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Phononic Casimir Effect in Planar Materials
Pablo Rodriguez-Lopez1, Dai-Nam Le2, Lilia M Woods2
1Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Área de Electromagnetismo and Grupo Interdisciplinar de Sistemas Complejos (GISC), 28933, Móstoles, Madrid, Spain.
Physical Review Letters
|March 1, 2026
Summary
This study explores the phononic Casimir effect, a force between objects caused by sound wave fluctuations. The research reveals how material properties and temperature influence this interaction, offering new control pathways.
Area of Science:
- Condensed matter physics
- Quantum mechanics
- Materials science
Background:
- The Casimir effect, typically electromagnetic, arises from quantum vacuum fluctuations.
- Phonons, quantized lattice vibrations, can also mediate similar forces in materials.
Purpose of the Study:
- Investigate the phononic Casimir effect between planar objects.
- Develop a theoretical framework to understand this interaction.
- Explore potential applications and control mechanisms.
Main Methods:
- Derivation of a formalism from the quantum partition function.
- Application of a multiscattering approach.
- Modeling phonons as an effective elastic medium.
Main Results:
- Identified three types of polarization excitations due to boundary conditions.
- Found that coupling is dominated by one polarization due to suppression effects.
- Derived scaling laws dependent on material properties and temperature.
Conclusions:
- The phononic Casimir effect can be significant, comparable to electromagnetic Casimir interactions.
- Material combinations can be designed to tune this effect.
- Provides insights into controlling interactions via acoustic fluctuations.
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