Variational principle for t-dependent classical Hamiltonian systems

For a non-conservative, classical system described by Lagrangian L(dqsub(i)/dt,qsub(i),t), the functional Z=∫sup(T)sub(0)Ldt+KT, where K is constant, is stationary with respect to variations in qsub(i)(t) and T, given suitable boundary conditions. In the conservative case, for systems with a single periodic coordinate, this variational procedure reduces to that given by Luttinger and Thomas. (Auth.)