Abstract
Up to now there has been no reliable method to calculate the Casimir force when
surface roughness becomes comparable with the separation between bodies. Statistical analysis
of rough Au films demonstrates rare peaks with heights considerably larger than the rootmean-
square (rms) roughness. These peaks define the minimal distance between rough surfaces
and can be described with extreme value statistics. We show that the contributions of high
peaks to the force can be calculated independently of each other, while the contribution of
normal roughness can be evaluated perturbatively beyond the proximity force approximation. The
developed method allows a reliable force estimation for short separations. Our model explains the
strong hitherto unexplained deviation from the normal Casimir scaling observed experimentally
at short separations.
Original language | Undefined |
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Pages (from-to) | 1-6 |
Number of pages | 6 |
Journal | Europhysics letters |
Volume | 95 |
Issue number | 3 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 7 Jul 2011 |
Keywords
- EWI-20834
- IR-78630
- METIS-281579