Canonical and conjugate momentum

[igraviton]

what is the difference between canonical and conjugate momentum.. ? what is its physical significant.. I was reading classical mechanics by Goldstein but could understood this terms

 

[Bill_K]

Exactly the same thing. You might use the term conjugate momentum when you're referring to the canonical momentum which is conjugate to a particular coordinate.

 

[igraviton]

Hi Bill_k,

Thanks for reply but what that means ? "conjugate to a particular coordinate"... physical intrepretation

 

[tom.stoer]

The canonical conjugate momentum p is derived via a derivative of the action w.r.t. the time derivative of a generalized coordinate q. Then {q,p}=1. The physical interpretation of p depends on the interpretation of q.