Legendre transformation

Meaning

Noun

• Given a function $f(x,y,z,...)$ which is concave up with respect to x (i.e., its second derivative with respect to x is greater than zero), an involutive procedure for replacing x with another variable, say $p\; =\; \{\backslash partial\; f\; \backslash over\; \backslash partial\; x\}$ thus yielding another function, say $F\; =\; F(p,y,z,...)$. This new function contains all of the information of the original f encoded, as it were, within it so that $\{\backslash partial\; F\; \backslash over\; \backslash partial\; p\}\; =\; x$ and applying a similar transformation to F yields the original f. The formula is: $F(p,y,z,...)\; =\; p\; \backslash cdot\; x(p)\; -\; f(x(p),y,z,...)$ where x must be expressed as a function of p. (Note: The concave upwardness means that $\{\backslash partial\; f\; \backslash over\; \backslash partial\; x\}$ is monotonically increasing, which means that p as a function of x is invertible, so x should be expressible as a function of p.)
• A formula for converting a Lagrangian function to a Hamiltonian function (or vice versa).
• A relation between internal energy (expressed in terms of volume and entropy) and enthalpy (replacing volume with pressure), or between internal energy and Helmholtz free energy (replacing entropy with temperature), or between enthalpy and Gibbs free energy (replacing entropy with temperature), or between internal energy and Gibbs free energy (replacing volume with pressure and entropy with temperature), or between Helmholtz free energy and Gibbs free energy (replacing volume with pressure).

Origin

• Named after Adrien-Marie Legendre (1752–1852), a French mathematician.