MATHEMATICA BOHEMICA, Vol. 126, No. 4, pp. 691-710 (2001)

Examples from the calculus of variations IV. Concluding review

Jan Chrastina

Jan Chrastina, Masaryk University, Janackovo nam. 2a, 662 95 Brno, Czech Republic

Abstract: Variational integrals containing several functions of one independent variable subjected moreover to an underdetermined system of ordinary differential equations (the Lagrange problem) are investigated within a survey of examples. More systematical discussion of two crucial examples from Part I with help of the methods of Parts II and III is performed not excluding certain instructive subcases to manifest the significant role of generalized Poincaré-Cartan forms without undetermined multipliers. The classical Weierstrass-Hilbert theory is simulated to obtain sufficient extremality conditions. Unlike the previous parts, this article is adapted to the category of continuous objects and mappings without any substantial references to the general principles, which makes the exposition self-contained.

Keywords: Lagrange problem, Poincaré-Cartan form, Hamiltonian-Jacobi equation, Weierstrass-Hilbert method

Classification (MSC2000): 49-01, 49K45

Full text of the article:


[Previous Article] [Next Article] [Contents of this Number]
© 2005 ELibM and FIZ Karlsruhe / Zentralblatt MATH for the EMIS Electronic Edition