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arXiv:2105.04217 · Physical Review A

Spectroscopic effects of velocity-dependent Casimir-Polder interactions induced by parallel plates

Joseph Durnin, Juliane Klatt, Robert G. Bennett, Stefan Yoshi Buhmann

Published Mar 30, 2022• 3 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

Casimir-Polder interactions cause energy and momentum exchange between microscopic and macroscopic bodies, a process mediated by quantum fluctuations in the coupled matter-electromagnetic field system. The dynamics of such effects are yet to be experimentally investigated due to the dominance of static effects at currently attainable atomic velocities. However, Y. Guo and Z. Jacob [Opt. Express 22, 26193 (2014)] have proposed a nonstatic two-plate setup where quantum-fluctuation-mediated effects have a strong velocity-dependent resonance, leading to a giant friction force on the plates. Here a more easily realizable setup, a moving atom between two stationary plates, is analyzed within a QED framework to establish the spectroscopic Casimir-Polder effects on the atom and their velocity dependence. While no large velocity-dependent enhancement is found, expressions for the plate-induced spectroscopic effects on the atom were found and further shown to be equivalent to the Doppler-shifted static result within certain velocity constraints. A numerical analysis investigates the behavior of this system for the well-studied case of the $6{D}_{3/2}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}7{P}_{1/2}$ transition in $^{133}\mathrm{Cs}$ interacting with sapphire plates.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.105.032822

