Koopman wavefunctions and Clebsch variables in Vlasov-Maxwell kinetic theory

Abstract

Motivated by recent discussions on the possible role of quantum computation in plasma simulations, here we present different approaches to Koopman's Hilbert-space formulation of classical mechanics in the context of Vlasov-Maxwell kinetic theory. The celebrated Koopman-von Neumann construction is provided with two different Hamiltonian structures: one is canonical and recovers the usual Clebsch representation of the Vlasov density, the other is noncanonical and appears to overcome certain issues emerging in the canonical formalism. Furthermore, the canonical structure is restored for a variant of the Koopman-von Neumann construction that carries a different phase dynamics. Going back to van Hove's prequantum theory, the corresponding Koopman-van Hove equation provides an alternative Clebsch representation which is then coupled to the electromagnetic fields. Finally, the role of gauge transformations in the new context is discussed in detail.