Hamiltonian theory of the generalized oscillation-centre transformation

Abstract

The theory of the slow reaction of a charged particle in the combined presence of a strong quasi-static magnetic field and a high-frequency electromagnetic field (generalized oscillation-centre motion) is constructed by using a Hamiltonian formalism with non-canonical variables and pseudo-canonical transformations. The theory combines the features studied in our previous works for the case in which only one of the previously mentioned fields is present. The new averaging transformation is based on the fact that the Larmor frequency of the quasi-static field is of the same order as the external frequency of the high-frequency field. Our theory is manifestly gauge-invariant and involves only physical quantities (particle velocity and electromagnetic fields). Explicit expressions for the drift velocity of the oscillation centre and for the ponderomotive force are derived.