Physical restrictions on the Casimir interaction of metal-dielectric metamaterials: An effective-medium approach

Journal Article · Mon Nov 15 04:00:00 EST 2010 · Physical Review. A

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PHYSREVA.82.052508· OSTI ID:21528629

Silveirinha, Mario G; Maslovski, Stanislav I ^[1]

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1. University of Coimbra, Department of Electrical Engineering-Instituto de Telecomunicacoes, 3030 Coimbra (Portugal)

Using an effective-medium approach, we demonstrate that the Casimir interaction of structured metal-dielectric metamaterial slabs which effectively behave as either uniform nongyrotropic materials or bi-isotropic materials is attractive at all distances, independent of the emergence of artificial magnetism or strong magnetoelectric coupling, when the slabs stand in a vacuum. In particular, it is shown that the magnetic response of a metal-dielectric metamaterial is always diamagnetic at imaginary frequencies, and this explains in simple physical terms the impossibility of Casimir repulsion.

• OSTI ID: 21528629
• Journal Information: Physical Review. A, Journal Name: Physical Review. A Journal Issue: 5 Vol. 82; ISSN 1050-2947; ISSN PLRAAN
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS
SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY
CASIMIR EFFECT
COUPLING
DIELECTRIC MATERIALS
ELECTRICAL PROPERTIES
ELEMENTS
INTERACTIONS
MAGNETIC PROPERTIES
MAGNETISM
MATERIALS
METALS
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
SLABS