Paper 1, Section I, B
Part II, 2013
Consider an -dimensional dynamical system with generalized coordinates and momenta .
(a) Define the Poisson bracket of two functions and .
(b) Assuming Hamilton's equations of motion, prove that if a function Poisson commutes with the Hamiltonian, that is , then is a constant of the motion.
(c) Assume that is an ignorable coordinate, that is the Hamiltonian does not depend on it explicitly. Using the formalism of Poisson brackets prove that the conjugate momentum is conserved.