Sains Malaysiana 42(12)(2013): 1799–1803

Casimir Force Control with Optical Kerr Effect

(Kawalan Daya Casimir dengan Kesan Optik Kerr)

Y.Y. KHOO & C.H. RAYMOND OOI*

Department of Physics, University of Malaya, 50603 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Diserahkan: 19 November 2012/Diterima: 1 April 2013

ABSTRACT

The control of the Casimir force between two parallel plates can be achieved through inducing the optical Kerr effect of a nonlinear material. By considering a two-plate system which consists of a dispersive metamaterial and a nonlinear material, we show that the Casimir force between the plates can be switched between attractive and repulsive Casimir force by varying the intensity of a laser pulse. The switching sensitivity increases as the separation between plate decreases, thus providing new possibilities of controlling Casimir force for nanoelectromechanical systems.

Keywords: Casimir effect; optical kerr effect (OKE)

ABSTRAK

Kawalan daya Casimir antara dua plat selari boleh dicapai dengan mencetuskan kesan optik Kerr dalam suatu bahan tak linear. Dengan mempertimbangkan suatu sistem dua-plat yang terdiri daripada satu plat metamaterial dengan satu bahan tak linear, kami menunjukkan bahawa daya Casimir antara plat-plat tersebut boleh ditukar antara daya tarikan Casimir serta daya tolakan Casimir dengan mengubah keamatan laser. Tahap kesensitifan pertukaran tersebut meningkat apabila jarak pemisah antara plat-plat tersebut dikurangkan, justeru mencetus idea baru untuk mengawal kesan Casimir bagi sistem mekanikal nanoelektrik

Kata kunci: Kesan Casimir; kesan optik Kerr

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*Pengarang untuk surat-menyurat; email: rooi@um.edu.my