under which a lagrangian is an ordinary divergence

An expression is derived for the variation of Lagrangians which are such that the set of admissible variables of variation is star-shaped. If such a Lagrangian leads to identically vanishing Euler-Lagrange expressions then it is shown that under suitable circumstances the Lagrangian in question must be an ordinary divergence. Furthermore, an expression is given for the ‘vector’ field which appears in this ordinary divergence.     

The theory of problems in the calculus of variations whose Lagrangian function involves second order derivatives: A new approach

Summary Variational principles whose Lagrangian functions involve higher order derivatives have, in the past, been applied to certain aspects of the theory of elementary particles. The corresponding Lagrangian functions must satisfy certain conditions if consistency with the classical electromagnetic interaction terms is sought, and it is found that these conditions are closely related to the requirement that the action integral be invariant under a parameter transformation. If, however, the latter condition is accepted, the usual expression for the Hamiltonian function vanishes identically, resulting in a complete break-down of the canonical equations. Thus an alternative approach to the theory of parameter-invariant problems in the calculus of variations whose Lagrangians depend on second order derivatives is developed. A general Finsler metric is introduced in a natural manner, which provides a geometrical background to the theory as well as useful analytical techniques. It is possible to define an alternative Hamiltonian function corresponding to which a canonical formalism is developed. The method of equivalent integrals is generalised, giving rise to a new and rigorous derivation of theEuler-Lagrange equations, which in turn leads to a generalisation of the so-called excess-function and the analogue of the well-known condition of Weierstrass in the calculus of variations. To Enrico Bompiani on his scientific Jubilee.     

The Hessian and Jacobi morphisms for higher order calculus of variations

We formulate higher order variations of a Lagrangian in the geometric framework of jet prolongations of fibered manifolds. Our formalism applies to Lagrangians which depend on an arbitrary number of independent and dependent variables, together with higher order derivatives. In particular, we show that the second variation is equal (up to horizontal differentials) to the vertical differential of the Euler-Lagrange morphism which turns out to be self-adjoint along solutions of the Euler-Lagrange equations. These two objects, respectively, generalize in an invariant way the Hessian morphism and the Jacobi morphism (which is then self-adjoint along critical sections) of a given Lagrangian to the case of higher order Lagrangians. Some examples of classical Lagrangians are provided to illustrate our method.     

The Geometry of Systems of Third Order Differential Equations Induced by Second Order Regular Lagrangians

A system of third order differential equations, whose coefficients do not depend explicitly on time, can be viewed as a third order vector field, which is called a semispray, and lives on the second order tangent bundle. We prove that a regular second order Lagrangian induces such a semispray, which is uniquely determined by two associated Poincaré-Cartan one-forms. To study the geometry of this semispray, we construct a horizontal distribution, which is a Lagrangian subbundle for an associated Poincaré-Cartan two-form. Using this semispray and the associated nonlinear connection we define dynamical covariant derivatives of first and second order. With respect to this, the second order dynamical derivative of the Lagrangian metric tensor vanishes.     

ADJOINT PROBLEMS IN THE CALCULUS OF VARIATIONS OF MULTIPLE INTEGRALS

Abstract

A general theory of adjoint variational problems is formulated for essentially arbitrary Lagrangians involving m independent and n dependent variables, together with the first derivatives of the latter, This approach contains as a special case the theory of Haar [4], in which the Lagrangian may depend solely on the derivatives of a single dependent function of two arguments. Because of the eventual occurrence of possibly incompatible sets of integrability conditions, the basic theory is developed against the background of non-integrable m-dimensional subspaces, which is in sharp contrast to the traditional approach to the calculus of variations. Relatively self-adjoint Lagrangians are defined and completely characterized in terms of an arbitrary Riemannian metric. In the course of the general theory certain geometric object fields are encountered in a very natural manner, some of which had arisen previously in the canonical formalism proposed by Caratheodory [2]. Accordingly the analysis of the present paper may serve to shed some light on this conceptually extremely difficult formalism.     

Lagrangian Theory of Tensor Fields over Spaces with Contravariant and Covariant Affine Connections and Metrics and Its Application to Einstein's Theory of Gravitation in V 4 Spaces

The Lagrangian formalism for tensor fields over differentiable manifolds with contravariant and covariant affine connections (whose components differ not only by sign) and a metric is considered. The functional, the Lie, the covariant, and the total variations of a Lagrangian density, depending on components of tensor fields (with finite rank) and their first and second covariant derivatives, are established. A variation operator is determined and the corollaries of its commutation relations with the covariant and the Lie differential operators are found. The canonical (common) method of Lagrangians with partial derivatives (MLPD) and the method of Lagrangians with covariant derivatives (MLCD) are outlined. They differ each other by the commutation relations the variation operator has to obey with the covariant and the Lie differential operator. The covariant Euler–Lagrange equations are found on the basis of the MLCD. The energy-momentum tensors are considered on the basis of the Lie variation and the covariant Noether identities.As an application of the investigated general scheme, (pseudo) Riemannian spaces with contravariant and covariant affine connections (whose components differ not only by sign) are considered as a special case of -spaces with Riemannian metric, symmetric covariant connection and a weaker definition of dual vector basis with conformal noncanonical contraction operator . The geodesic and autoparallel equations in -spaces are found as different equations in contrast to the case of V ₄-spaces. The Euler–Lagrange equations as Einstein's field equations in -spaces and the corresponding energy-momentum tensors (EMTs) are obtained and compared with the Einstein equations and the EMTs in V ₄-spaces. The geodesic and the auto-parallel equations are discussed.     

