Friday, March 8, 2019

classical mechanics - For an infinitesimal transformation in phase space, what functions are allowed for this to be a canonical transformation?


Consider an infinitesimal transformation:


(qi,pj)(Qi,Pj) = (qi+αFi(q,p), pj+αEj(q,p))


where α is considered to be infinitesimally small.


Now, if we construct Jacobian matrix, we will have:



ȷ=(δij+αFiqjαFipjαEiqjδij+αEipj).


What functions Fi(q,p) and Ei(q,p) are allowed for this to be a canonical transformation?


To be canonical transformation, it's required to hold: ȷjȷT=j

in which j=(0110). To hold the canonical transformation, there should be: Fiqj=Eipj


which is true if


Fi=Gpi,Ei=Gqi


for some function G(q,p).


Now my problem is that by calculating everything I can't figure out how to reach to last two formulas. The formulas which shows the possibilities for Fi and Ei?



Answer






  1. First of all, be aware that there exist various different definitions of canonical transformations (CT) in the literature, cf. e.g. this Phys.SE post. What OP (v3) above refers to as a CT, we will in this answer call a symplectomorphism for clarity. What we in this answer will refer to as a CT, will just be a CT of type 2.




  2. It is possible to show (see e.g. Ref. 1) that an arbitrary time-dependent infinitesimal canonical transformation (ICT) of type 2 with generator G=G(z,t) can be identified with a Hamiltonian vector field (HVF) δzI = ε{zI,G}PB  2nK=1JIKGzK,

    XG  {G,}PB  {,G}PB,
    with (minus) the same generator G. Here z1,,z2n, are phase space variables, t is time, ε is an infinitesimal parameter, and J is the symplectic unit matrix, J2 = 12n×2n.




  3. A general time-dependent infinitesimal transformation (IT) of phase space can without loss of generality be assumed to be of the form δzI = ε2nK=1JIKGK(z,t),I  {1,,2n},

    because the matrix J is invertible.




  4. It is possible to show that a time-dependent infinitesimal symplectomorphism (IS) [written in the form (3)] satisfies the Maxwell relations1 GI(z,t)zJ = (IJ),I,J  {1,,2n}.





  5. Eq. (4) states that the one-form G := 2nI=1GI(z,t)dzI

    is closed dG = 0.




  6. It follows from Poincare Lemma, that locally there exists a function G such that G is locally exact G = dG.

    Or in components, GI(z,t) = G(z,t)zI,I  {1,,2n}.




  7. In summary we have the following very useful theorem for a general time-dependent infinitesimal transformation (IT).




    Theorem. An infinitesimal canonical transformation (ICT) of type 2 is an infinitesimal symplectomorphism (IS). Conversely, an IS is locally a ICT of type 2.





References:



  1. H. Goldstein, Classical Mechanics; 2nd eds., 1980, Section 9.3; or 3rd eds., 2001, Section 9.4.


--


1 OP already listed some (but not all) of the Maxwell relations (4) in his second-last equation. All of the Maxwell relations (4) are necessary in order to deduce the local existence of the generating function G.



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