Wave packet evolution in non-Hermitian quantum systems

The quantum evolution of the Wigner function for Gaussian wave packets generated by a non-Hermitian Hamiltonian is investigated. In the semiclassical limit $\hbar\to 0$ this yields the non-Hermitian analog of the Ehrenfest theorem for the dynamics of observable expectation values. The lack of Hermiticity reveals the importance of the complex structure on the classical phase space: The resulting equations of motion are coupled to an equation of motion for the phase space metric---a phenomenon having no analog in Hermitian theories.Comment: Example added, references updated, 4 pages, 2 figure

Time-dependent Mechanics and Lagrangian submanifolds of Dirac manifolds

A description of time-dependent Mechanics in terms of Lagrangian submanifolds of Dirac manifolds (in particular, presymplectic and Poisson manifolds) is presented. Two new Tulczyjew triples are discussed. The first one is adapted to the restricted Hamiltonian formalism and the second one is adapted to the extended Hamiltonian formalism

Contact complete integrability

Complete integrability in a symplectic setting means the existence of a Lagrangian foliation leaf-wise preserved by the dynamics. In the paper we describe complete integrability in a contact set-up as a more subtle structure: a flag of two foliations, Legendrian and co-Legendrian, and a holonomy-invariant transverse measure of the former in the latter. This turns out to be equivalent to the existence of a canonical $\R\ltimes \R^{n-1}$ structure on the leaves of the co-Legendrian foliation. Further, the above structure implies the existence of $n$ contact fields preserving a special contact 1-form, thus providing the geometric framework and establishing equivalence with previously known definitions of contact integrability. We also show that contact completely integrable systems are solvable in quadratures. We present an example of contact complete integrability: the billiard system inside an ellipsoid in pseudo-Euclidean space, restricted to the space of oriented null geodesics. We describe a surprising acceleration mechanism for closed light-like billiard trajectories

Involutive orbits of non-Noether symmetry groups

We consider set of functions on Poisson manifold related by continues one-parameter group of transformations. Class of vector fields that produce involutive families of functions is investigated and relationship between these vector fields and non-Noether symmetries of Hamiltonian dynamical systems is outlined. Theory is illustrated with sample models: modified Boussinesq system and Broer-Kaup system.Comment: LaTeX 2e, 10 pages, no figure

Structural Analysis of Human Respiratory Syncytial Virus P Protein: Identification of Intrinsically Disordered Domains

Human Respiratory Syncytial Virus P protein plus the viral RNA, N and L viral proteins, constitute the viral replication complex. In this report we describe that HRSV P protein has putative intrinsically disordered domains predicted by in silico methods. These two domains, located at the amino and caboxi terminus, were identified by mass spectrometry analysis of peptides obtained from degradation fragments observed in purified P protein expressed in bacteria. The degradation is not occurring at the central oligomerization domain, since we also demonstrate that the purified fragments are able to oligomerize, similarly to the protein expressed in cells infected by HRSV. Disordered domains can play a role in protein interaction, and the present data contribute to the comprehension of HRSV P protein interactions in the viral replication complex

Bi-presymplectic chains of co-rank one and related Liouville integrable systems

Bi-presymplectic chains of one-forms of co-rank one are considered. The conditions in which such chains represent some Liouville integrable systems and the conditions in which there exist related bi-Hamiltonian chains of vector fields are derived. To present the construction of bi-presymplectic chains, the notion of dual Poisson-presymplectic pair is used and the concept of d-compatibility of Poisson bivectors and d-compatibility of presymplectic forms is introduced. It is shown that bi-presymplectic representation of related flow leads directly to the construction of separation coordinates in purely algorithmic way. As an illustration bi-presymplectic and bi-Hamiltonian chains in ${\mathbb R}^3$ are considered in detail

On the duality between the hyperbolic Sutherland and the rational Ruijsenaars-Schneider models

We consider two families of commuting Hamiltonians on the cotangent bundle of the group GL(n,C), and show that upon an appropriate single symplectic reduction they descend to the spectral invariants of the hyperbolic Sutherland and of the rational Ruijsenaars-Schneider Lax matrices, respectively. The duality symplectomorphism between these two integrable models, that was constructed by Ruijsenaars using direct methods, can be then interpreted geometrically simply as a gauge transformation connecting two cross sections of the orbits of the reduction group.Comment: 16 pages, v2: comments and references added at the end of the tex

On the notion of phase in mechanics

The notion of phase plays an esential role in both classical and quantum mechanics.But what is a phase? We show that if we define the notion of phase in phase (!) space one can very easily and naturally recover the Heisenberg-Weyl formalism; this is achieved using the properties of the Poincare-Cartan invariant, and without making any quantum assumption

A spinor approach to Walker geometry

A four-dimensional Walker geometry is a four-dimensional manifold M with a neutral metric g and a parallel distribution of totally null two-planes. This distribution has a natural characterization as a projective spinor field subject to a certain constraint. Spinors therefore provide a natural tool for studying Walker geometry, which we exploit to draw together several themes in recent explicit studies of Walker geometry and in other work of Dunajski (2002) and Plebanski (1975) in which Walker geometry is implicit. In addition to studying local Walker geometry, we address a global question raised by the use of spinors.Comment: 41 pages. Typos which persisted into published version corrected, notably at (2.15

On the integrability of stationary and restricted flows of the KdV hierarchy.

A bi--Hamiltonian formulation for stationary flows of the KdV hierarchy is derived in an extended phase space. A map between stationary flows and restricted flows is constructed: in a case it connects an integrable Henon--Heiles system and the Garnier system. Moreover a new integrability scheme for Hamiltonian systems is proposed, holding in the standard phase space.Comment: 25 pages, AMS-LATEX 2.09, no figures, to be published in J. Phys. A: Math. Gen.