Hamiltonization of higher-order nonlinear ordinary differential equations and the Jacobi last multiplier

Partha Guha, A. Ghose Choudhury

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

11 Scopus citations

Abstract

It is known that Jacobi's last multiplier is directly connected to the deduction of a Lagrangian via Rao's formula (Madhava Rao in Proc. Benaras Math. Soc. (N.S.) 2:53-59, 1940). In this paper we explicitly demonstrate that it also plays an important role in Hamiltonian theory. In particular, we apply the recent results obtained by Torres del Castillo (J. Phys. A Math. Theor. 43:265202, 2009) and deduce the Hamiltonian of a second-order ODE of the Lienard type, namely, ẍ+f(x)x·2 + g(x)=0. In addition, we consider cases where the coefficient functions may also depend on the independent variable t. We illustrate our construction with various examples taken from astrophysics, cosmology and the Painlevé-Gambier class of differential equations. Finally we discuss the Hamiltonization of third-order equations using Nambu-Hamiltonian mechanics.

Original languageBritish English
Pages (from-to)179-197
Number of pages19
JournalActa Applicandae Mathematicae
Volume116
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Nov 2011

Keywords

  • Conformal Weyl gravity
  • Jacobi's last multiplier
  • Nambu-Hamiltonians
  • Time-dependent Hamiltonian system
  • White dwarf equation

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