This article is cited in 7 papers

Seeking (and finding) Lagrangians

M. C. Nucci

Università degli Studi di Perugia

Abstract: It is well known that for any second-order ordinary differential equation (ODE), a Lagrangian always exists, and the key to its construction is the Jacobi last multiplier. Is it possible to find Lagrangians for first-order systems of ODEs or for higher-order ODEs? We show that the Jacobi last multiplier can also play a major role in this case.

Keywords: Lagrangian, first integral, Jacobi last multiplier.

DOI: 10.4213/tmf6388

 English version: Theoretical and Mathematical Physics, 2009, 160:1, 1014–1021

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