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Noether's theorems/Index of symmetries: Difference between revisions

From The Invariance Itself
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Noether theorems volume, initial import (R-02)
 
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Five symmetries in a left column, each joined by an arrow to the quantity it conserves in a right column: clock shift to energy, spatial motion to momentum, rotation to angular momentum, field rotation to electric charge, and steady-speed change to uniform centre-of-mass motion. The last arrow is dashed to mark that it needs the weaker invariance condition.
The symmetry-to-conservation map

Every symmetry treated anywhere in this volume, with what it returns and which theorem applies. The last column is the distinction the volume exists to keep, and it is the reason this index is worth more than a list of conserved quantities.

First theorem: global symmetries, conserved quantities

symmetry what it returns page
translation of the independent variable energy Energy, momentum and angular momentum
translation of a dependent variable the conjugate momentum; the coordinate is cyclic same
rotation of two dependent variables, in space angular momentum same
rigid translation of an N-particle system the total momentum, and Newton's third law as an off-shell identity Point mechanics
rotation of two dependent variables, internal electric charge Centre-of-mass motion and electric charge
time translation of a string energy density and energy flux Continuum mechanics
space translation of a string the wave's momentum density, which is not the material's momentum same
a Killing vector of a curved space a quantity constant along every geodesic Killing vectors
spatial Killing vector of an expanding universe comoving momentum; hence photon energy falling as the inverse stretch factor Photon energy
the flow generated by any quantity the generator identity; conservation is the antisymmetry of the bracket Poisson brackets
rigid shift of a discrete action a discrete momentum, conserved exactly at every step Variational integrators

First theorem, with Bessel-Hagen's weakened condition

symmetry what it returns page
Galilean boost uniform motion of the centre of mass Centre-of-mass motion and electric charge

Strict invariance gives nothing here. The weakened condition is Bessel-Hagen's, from 1921, and is attributed on every page where it is used.

Second theorem: local symmetries, identities

symmetry what it returns page
Weierstrass reparametrisation, one free function, order zero one linear relation among the Lagrange expressions The Noether identities
coordinate relabelling in general relativity, n functions, order one n identities; the count is a theorem, their identification with the Bianchi identities is not derived here Bianchi identity
electromagnetic gauge freedom, one function one identity, which forces charge conservation rather than permitting it Electromagnetism
Yang-Mills gauge freedom identities, one per free function; the count only, nothing derived Yang-Mills
Noether's logarithmic group improper energy relations, with no physics attached Proper and improper
translation group inside any infinite group energy relations improper, if and only if same

Unresolved, and outside both theorems

case status page
particle relabelling in an ideal fluid → circulation the symmetry is a free shape, so this sits between the theorems. Which one applies is not resolved in this volume Kelvin's circulation theorem
the Runge-Lenz vector the conserved quantity is exhibited; the symmetry behind it is not derived Runge-Lenz
topological charge neither theorem. Conserved without the field equations being used, so no symmetry is responsible Topological charge

The last row is the volume's boundary marker. The test that produces it is a single question: were the field equations used?