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Independent functions $Q_1,\dots ,Q_n$ on a $2n$-dimensional symplectic manifold can locally form the position half of canonical coordinates exactly when $\{Q_i,Q_j\}=0$ throughout a neighbourhood. Their commuting Hamiltonian vector fields span the fibres of $Q$. Flow from a transverse section gives coordinates $(Q,t)$ with $\omega =\sum d{t}_i\wedge d{Q}_i+\beta (Q)$. Write $\beta =d\alpha$ locally and take $P_i=-t_i-{\alpha }_i(Q)$. Then $\omega =\sum d{Q}_i\wedge d{P}_i$.

For a hypersurface $N$ of a symplectic manifold, the restriction of the symplectic form has a one-dimensional kernel, its characteristic line field. On a regular value level $N=H^{-1}(c)$, this line is generated by the Hamiltonian vector field of $H$.

Suppose a symplectic Lie group action on a connected symplectic manifold has global component Hamiltonians and a common fixed point $p_0$. Choose their constants linearly so ${\mu }_{\xi }(p_0)=0$. The difference $c(\xi ,\eta )=\{{\mu }_{\xi },{\mu }_{\eta }\}-{\mu }_{[\xi ,\eta ]}$ has zero Hamiltonian vector field because fundamental fields and Hamiltonian fields have compatible Lie-bracket conventions; it is therefore constant. At $p_0$, all fundamental fields vanish, so both terms in $c$ vanish. Thus $c=0$ everywhere and the Poisson brackets of the components reproduce the group Lie algebra. For a connected group this also yields coadjoint equivariance. A linear unitary action on a vector space has the origin as such a fixed point.

The metric defines this globally smooth Hamiltonian on the cotangent bundle. With $\omega =d{x}^i\wedge d{p}_i$ and ${\iota }_{X_H}\omega =dH$, its Hamiltonian vector field projects to affinely parametrized geodesics. The momentum is $p_i=g_{ij}{\dot{x}}^j$, and its conserved value is half the squared speed.

If $H$ is $C^2$ and its spatial Hessian matrix is uniformly bounded on every finite time interval, its Hamiltonian vector field is globally Lipschitz continuous in phase space with at most linear growth. The Picard-Lindelöf theorem and Gronwall inequality give a unique Hamiltonian flow for all finite forward and backward times. Bounds on ${\nabla }_{z}H(t,0)$ follow from time continuity on compact intervals.

A Hamiltonian function is a smooth function whose differential determines a Hamiltonian vector field.

A Hamiltonian group action is a Lie group action on a symplectic manifold with an equivariant moment map $\mu :M\to {\mathfrak{g}}^{\ast }$. In the sign convention ${\iota }_{X_H}\omega =dH$, each component satisfies $d⟨\mu ,X⟩={\iota }_{X_M}\omega$, where $X_M$ is the fundamental vector field. The opposite Hamiltonian vector field convention reverses the sign.

A Hamiltonian isotopy is the flow of a time-dependent Hamiltonian vector field. Its time-one map is a Hamiltonian diffeomorphism.

On a symplectic manifold, use ${\iota }_{X_f}\omega =-df$ and $\{f,g\}=\omega (X_f,X_g)=X_f(g)$ for the Poisson bracket. Cartan's magic formula gives ${\mathcal{L}}_{X_f}\omega =0$. Taking the interior product of a differential form with $[X_f,X_g]$ then yields $-d\{f,g\}$, proving the homomorphism. Its kernel consists of locally constant functions, since $X_f=0$ precisely when $df=0$. On a connected manifold these are the constants. The quotient of smooth functions by this kernel is therefore the Lie algebra of Hamiltonian vector fields. A different contraction sign requires a compatible bracket sign.

Transport a phase-space density along Hamilton's equations. The Hamiltonian vector field is $b=({\nabla }_{v}H,-{\nabla }_{x}H)$ and the equation is ${\partial }_{t}f+b\cdot {\nabla }_{x,v}f=h$. Its zero divergence gives volume-preserving transport. For $h=0$, the density is constant along characteristics; a source is integrated by the Duhamel formula for Hamiltonian transport. This is distinct from the elliptic Liouville equation.

