Hamiltonian Frenet-Serret dynamics

Abstract

The Hamiltonian formulation of the dynamics of a relativistic particle described by a higher-derivative action that depends both on the first and the second Frenet-Serret curvatures is considered from a geometrical perspective. We demonstrate how reparametrization covariant dynamical variables and their projections onto the Frenet-Serret frame can be exploited to provide not only a significant simplification of but also novel insights into the canonical analysis. The constraint algebra and the Hamiltonian equations of motion are written down and a geometrical interpretation is provided for the canonical variables.