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Phys. Rev. Lett. 101, 096803 (2008) [4 pages]

Anomalous Temperature Dependence of the Casimir Force for Thin Metal Films

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V. A. Yampol’skii
Advanced Science Institute, The Institute of Physical and Chemical Research (RIKEN), Wako-shi, Saitama, 351-0198, Japan
A. Ya. Usikov Institute for Radiophysics and Electronics National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, 61085 Kharkov, Ukraine

Sergey Savel’ev
Advanced Science Institute, The Institute of Physical and Chemical Research (RIKEN), Wako-shi, Saitama, 351-0198, Japan and Department of Physics, Loughborough University, Loughborough LE11 3TU, United Kingdom

Z. A. Mayselis and S. S. Apostolov
A. Ya. Usikov Institute for Radiophysics and Electronics National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, 61085 Kharkov, Ukraine

Franco Nori
Advanced Science Institute, The Institute of Physical and Chemical Research (RIKEN), Wako-shi, Saitama, 351-0198, Japan and Department of Physics, Center for Theoretical Physics, Applied Physics Program, Center for the Study of Complex Systems, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-1040, USA

See Also: Erratum

Received 3 December 2007; published 28 August 2008

Within the framework of the Drude dispersive model, we predict an unusual nonmonotonic temperature dependence of the Casimir force for thin metal films. For certain conditions, this force decreases with temperature due to the decrease of the metallic conductivity, whereas the force increases at high temperatures due to the increase of the thermal radiation pressure. We consider the attraction of a film to: either (i) a bulk ideal metal with a planar boundary, or (ii) a bulk metal sphere (lens). The experimental observation of the predicted decreasing temperature dependence of the Casimir force can put an end to the long-standing discussion on the role of the electron relaxation in the Casimir effect.

© 2008 The American Physical Society

URL:
http://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevLett.101.096803
DOI:
10.1103/PhysRevLett.101.096803
PACS:
73.61.At, 11.10.Wx

See Also

Erratum: V. A. Yampol’skii, Sergey Savel’ev, Z. A. Mayselis, S. S. Apostolov, and Franco Nori, Erratum: Anomalous Temperature Dependence of the Casimir Force for Thin Metal Films [Phys. Rev. Lett. 101, 096803 (2008)], Phys. Rev. Lett. 103, 039901 (2009).

 
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