Compactly supported Hamiltonian vector fields can attain any prescribed tangent vector at a point of a symplectic manifold: prescribe the derivative of a local Hamiltonian and multiply by a bump function. Composing flows for a tangent basis gives an open orbit by the inverse function theorem. Every orbit is open, so on a connected manifold the compactly supported Hamiltonian transformations act transitively.

In three-dimensional autonomous mechanics, a regular common level set of $N$ independent isolating integrals has dimension $6-N$ in phase space. If an orbit is dense in a $d$-dimensional invariant torus and the integrals characterize its closure, $N=6-d$. A generic three-frequency regular orbit has three integrals; a spherical nonclosed rosette has energy and three components of specific angular momentum, with two-dimensional closure and four integrals. A periodic nonstationary orbit has one-dimensional closure and can be isolated by five independent orbit labels on the invariant family. The maximum is five wherever the Hamiltonian vector field is nonzero, since all integral differentials annihilate that field. A single resonant orbit need not yield an additional smooth single-valued integral on an open neighborhood; global superintegrability is stronger than orbital closure.

Start from a Casimir function $H_0$ of the first Poisson structure. Whenever possible, choose $H_n$ whose first Hamiltonian vector field is minus the second Hamiltonian vector field of $H_{n-1}$. A sequence extending indefinitely is the coefficient sequence of a formal Casimir function for the Poisson pencil. Its functions pairwise commute for both Poisson brackets. Existence at each stage is an additional solvability requirement; compatibility alone does not guarantee it.

For a weakly Hamiltonian left Lie group action on a connected symplectic manifold, choose ${\iota }_{X_f}\omega =df$. Fundamental vector fields and Hamiltonian vector fields are both antihomomorphisms, so the displayed difference is constant. The Jacobi identity for the Poisson bracket makes it a two-cocycle. Changing ${\mu }_X$ by $b(X)$ changes the difference by $-b([X,Y])$. Thus its class in Lie algebra cohomology obstructs choosing an equivariant moment map. For a connected group, vanishing of this class gives infinitesimal and group equivariance.

The next step of a Lenard-Magri recursion requires $-{\Pi }_{2}d{H}_{n-1}$ to be a Hamiltonian vector field for ${\Pi }_1$. It must be tangent to the symplectic leaves, and its contraction with the leaf symplectic form must have a global potential, with a compatible smooth extension between leaves. Even the first step may fail: on ${\mathbb{R}}^2$, take ${\Pi }_1=0$, ${\Pi }_2={\partial }_x\wedge {\partial }_y$ and $H_0=x$. Both Poisson structures are compatible, but ${\Pi }_{1}d{H}_1=-{\Pi }_{2}dx$ cannot hold, because its left side is zero and its right side is nonzero.

A symplectic manifold is a smooth even-dimensional manifold $M$ with a differential two-form $\omega$ that is closed, $d\omega =0$, and nondegenerate at every point. Nondegeneracy identifies vector fields with differential one-forms by the interior product $X\mapsto {\iota }_X\omega$. In this solution use the explicit Hamiltonian vector field conventionThis contraction sign differs from the negative-sign convention sometimes used for Hamiltonian vector fields; all subsequent signs are fixed by the displayed choice. In Darboux coordinates with $\omega ={\sum }_{a}d{x}_a\wedge d{y}_a$ it givesThe Poisson bracket is bilinear and antisymmetric, and the ordinary product rule gives $\{f,gh\}=\{f,g\}h+g\{f,h\}$. Thus it remains to check the Jacobi identity for the Poisson bracket.

