[内容简介]

The subject of this book is the Casimir effect, a manifestation of zero-point oscillations of the quantum vacuum resulting in forces acting between closely spaced bodies. For the benefit of the reader, the book assembles field-theoretical foundations of this phenomenon, applications of the general theory to real materials, and a comprehensive description of all recently performed measurements of the Casimir force with a comparison between experiment and theory. There is an urgent need for a book of this type, given the increase of interest in forces originating from the quantum vacuum. Numerous new results have been obtained in the last few years which are not reflected in previous books on the subject, but which are very promising for fundamental science and nanotechnology. The book is a unique source of information presenting a critical assessment of all the main results and approaches from hundreds of journal papers. It also outlines new ideas which have not yet been universally accepted but which are finding increasing support from experiment.

[目录]

• 1: Introduction
• <b>I: PHYSICAL AND MATHEMATICAL FOUNDATIONS OF THE CASIMIR EFFECT FOR IDEAL BOUNDARIES</b>
• 2: Simple models of the Casimir effect
• 3: Field quantization and vacuum energy in the presence of boundaries
• 4: Regularization and renormalization of the vacuum energy
• 5: The Casimir effect at nonzero temperature
• 6: Approximate and numerical approaches to the Casimir effect
• 7: The Casimir effect for two ideal metal planes
• 8: The Casimir effect in rectangular boxes
• 9: Single spherical and cylindrical boundaries
• 10: The Casimir force between objects of arbitrary shape
• 11: Spaces with non-Euclidean topology
• <b>II: THE CASIMIR FORCE BETWEEN REAL BODIES</b>
• 12: The Lifshitz theory of van der Waals and Casimir forces between plane dielectrics
• 13: The Casimir interaction between plates made of real metals at zero temperature
• 14: The Casimir interaction between real metals at nonzero temperature
• 15: The Casimir interaction between metal and dielectric
• 16: The Lifshitz theory of atom-wall interaction
• 17: The Casimir force between rough and corrugated surfaces
• <b>III: MEASUREMENTS OF THE CASIMIR FORCE AND THEIR APPLICATIONS IN BOTH FUNDAMENTAL PHYSICS AND NANOTECHNOLOGY</b>
• 18: General requirements for Casimir force measurements
• 19: Measurements of the Casimir force between equals
• 20: Measurements of the Casimir force with semiconductors
• 21: Measurements of the Casimir force in configurations with corrugated surfaces
• 22: Measurement of the Casimir-Polder force
• 23: Applications of the Casimir force in nanotechnology
• 24: Constraints on hypothetical interactions from the Casimir effect
• 25: Conclusions and outlook