388

Chapter 13

The calculus of variations and Hamiltons principle

by saying that the Lagrange equations of motion are invariant under transformations
of the generalised coordinates. This remarkable result clearly applies to any system of
equations derived from a variational principle. This provides a general way of ensuring
that any proposed set of governing equations should be invariant under a particular group
of transformations (the Lorentz transformations, for instance). This will be so if the equations are derivable from a variational principle whose Lagrangian is invariant under the
same group of transformations.

Problems on Chapter 13
Answers and comments are at the end of the book.
Harder problems carry a star ().

EulerLagrange equation
13 . 1 Find the extremal of the functional


J [x] =

x 2
dt
t3

that satises x(1) = 3 and x(2) = 18. Show that this extremal provides the global minimum
of J .
13 . 2 Find the extremal of the functional

J [y] =

(2x sin t x 2 ) dt

that satises x(0) = x() = 0. Show that this extremal provides the global maximum of J .
13 . 3 Find the extremal of the path length functional


L[ y ] =
0


1+

dy
dx

2 1/2
dx

that satises y(0) = y(1) = 0 and show that it does provide the global minimum for L.
13 . 4 An aircraft ies in the (x, z)-plane from the point (a, 0) to the point (a, 0). (z = 0 is

ground level and the z-axis points vertically upwards.) The cost of ying the aircraft at height
z is exp(kz) per unit distance of ight, where k is a positive constant. Find the extremal for
the problem of minimising the total cost of the journey. [Assume that ka < /2.]
13 . 5 Geodesics on a cone Solve the problem of nding a shortest path over the surface
of a cone of semi-angle by the calculus of variations. Take the equation of the path in the
form = (), where is distance from the vertex O and is the cylindrical polar angle

13.4

389

Problems

measured around the axis of the cone. Obtain the general expression for the path length and
nd the extremal that satises the end conditions (/2) = (/2) = a.
Verify that this extremal is the same as the shortest path that would be obtained by developing the cone on to a plane.
13 . 6 Cost functional A manufacturer wishes to minimise the cost functional

4


(3 + x)
x + 2x dt

C[ x ] =
0

subject to the conditions x(0) = 0 and x(4) = X , where X is volume of goods to be produced.
Find the extremal of C that satises the given conditions and prove that this function provides
the global minimum of C.
Why is this solution not applicable when X < 8?
13 . 7 Soap lm problem Consider the soap lm problem for which it is required to minimise


J[ y] =

1


2
y 1 + y 2
dx

with y(a) = y(a) = b. Show that the extremals of J have the form


x
+d ,
y = c cosh
c
where c, d are constants, and that the end conditions are satised if (and only if) d = 0 and
 
b
cosh =
,
a
where = a/c. Show that there are two admissible extremals provided that the aspect ratio
b/a exceeds a certain critical value and none if b/a is less than this crirical value. Sketch a
graph showing how this critical value is determined.
The remainder of this question requires computer assistance. Show that the critical value
of the aspect ratio b/a is about 1.51. Choose a value of b/a larger than the critical value
(b/a = 2 is suitable) and nd the two values of . Plot the two admissible extremals on the
same graph. Which one looks like the actual shape of the soap lm? Check your guess by
perturbing each extremal by small admissible variations and nding the change in the value of
the functional J [ y ].
Fermats principle
13 . 8 A sugar solution has a refractive index n that increases with the depth z according to the

formula


z 1/2
,
n = n0 1 +
a
where n 0 and a are positive constants. A particular ray is horizontal when it passes through
the origin of coordinates. Show that the path of the ray is not the straight line z = 0 but the
parabola z = x 2 /4a.

390

Chapter 13

The calculus of variations and Hamiltons principle

13 . 9 Consider the propagation of light rays in an axially symmetric medium, where, in a

system of cylindrical polar co-ordinates (r, , z), the refractive index n = n(r ) and the rays lie
in the plane z = 0. Show that Fermats time functional has the form
T [r ] = c1

1/2


n r 2 + r 2
d,

where r = r () is the equation of the path, and r means dr/d.

