SPECIAL ISSUE: Selected Papers from the Ninth Conference on Quantum Field Theory Under the Influence of External Conditions (QFEXT09); University of Oklahoma, 21–25 September 2009; Editors: K. Milton and M. BordagNo Access

REPULSIVE CASIMIR AND VAN DER WAALS FORCES: FROM MEASUREMENTS TO FUTURE TECHNOLOGIES

J. N. MUNDAY

Thomas J. Watson Laboratories of Applied Physics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA

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and

FEDERICO CAPASSO

School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA

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https://doi.org/10.1142/S0217751X10049529Cited by:17 (Source: Crossref)

Abstract

By engineering the boundary conditions of electromagnetic fields between material interfaces, one can dramatically change the Casimir-Lifshitz force between surfaces as a result of the modified zero-point energy density of the system. Repulsive interactions between macroscopic bodies occur when their dielectric responses obey a particular inequality, as pointed out by Dzyaloshinskii, Lifshitz, and Pitaevskii. We discuss experimental verification of this behavior as well as a description of how this can be used to develop a scheme for quantum levitation. Based on these concepts, we discuss the possible development of a new class of devices based on ultra-low static friction and the ability to sort objects based on their dielectric functions.

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