Quantum Systems and Alternative Unitary Descriptions

Motivated by the existence of bi-Hamiltonian classical systems and the correspondence principle, in this paper we analyze the problem of finding Hermitian scalar products which turn a given flow on a Hilbert space into a unitary one. We show how different invariant Hermitian scalar products give rise to different descriptions of a quantum system in the Ehrenfest and Heisenberg picture.Comment: 18 page

Symplectic Structures and Quantum Mechanics

Canonical coordinates for the Schr\"odinger equation are introduced, making more transparent its Hamiltonian structure. It is shown that the Schr\"odinger equation, considered as a classical field theory, shares with Liouville completely integrable field theories the existence of a {\sl recursion operator} which allows for the infinitely many conserved functionals pairwise commuting with respect to the corresponding Poisson bracket. The approach may provide a good starting point to get a clear interpretation of Quantum Mechanics in the general setting, provided by Stone-von Neumann theorem, of Symplectic Mechanics. It may give new tools to solve in the general case the inverse problem of quantum mechanics whose solution is given up to now only for one-dimensional systems by the Gel'fand-Levitan-Marchenko formula.Comment: 11 pages, LaTex fil

Remarks on Nambu-Poisson and Nambu-Jacobi brackets

It is shown that Nambu-Poisson and Nambu-Jacobi brackets can be defined inductively: a n-bracket, n>2, is Nambu-Poisson (resp. Nambu-Jacobi) if and only if fixing an argument we get a (n-1)-Nambu-Poisson (resp. Nambu-Jacobi) bracket. As a by-product we get relatively simple proofs of Darboux-type theorems for these structures.Comment: Latex, 13 page

Highlights of Symmetry Groups

The concepts of symmetry and symmetry groups are at the heart of several developments in modern theoretical and mathematical physics. The present paper is devoted to a number of selected topics within this framework: Euclidean and rotation groups; the properties of fullerenes in physical chemistry; Galilei, Lorentz and Poincare groups; conformal transformations and the Laplace equation; quantum groups and Sklyanin algebras. For example, graphite can be vaporized by laser irradiation, producing a remarkably stable cluster consisting of 60 carbon atoms. The corresponding theoretical model considers a truncated icosahedron, i.e. a polygon with 60 vertices and 32 faces, 12 of which are pentagonal and 20 hexagonal. The Carbon 60 molecule obtained when a carbon atom is placed at each vertex of this structure has all valences satisfied by two single bonds and one double bond. In other words, a structure in which a pentagon is completely surrounded by hexagons is stable. Thus, a cage in which all 12 pentagons are completely surrounded by hexagons has optimum stability. On a more formal side, the exactly solvable models of quantum and statistical physics can be studied with the help of the quantum inverse problem method. The problem of enumerating the discrete quantum systems which can be solved by the quantum inverse problem method reduces to the problem of enumerating the operator-valued functions that satisfy an equation involving a fixed solution of the quantum Yang--Baxter equation. Two basic equations exist which provide a systematic procedure for obtaining completely integrable lattice approximations to various continuous completely integrable systems. This analysis leads in turn to the discovery of Sklyanin algebras.Comment: Plain Tex with one figur

Reduction and unfolding: the Kepler problem

In this paper we show, in a systematic way, how to relate the Kepler problem to the isotropic harmonic oscillator. Unlike previous approaches, our constructions are carried over in the Lagrangian formalism dealing with second order vector fields. We therefore provide a tangent bundle version of the Kustaahneimo-Stiefel map.Comment: latex2e, 28 pages; misprints correcte

On Filippov algebroids and multiplicative Nambu-Poisson structures

We discuss relations between linear Nambu-Poisson structures and Filippov algebras and define Filippov algebroids which are n-ary generalizations of Lie algebroids. We also prove results describing multiplicative Nambu- Poisson structures on Lie groups. In particular, we show that simple Lie groups do not admit multiplicative Nambu-Poisson structures of order n>2.Comment: Latex, 22 pages, to appear in Diff. Geom. App

Experimental and Theoretical Studies in Planetary Aeronomy Quarterly Progress Report, 24 May - 31 Aug. 1968

Determining absorption and photoionization cross sections of planetary gases - planetary aeronomy researc