The transformation of a system from one state to another is often mediated by a bottleneck in the systems phase space. In chemistry these bottlenecks are known as emph{transition states} through which the system has to pass in order to evolve from re
actants to products. The chemical reactions are usually associated with configurational changes where the reactants and products states correspond, e.g., to two different isomers or the undissociated and dissociated state of a molecule or cluster. In this letter we report on a new type of bottleneck which mediates emph{kinetic} rather than configurational changes. The phase space structures associated with such emph{kinetic transition states} and their dynamical implications are discussed for the rotational vibrational motion of a triatomic molecule. An outline of more general related phase space structures with important dynamical implications is given.
In this paper we study a systematic and natural construction of canonical coordinates for the reduced space of a cotangent bundle with a free Lie group action. The canonical coordinates enable us to compute Poincar{e}-Birkhoff normal forms of relativ
e equilibria using standard algorithms. The case of simple mechanical systems with symmetries is studied in detail. As examples we compute Poincar{e}-Birkhoff normal forms for a Lagrangian equilateral triangle configuration of a three-body system with a Morse-type potential and the stretched-out configuration of a double spherical pendulum.
Whereas it is easy to reduce the translational symmetry of a molecular system by using, e.g., Jacobi coordinates the situation is much more involved for the rotational symmetry. In this paper we address the latter problem using {it holonomy reduction
}. We suggest that the configuration space may be considered as the reduced holonomy bundle with a connection induced by the mechanical connection. Using the fact that for the special case of the three-body problem, the holonomy group is SO(2) (as opposed to SO(3) like in systems with more than three bodies) we obtain a holonomy reduced configuration space of topology $ mathbf{R}_+^3 times S^1$. The dynamics then takes place on the cotangent bundle over the holonomy reduced configuration space. On this phase space there is an $S^1$ symmetry action coming from the conserved reduced angular momentum which can be reduced using the standard symplectic reduction method. Using a theorem by Arnold it follows that the resulting symmetry reduced phase space is again a natural mechanical phase space, i.e. a cotangent bundle. This is different from what is obtained from the usual approach where symplectic reduction is used from the outset. This difference is discussed in some detail, and a connection between the reduced dynamics of a triatomic molecule and the motion of a charged particle in a magnetic field is established.