Hamiltonian systems as selfdual equations

Hamiltonian systems with various time boundary conditions are formulated as absolute minima of newly devised non-negative action functionals obtained by a generalization of Bogomolnyi’s trick of ‘dcompleting squares’. Reminiscent of the selfdual Yang-Mills equations, they are not derived from the fact that they are critical points (i.e., from the corresponding Euler-Lagrange equations) but from being zeroes of the corresponding non-negative Lagrangians. A general method for resolving such variational problems is also described and applied to the construction of periodic solutions for Hamiltonian systems, but also to study certain Lagrangian intersections.      

Two-dimensional systems that arise from the Noether classification of Lagrangians on the line

Noether-like operators play an essential role in writing down the first integrals for Euler-Lagrange systems of ordinary differential equations (ODEs). The classification of such operators is carried out with the help of analytic continuation of Lagrangians on the line. We obtain the classification of 5, 6 and 9 Noether-like operators for two-dimensional Lagrangian systems that arise from the submaximal and maximal dimensional Noether point symmetry classification of Lagrangians on the line. Cases in which the Noether-like operators are also Noether point symmetries for the systems of two ODEs are mentioned. In particular, the 8-dimensional maximal Noether algebra is remarkably obtained for the simplest system of the free particle equations in two dimensions from the 5-dimensional complex Noether algebra of the standard Lagrangian of the scalar free particle equation. We present the effectiveness of Noether-like operators for the determination of first integrals of systems of two nonlinear differential equations which arise from scalar complex Euler-Lagrange ODEs that admit Noether symmetry.     

The equivalence problem and canonical forms for quadratic Lagrangians

The general equivalence and canonical form problems for quadratic variational problems under arbitrary linear changes of variable are formulated, and the role of classical invariant theory in their general solution is made clear. A complete solution to both problems for planar, first order quadratic variational problems is provided, including a complete list of canonical forms for the Lagrangians and corresponding Euler-Lagrange equations. Algorithmic procedures for determining the equivalence class and the explicit canonical form of a given Lagrangian are provided. Applications to planar anisotropic elasticity are indicated.     

Relativistic theory of gravity and a Brans-Dicke scalar field

The natural generalization of the relativistic theory of gravity (RTG) by incorporating a Brans-Dicke scalar field is discussed. The equation for a scalar-tensor gravitational field in Minkowski space and the expression for the total energy-momentum metric tensor of a gravitational field and nongravitational matter is derived from the variational principle with a gravitational Lagrangian quadratic in the first derivatives of the scalar and tensor gravitational potentials. The two-parameter spherically symmetrical static solution for vacuum equations with a zero mass tensor graviton was obtained. This solution has a true singular Schwarzschild surface. In the case of a nonzero mass graviton, an approximate nonsingular solution for the beginning of the universe was obtained. It is noted that in the frame of the scalar-tensor generalization of RTG, a nonsingular homogeneous isotropic cosmology can be represented, not only by cyclic models, but also by models with an infinitely expanding universe and a simultaneously decreasing gravitational scalar.Translated from Teoreticheskaya i Matematicheskaya Fizika, Vol. 106, No. 2, pp. 325–332, February, 1996.     

Radiating metric, retarded time coordinates of Kerr-Newman-de Sitter black holes and related energy-momentum tensor

The charged rotating metric in de Sitter space, derived by Mallett and used by Koberlein, is shown incorrect. Mallett’s metric and his energy-momentum tensor do not satisfy the Einstein-Maxwell field equations with a cosmological term in the nonradiating and radiating Kerr-Newman-de Sitter case. The corresponding correct metric and the radiating energy-momentum tensor are given.     

On null Lagrangians

We consider multiple-integral variational problems where the Lagrangian function, defined on a frame bundle, is homogeneous. We construct, on the corresponding sphere bundle, a canonical Lagrangian form with the property that it is closed exactly when the Lagrangian is null. We also provide a straightforward characterization of null Lagrangians as sums of determinants of total derivatives. We describe the correspondence between Lagrangians on frame bundles and those on jet bundles: under this correspondence, the canonical Lagrangian form becomes the fundamental Lepage equivalent. We also use this correspondence to show that, for a single-determinant null Lagrangian, the fundamental Lepage equivalent and the Carathéodory form are identical.     

