Illustrating dynamical symmetries in classical mechanics: The Laplace–Runge–Lenz vector revisited

DOI10.1119/1.1524165zbMATH Open1219.70019arXivphysics/0212043OpenAlexW3104686498MaRDI QIDQ3088674FDOQ3088674

Kannan Jagannathan, Ross O'connell

Publication date: 19 August 2011

Published in: American Journal of Physics (Search for Journal in Brave)

Abstract: The inverse square force law admits a conserved vector that lies in the plane of motion. This vector has been associated with the names of Laplace, Runge, and Lenz, among others. Many workers have explored aspects of the symmetry and degeneracy associated with this vector and with analogous dynamical symmetris. We define a conserved dynamical variable $alpha$ that characterizes the orientation of the orbit in two-dimensional configuration space for the Kepler problem and an analogous variable $$ for the isotropic harmonics oscillator. This orbit orientation variable is canonically conjugate to the angular momentum component normal to the plane of motion. We explore the canoncial one-parameter group of transformations generated by $$ Because we have an obvious pair of conserved canonically conjugate variables, it is desirable to us them as a coordinate-momentum pair. In terms of these phase space coordinates, the form of the Hamiltonian is nearly trivial because neither member of the pair can occur explicitly in the Hamiltonian. From these considerations we gain a simple picture of the dynamics in phase space. The procedure we use is in the spirit of the Hamilton-Jacobi method.

Full work available at URL: https://arxiv.org/abs/physics/0212043

Mathematics Subject Classification ID

Two-body problems (70F05) Hamilton-Jacobi equations in mechanics (70H20)

Cited In (4)

• Quadratic integrals of a multi-scalar cosmological model
• Variational contact symmetries of constrained Lagrangians
• Tensor-product representation of Laplace-Runge-Lenz vector for two-body Kepler systems
• Superintegrability, symmetry and point particle T-duality

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