Eisenhart lift for higher derivative systems

The Eisenhart lift provides an elegant geometric description of a dynamical system of second order in terms of null geodesics of the Brinkmann-type metric. In this work, we attempt to generalize the Eisenhart method so as to encompass higher derivative models. The analysis relies upon Ostrogradsky's Hamiltonian. A consistent geometric description seems feasible only for a particular class of potentials. The scheme is exemplified by the Pais-Uhlenbeck oscillator.Comment: V2: 12 pages, minor improvements, references added; the version to appear in PL

Conformal Triality of the Kepler problem

We show that the Kepler problem is projectively equivalent to null geodesic motion on the conformal compactification of Minkowski-4 space. This space realises the conformal triality of Minkwoski, dS and AdS spaces.Comment: 4 pages, no figures. Some modification

Hidden Symmetries of Dynamics in Classical and Quantum Physics

This article reviews the role of hidden symmetries of dynamics in the study of physical systems, from the basic concepts of symmetries in phase space to the forefront of current research. Such symmetries emerge naturally in the description of physical systems as varied as non-relativistic, relativistic, with or without gravity, classical or quantum, and are related to the existence of conserved quantities of the dynamics and integrability. In recent years their study has grown intensively, due to the discovery of non-trivial examples that apply to different types of theories and different numbers of dimensions. Applications encompass the study of integrable systems such as spinning tops, the Calogero model, systems described by the Lax equation, the physics of higher dimensional black holes, the Dirac equation, supergravity with and without fluxes, providing a tool to probe the dynamics of non-linear systems.Comment: 54 pages, review article. To be published in Rev. Mod. Phy

Hidden symmetries of Eisenhart-Duval lift metrics and the Dirac equation with flux

The Eisenhart-Duval lift allows embedding non-relativistic theories into a Lorentzian geometrical setting. In this paper we study the lift from the point of view of the Dirac equation and its hidden symmetries. We show that dimensional reduction of the Dirac equation for the Eisenhart-Duval metric in general gives rise to the non-relativistic Levy-Leblond equation in lower dimension. We study in detail in which specific cases the lower dimensional limit is given by the Dirac equation, with scalar and vector flux, and the relation between lift, reduction and the hidden symmetries of the Dirac equation. While there is a precise correspondence in the case of the lower dimensional massive Dirac equation with no flux, we find that for generic fluxes it is not possible to lift or reduce all solutions and hidden symmetries. As a by-product of this analysis we construct new Lorentzian metrics with special tensors by lifting Killing-Yano and Closed Conformal Killing-Yano tensors and describe the general Conformal Killing-Yano tensor of the Eisenhart-Duval lift metrics in terms of lower dimensional forms. Lastly, we show how dimensionally reducing the higher dimensional operators of the massless Dirac equation that are associated to shared hidden symmetries it is possible to recover hidden symmetry operators for the Dirac equation with flux.Comment: 18 pages, no figures. Version 3: some typos corrected, some discussions clarified, part of the abstract change

Ricci-flat spacetimes admitting higher rank Killing tensors

Ricci-flat spacetimes of signature (2,q) with q=2,3,4 are constructed which admit irreducible Killing tensors of rank-3 or rank-4. The construction relies upon the Eisenhart lift applied to Drach's two-dimensional integrable systems which is followed by the oxidation with respect to free parameters. In four dimensions, some of our solutions are anti-self-dual.Comment: 12 page

Curvatronics with bilayer graphene in an effective 4D4D spacetime

We show that in AB stacked bilayer graphene low energy excitations around the semimetallic points are described by massless, four dimensional Dirac fermions. There is an effective reconstruction of the 4 dimensional spacetime, including in particular the dimension perpendicular to the sheet, that arises dynamically from the physical graphene sheet and the interactions experienced by the carriers. The effective spacetime is the Eisenhart-Duval lift of the dynamics experienced by Galilei invariant L\'evy-Leblond spin $\frac{1}{2}$ particles near the Dirac points. We find that changing the intrinsic curvature of the bilayer sheet induces a change in the energy level of the electronic bands, switching from a conducting regime for negative curvature to an insulating one when curvature is positive. In particular, curving graphene bilayers allows opening or closing the energy gap between conduction and valence bands, a key effect for electronic devices. Thus using curvature as a tunable parameter opens the way for the beginning of curvatronics in bilayer graphene.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figures. Revised version with additional materia