Van der Waals-Casimir-Polder interaction of an atom with a composite surface

Abstract

We study the dispersion interaction of the van der Waals and Casimir-Polder (vdW-CP) type between a neutral atom and the surface of a metal by allowing for nonlocal electrodynamics, i.e. electron diffusion. We consider two models: (i) bulk diffusion, and (ii) diffusion in a surface charge layer. In both cases the transition to a semiconductor is continuous as a function of the conductivity, unlike the case of a local model. The relevant parameter is the electric screening length and depends on the carrier diffusion constant. We find that for distances comparable to the screening length, vdW-CP data can distinguish between bulk and surface diffusion, hence it can be a sensitive probe for surface states.

v2: expanded references, statements on current status in the field. 10 pages, 6 figures

References in corpus (13)

• Measurement of the Temperature Dependence of the Casimir-Polder Force
• Control of the Casimir force by the modification of dielectric properties with light
• Thermal Lifshitz Force between Atom and Conductor with Small Density of Carriers
• Fabrication and heating rate study of microscopic surface electrode ion traps
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• Application of the Lifshitz theory to poor conductors
• Lifshitz theory of atom-wall interaction with applications to quantum reflection
• Casimir-Polder force between an atom and a dielectric plate: thermodynamics and experiment
• Retardation turns the van der Waals attraction into Casimir repulsion already at 3 nm
• Noise from metallic surfaces -- effects of charge diffusion
• Surface plasmons at composite surfaces with diffusive charges
• Van der Waals forces and spatial dispersion

Cited by in corpus (3)

• Influence of chemical potential on the Casimir-Polder interaction between an atom and gapped graphene or graphene-coated substrate
• Spectroscopic detection of atom-surface interactions in an atomic vapour layer with nanoscale thickness
• Temperature Dependence of the Response Functions of Graphene: Impact on Casimir and Casimi-Polder Forces in and out of Thermal Equilibrium