The Casimir effect within scattering theory

Abstract

We review the theory of the Casimir effect using scattering techniques. After years of theoretical efforts, this formalism is now largely mastered so that the accuracy of theory-experiment comparisons is determined by the level of precision and pertinence of the description of experimental conditions. Due to an imperfect knowledge of the optical properties of real mirrors used in the experiment, the effect of imperfect reflection remains a source of uncertainty in theory-experiment comparisons. For the same reason, the temperature dependence of the Casimir force between dissipative mirrors remains a matter of debate. We also emphasize that real mirrors do not obey exactly the assumption of specular reflection, which is used in nearly all calculations of material and temperature corrections. This difficulty may be solved by using a more general scattering formalism accounting for non-specular reflection with wavevectors and field polarizations mixed. This general formalism has already been fruitfully used for evaluating the effect of roughness on the Casimir force as well as the lateral Casimir force appearing between corrugated surfaces. The commonly used `proximity force approximation' turns out to lead to inaccuracies in the description of these two effects.

15 pages, 12 figures

References in corpus (7)

• New asymptotic behaviour of the surface-atom force out of thermal equilibrium
• The Casimir force and the quantum theory of lossy optical cavities
• The Casimir force between rough metallic plates
• Roughness correction to the Casimir force : Beyond the Proximity Force Approximation
• Sample dependence of the Casimir forces
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• Recent Developments in the Casimir Effect
• Casimir interaction: pistons and cavity
• Casimir energy and geometry : beyond the Proximity Force Approximation
• A New Look at the Quantum Mechanics of the Harmonic Oscillator
• Casimir torque between corrugated metallic plates