(i) Show that the extremals of T satisfy the ODE

(r 2

n r2
= constant.
+ r 2 )1/2

Show further that, if we write r = r tan , where is the angle between the tangent to
the ray and the local cylindrical surface r = constant, this equation becomes
r n cos = constant,
which is the form of Snells law for this case. Deduce that circular rays with centre at
the origin exist only when the refractive index n = a/r , where a is a positive constant.
Hamiltons principle
13 . 10 A particle of mass 2 kg moves under uniform gravity along the z-axis, which points
verically downwards. Show that (in SI units) the action functional for the time interval [0, 2]
is


S[ z ] =

2


z 2 + 20z dt,

where g has been taken to be 10 m s2 .

Show directly that, of all the functions z(t) that satisfy the end conditions z(0) = 0 and
z(2) = 20, the actual motion z = 5t 2 provides the least value of S.
13 . 11 A certain oscillator with generalised coordinate q has Lagrangian

L = q 2 4q 2 .
Verify that q = sin 2t is a motion of the oscillator, and show directly that it makes the action
functional S[q ] satationary in any time interval [0, ].
For the time interval 0 t , nd the variation in the action functional corresponding
to the variations (i) h =  sin 4t, (ii) h =  sin t, where  is a small parameter. Deduce that the
motion q = sin 2t does not make S a minimum or a maximum.
13 . 12 A particle is constrained to move over a smooth xed surface under no forces other than
the force of constraint. By using Hamiltons principle and energy conservation, show that the

391

13.4 Problems

1
Q
2

P
1

0
1
2 0

FIGURE 13.7 The path of quickest descent from P to

Q in Cosine Valley. Those who lose their nerve at the

summit can walk down by the shortest path (shown
dashed).

path of the particle must be a geodesic of the surface. (The term geodesic has been extended
here to mean those paths that make the length functional stationary).
This result has a counterpart in the theory of general relativity, where the concept of force does not exist
and particles move along the geodesics of a curved space-time.

t) is modied to
13 . 13 By using Hamiltons principle, show that, if the Lagrangian L(q, q,
L  by any transformation of the form

L = L +

d
g(q, t),
dt

then the equations of motion are unchanged.

Computer assisted problems
13 . 14 Geodesics on a paraboloid Solve the problem of nding the shortest path between

two points P(0, 1, 1) and Q(0, 1, 1) on the surface of the paraboloid z = x 2 + y 2 .

Let C be a path lying in the surface that connects P and Q. Show that the length of C is given by
 /2 
 1/2


L[r ] =
r 2 + 1 + 4r 2 r 2
d,
/2

where r = r ( ) is the polar equation of the projection of C on to the plane z = 0, and r means dr/d.
Now nd the function r ( ) that minimises L. It is easier to work directly with the second order ELequation (which can be found with computer assistance). Solve the EL-equation numerically with the
initial conditions r (0) = , r (0) = 0 and choose so that the path passes through P (and, by symmetry,
Q). Plot the shortest path using 3D graphics.

392

Chapter 13

The calculus of variations and Hamiltons principle

13 . 15 The downhill skier Solve the problem of nding the path of quickest descent for

a skier from the point P(x0 , y0 , z 0 ) to the point Q(x1 , y1 , z 1 ) on a snow covered mountain
whose prole is given by z = G(x, y), where G is a known function. [Assume that the skier
starts from rest and that the total energy of the skier is conserved in the descent.]
Let C be a path connecting P and Q. Show that the time taken to descend by this route is given by

2 1/2
 x1 
1 + y 2 + G, x + G, y y
1/2
T [ y ] = (2g)
dx
G(x0 , y0 ) G(x, y)
x0
where y = y(x) is the projection of C on to the plane z = 0, y means dy/d x, and G, x , G, y are the
partial derivatives of G with respect to x, y. Obtain the EL equation with computer assistance and solve it
numerically with the initial conditions y(x1 ) = y1 , y  (x1 ) = and choose so that the path passes through
the P. [The numerical ODE integrator nds it easier to integrate the equation starting from the bottom.
Why?] Plot the quickest route using 3D graphics. The author used the prole of the Cosine Valley resort,
for which G(x, y) = cos2 ( x/2) cos2 ( y/4). The skier had to descend from P(1/3, 0, 3/4) to Q(2, 2, 0).
The computued quickest route down the valley is shown in Figure 13.7. Those who lose their nerve at the
summit can walk down by the shortest route (shown dashed). You may make up your own mountain prole,
but keep it simple.