Fractional variational problems depending on indefinite integrals

We obtain necessary optimality conditions for variational problems with a Lagrangian depending on a Caputo fractional derivative, a fractional and an indefinite integral. Main results give fractional Euler-Lagrange type equations and natural boundary conditions, which provide a generalization of the previous results found in the literature. Isoperimetric problems, problems with holonomic constraints and depending on higher-order Caputo derivatives, as well as fractional Lagrange problems, are considered.     

Non-convex self-dual Lagrangians: New variational principles of symmetric boundary value problems

We study the concept and the calculus of Non-convex self-dual (Nc-SD) Lagrangians and their derived vector fields which are associated to many partial differential equations and evolution systems. They indeed provide new representations and formulations for the superposition of convex functions and symmetric operators. They yield new variational resolutions for large class of Hamiltonian partial differential equations with variety of linear and nonlinear boundary conditions including many of the standard ones. This approach seems to offer several useful advantages: It associates to a boundary value problem several potential functions which can often be used with relative ease compared to other methods such as the use of Euler-Lagrange functions. These potential functions are quite flexible, and can be adapted to easily deal with both nonlinear and homogeneous boundary value problems. Additionally, in most cases the solutions generated using this new method have greater regularity than the solutions obtained using the standard Euler-Lagrange function. Perhaps most remarkable, however, are the permanence properties of Nc-SD Lagrangians; their calculus is relatively manageable, and their applications are quite broad.     

The inverse problem of the calculus of variations for scalar fourth-order ordinary differential equations

A simple invariant characterization of the scalar fourth-order ordinary differential equations which admit a variational multiplier is given. The necessary and sufficient conditions for the existence of a multiplier are expressed in terms of the vanishing of two relative invariants which can be associated with any fourth-order equation through the application of Cartan's equivalence method. The solution to the inverse problem for fourth-order scalar equations provides the solution to an equivalence problem for second-order Lagrangians, as well as the precise relationship between the symmetry algebra of a variational equation and the divergence symmetry algebra of the associated Lagrangian.

     

WAVES IN FERROMAGNETIC MEDIA

ABSTRACT

It is shown that small perturbations of equilibrium states in ferromagnetic media give rise to standing and traveling waves that are stable for long times. The evolution of the wave profiles is governed by semilinear heat equations. The mathematical model underlying these results consists of the Landau–Lifshitz equation for the magnetization vector and Maxwell's equations for the electromagnetic field variables. The model belongs to a general class of hyperbolic equations for vector-valued functions, whose asymptotic properties are analyzed rigorously. The results are illustrated with numerical examples.     

Anti-selfdual Lagrangians II: unbounded non self-adjoint operators and evolution equations

New variational principles based on the concept of anti-selfdual (ASD) Lagrangians were recently introduced in “AIHP-Analyse non linéaire, 2006”. We continue here the program of using such Lagrangians to provide variational formulations and resolutions to various basic equations and evolutions which do not normally fit in the Euler-Lagrange framework. In particular, we consider stationary boundary value problems of the form as well ass dissipative initial value evolutions of the form where is a convex potential on an infinite dimensional space, A is a linear operator and is any scalar. The framework developed in the above mentioned paper reformulates these problems as and respectively, where is an “ASD” vector field derived from a suitable Lagrangian L. In this paper, we extend the domain of application of this approach by establishing existence and regularity results under much less restrictive boundedness conditions on the anti-selfdual Lagrangian L so as to cover equations involving unbounded operators. Our main applications deal with various nonlinear boundary value problems and parabolic initial value equations governed by transport operators with or without a diffusion term. Nassif Ghoussoub research was partially supported by a grant from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. The author gratefully acknowledges the hospitality and support of the Centre de Recherches Mathématiques in Montréal where this work was initiated. Leo Tzou’s research was partially supported by a doctoral postgraduate scholarship from the Natural Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada.     

Metric nonlinear connections

For a system of second order differential equations we determine a nonlinear connection that is compatible with a given generalized Lagrange metric. Using this nonlinear connection, we can find the whole family of metric nonlinear connections that can be associated with a system of SODE and a generalized Lagrange metric. For the particular case when the system of SODE and the metric structure are Lagrangian, we prove that the canonical nonlinear connection of the Lagrange space is the only nonlinear connection which is metric and compatible with the symplectic structure of the Lagrange space. For this particular case, the metric tensor determines the symmetric part of the canonical nonlinear connection, while the symplectic structure determines the skew-symmetric part of the nonlinear connection.     

CANONICAL FORMS FOR PARTICLE LAGRANGIANS OF THE LINEAR SECOND-ORDER EQUATION

Abstract

A particle Lagrangian of a linear scalar second-order ordinary differential equation can admit maximally one of 1,2,3 or 5 Noether point symmetries. Moreover, canonical forms of particle Lagrangians of the linear equation are presented according to the number (and algebra) of Noether point symmetries they admit.