Abstract
Thermal effects on the creation of particles under the influence of time-dependent boundary conditions are investigated. The dominant temperature correction to the energy radiated by a moving mirror is derived by means of response theory. For a resonantly vibrating cavity the thermal effect on the number of created photons is obtained nonperturbatively. Finite temperatures can enhance the pure vacuum effect by several orders of magnitude. The relevance of finite-temperature effects for the experimental verification of the dynamical Casimir effect is addressed.
- Received 29 June 1999
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.84.1882
©2000 American Physical Society