The Cartan formula for the Lie derivative and closedness of the symplectic form give ${\mathcal{L}}_{X_f}\omega =d({\iota }_{X_f}\omega )+{\iota }_{X_f}d\omega =d^{2}f=0$. Henceand nondegeneracy givesApplying both sides to an arbitrary smooth function $h$ gives $\{f,\{g,h\}\}-\{g,\{f,h\}\}=\{\{f,g\},h\}$, which is exactly the Jacobi identity for the Poisson bracket. Consequently the smooth functions, with their pointwise product and this Poisson bracket, form a Poisson algebra. Constants have zero Hamiltonian vector field. If $f,g$ are components of moment maps, the same displayed relation relates the brackets of their Hamiltonian vector fields to the Poisson bracket of those components. In the opposite contraction convention the corresponding relation is the Hamiltonian Lie algebra homomorphism with the compatible bracket sign.

For the point vortices, remove the collision diagonals from $({\mathbb{R}}^2{)}^N$, since the logarithmic Hamiltonian function is singular there. Set $s_{ab}=(x_a-x_b{)}^2+(y_a-y_b{)}^2>0$ for $a\ne b$. Differentiating each pair contribution givesThe Hamiltonian vector field therefore gives the equations of motionEach contribution is perpendicular to the displacement from vortex $b$ to vortex $a$ and has magnitude $2/|{\mathbf{r}}_a-{\mathbf{r}}_b|$. This is the velocity induced by a point vortex of positive circulation, with the normalization $\Gamma /(2\pi )=2$. Each vortex is advected by the velocity of the others, without a self-induced singular velocity. Pairwise contributions cancel in the total velocity, so ${\sum }_a{x}_a$ and ${\sum }_a{y}_a$ are conserved. For two vortices the separation is constant and they rotate counterclockwise about their midpoint, as expected for identical positive point vortices.

For $L=\frac{1}{2}{\sum }_a(x_a^2+y_a^2)$, compute its Poisson bracket with $H$ directly:The last sum vanishes by pairing $(a,b)$ with $(b,a)$, since their numerators are opposite and denominators equal. Thus $L$ Poisson commutes with $H$ and is conserved. Equivalently, the Hamiltonian function depends only on pairwise distances and is invariant under simultaneous rotations.

The standard positive generator of the simultaneous circle group $SO(2)$ action isIts interior product with the symplectic form isUse the moment map convention $d⟨\mu ,\xi ⟩=-{\iota }_{Y_{\xi }}\omega$ for the usual positive rotation generator. Identifying $\mathfrak{so}(2{)}^{\ast }$ with $\mathbb{R}$, this proves $L$ is the moment map for the standard rotation action. It is invariant under the action, hence equivariant because circle group $SO(2)$ is abelian. Additive constants are possible; the natural normalization is $L=0$ at the origin of the ambient space. On the collision-free space this polynomial is its restriction. With the solution's positive contraction convention, the rotation generator is $Y=-X_L$. Confusing these two signs would reverse the final augmented Hamiltonian.

Let ${\mathcal{R}}_{\phi }$ denote simultaneous counterclockwise rotation through $\phi$, and introduce the co-rotating coordinates by $\mathbf{r}(t)={\mathcal{R}}_{\Omega t}{\mathbf{r}}^{\prime }(t)$. Both the symplectic form and $H$ are rotation-invariant, so pulling back the inertial Hamiltonian vector field leaves $X_H$ unchanged. Differentiating the rotation gives the co-rotating equationThe co-rotating positions are constant precisely when this Hamiltonian vector field vanishes. By nondegeneracy of the symplectic form, that is equivalent toConversely a collision-free critical point of this augmented Hamiltonian function produces a rigidly rotating solution. This is a rotating point-vortex relative equilibrium.

As a sign and scaling check, scaling every position by $s>0$ changes $H$ by $-N(N-1)\log s$. Therefore ${\sum }_a{\mathbf{r}}_a\cdot {\nabla }_{a}H=-N(N-1)$. At a rotating point-vortex relative equilibrium, ${\nabla }_{a}H+\Omega {\mathbf{r}}_a=0$, so $2\Omega L=N(N-1)$. For $N\ge 2$ the angular velocity is positive in this circulation convention. An equilateral three-vortex configuration of circumradius $\rho$ has $L=3{\rho }^2/2$ and $\Omega =2/{\rho }^2$, agreeing directly with the equations of motion.