An Index Theory for Collision, Parabolic and Hyperbolic Solutions of the Newtonian $n$-body Problem

Abstract

In the Newtonian $n$-body problem for solutions with arbitrary energy, which start and end either at a total collision or a parabolic/hyperbolic infinity, we prove some basic results about their Morse and Maslov indices. Moreover for homothetic solutions with arbitrary energy, we give a simple and precise formula that relates the Morse indices of these homothetic solutions to the spectra of the normalized potential at the corresponding central configurations. Potentially these results could be useful in the application of non-action minimization methods in the Newtonian $n$-body problem.