Energy of internal modes of nonlinear waves and complex frequencies due to symmetry breaking

Considering a class of Hamiltonian systems, it is demonstrated that energy of the internal modes with real frequencies supported by nonlinear waves and appearing due to perturbations breaking a continuous symmetry has its sign determined by the symmetry itself, independently of the nature of the perturbations. In particular, it is shown that negative energy modes emerge as a result of the breaking of the phase symmetry in the perturbed nonlinear-Schrödinger equation. An expression for energy of the Vakhitov-Kolokolov internal modes is also derived. Comparative analysis of the energy signs of the internal modes in these two cases explains the ubiquity of instabilities with complex frequencies of solitary and continuous waves in systems with broken phase symmetry.