Symplectic topology and Hamiltonian dynamics (Q1100736)

In this paper we construct, using variational methods for Hamiltonian systems, a map which associates to every subset of a symplectic vector space a number, called the symplectic capacity of the set. This map is characterized by three axioms. We show that on the smooth level capacity preserving maps are symplectic or antisymplectic. This allows to prove certain new symplectic rigidity results as well as to introduce the notion of a symplectic homeomorphism.