Nonlinear Realization of a Dynamical Poincare Symmetry by a Field-dependent Diffeomorphism

Abstract

We consider a description of membranes by (2,1)-dimensional field theory, or alternatively a description of irrotational, isentropic fluid motion by a field theory in any dimension. We show that these Galileo-invariant systems, as well as others related to them, admit a peculiar diffeomorphism symmetry, where the transformation rule for coordinates involves the fields. The symmetry algebra coincides with that of the Poincare group in one higher dimension. Therefore, these models provide a nonlinear representation for a dynamical Poincare group.