Repulsive and attractive Casimir forces in a glide-symmetric geometry

Alejandro W. Rodriguez, J. D. Joannopoulos, and Steven G. Johnson
Phys. Rev. A 77, 062107 – Published 17 June 2008

Abstract

We describe a three-dimensional geometry in which both attractive and repulsive Casimir forces arise using ordinary metallic materials, as computed via an exact numerical method (no uncontrolled approximations). The geometry consists of a zipperlike, glide-symmetric structure formed of interleaved metal brackets attached to parallel plates—because of the interleaving pattern, a net repulsive force can arise from a combination of attractive interactions. Depending on the separation, the perpendicular force between the plates and brackets varies from attractive (large separations) to repulsive (intermediate distances) and back to attractive (close separations), with one point of stable equilibrium in the perpendicular direction. This geometry was motivated by a simple intuition of attractive interactions between surfaces, and so we also consider how a rough proximity-force approximation of pairwise attractions compares to the exact calculations.

  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Received 31 January 2008

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.77.062107

©2008 American Physical Society

Authors & Affiliations

Alejandro W. Rodriguez1, J. D. Joannopoulos1, and Steven G. Johnson2

  • 1Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA
  • 2Department of Mathematics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA

Article Text (Subscription Required)

Click to Expand

References (Subscription Required)

Click to Expand
Issue

Vol. 77, Iss. 6 — June 2008

Reuse & Permissions
Access Options
Author publication services for translation and copyediting assistance advertisement

Authorization Required


×
×

Images

×

Sign up to receive regular email alerts from Physical Review A

Log In

Cancel
×

Search


Article Lookup

Paste a citation or DOI

Enter a citation
×