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•Apr 10, 2018•1 citation
Casimir-Polder interactions cause energy and momentum exchange between microscopic and macroscopic bodies, a process mediated by quantum fluctuations in the coupled matter-electromagnetic field system. The dynamics of such effects are yet to be experimentally investigated due to the dominance of static effects at currently attainable atomic velocities. However, Y. Guo and Z. Jacob [Opt. Express 22, 26193 (2014)] have proposed a nonstatic two-plate setup where quantum-fluctuation-mediated effects have a strong velocity-dependent resonance, leading to a giant friction force on the plates. Here a more easily realizable setup, a moving atom between two stationary plates, is analyzed within a QED framework to establish the spectroscopic Casimir-Polder effects on the atom and their velocity dependence. While no large velocity-dependent enhancement is found, expressions for the plate-induced spectroscopic effects on the atom were found and further shown to be equivalent to the Doppler-shifted static result within certain velocity constraints. A numerical analysis investigates the behavior of this system for the well-studied case of the 6D3/2\ensuremath→7P1/26{D}_{3/2}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}7{P}_{1/2}6D3/2​\ensuremath→7P1/2​ transition in 133Cs^{133}\mathrm{Cs}133Cs interacting with sapphire plates.
The motion of a particle in vacuum near macroscopic bodies gives rise to a Magnus-like contribution to the nonequilibrium Casimir-Polder force. This effect originates from the interplay between particle dynamics and material-modified electromagnetic quantum fluctuations, inducing in the particle a direction-dependent angular momentum coupled to the electromagnetic field spin. The resulting drift force is proportional to the cross product of the particle's angular and translational velocities, revealing a rotational transport component in the nonequilibrium Casimir-Polder interaction. Our results establish a striking connection between quantum fluctuations-induced forces and the classical Magnus effect in fluid dynamics.
The Casimir-Polder (CP) effect -- the force between a neutral atom and an uncharged conducting plate in empty space -- is an intriguing consequence of quantum vacuum fluctuations. The typically attractive CP potential crosses over from a scaling of z−3z^{-3}z−3 at short separations to z−4z^{-4}z−4 at long distances, where retardation effects due to the finite speed of light become important. At intermediate distances, where the atom--surface separation is of the order of the wavelength of the dominant atomic transition, experiments have so far relied on indirect methods, such as diffraction or quantum reflection, to observe the CP effect. Here, we directly reveal the CP force between strontium atoms and a dielectric surface via the induced shifts in the atomic energy levels in the intermediate regime. We spectroscopically probe the CP-induced kHz-frequency shift of ultracold atoms confined by a magic-wavelength optical lattice at 189(2)~nm from the surface -- on the scale of the dominant 461-nm transition. Our measurements agree well with QED calculations and differ from the short-range approximation, while excluding the long-distance one. This paves the way for studying the CP effect across various surface properties and geometries, as well as exploring the tensor nature of the atom-surface potential -- all important for the development of hybrid atomic optical-magnetic quantum devices.
The Casimir-Polder force is analyzed when an atom is moving at a constant velocity relative to a collection of translationally invariant macroscopic bodies with generic shapes and compositions. The interaction is described within an approach that accurately treats the atom-field coupling and accounts for the backaction from the environment onto the moving particle. Previously overlooked aspects are uncovered and linked to the nonequilibrium and nonconservative nature of the interaction. Specifically, we examine a behavior that can be understood by characterizing the underlying physical processes in terms of a motional-induced effective temperature. This phenomenon shares similarities with the Fulling-Davies-Unruh effect, opening new perspectives for the understanding of nonequilibrium physics at work in the system.
Abstract We investigate the dynamical Casimir-Polder force between an atom and a conducting wall during the time evolution of the system from a partially dressed state. This state is obtained by a sudden change of the atomic position with respect to the plate. To evaluate the time-dependent atom-plate Casimir-Polder force we solve the Heisenberg equations for the field and atomic operators by an iterative technique. We find that the dynamical atom-plate Casimir-Polder interaction exhibits oscillation in time, and can be attractive or repulsive depending on time and the atom-wall distance. We also investigate the time dependence of global observables, such as the field and atomic Hamiltonians, and discuss some interesting features of the dynamical process bringing the interaction energy to the equilibrium configuration.
The Casimir-Polder force on a single atom in the presence of microscopic magneto-electric bodies is studied within the framework of macroscopic quantum electrodynamics. In the first part, time-independent perturbation theory is used show that the static Casimir-Polder force on a ground-state atom in the presence of an arbitrary arrangement of bodies can be expressed in terms of the atom's polarisability and the scattering part of the Green tensor characterising the bodies. This result is used to verify the origin of the force and to study various bodies of simple shapes. In the second part, a genuinely dynamical approach is developed by starting from the operator Lorentz force. It is found that the dynamics of the force on initially excited atoms is governed by irreversible spontaneous decay in the case of weak atom-field coupling, while Rabi oscillations may arise for strong atom-field coupling.
Casimir and Casimir-Polder effects are forces between electrically neutral bodies and particles in vacuum, arising entirely from quantum fluctuations. The modification to the vacuum electromagnetic-field modes imposed by the presence of any particle or surface can result in these mechanical forces, which are often the dominant interaction at small separations. These effects play an increasingly critical role in the operation of micro- and nano-mechanical systems as well as miniaturized atomic traps for precision sensors and quantum-information devices. Despite their fundamental importance, calculations present theoretical and numeric challenges, and precise atom-surface potential measurements are lacking in many geometric and distance regimes. \n \nThe spectroscopic measurement of Casimir-Polder-induced energy level shifts in optical-lattice trapped atoms offers a new experimental method to probe atom-surface interactions. Strontium, the current front-runner among optical frequency metrology systems, has demonstrated characteristics ideal for such precision measurements. An alkaline earth atom possessing ultra-narrow intercombination transitions, strontium can be loaded into an optical lattice at the “magic” wavelength where the probe transition is unperturbed by the trap light. Translation of the lattice will permit controlled transport of tightly-confined atomic samples to well-calibrated atom- surface separations, while optical transition shifts serve as a direct probe of the Casimir-Polder potential. \n \nWe have constructed a strontium magneto-optical trap (MOT) for future Casimir-Polder experiments. This thesis will describe the strontium apparatus, initial trap performance, and some details of the proposed measurement procedure.