寻找Casimir能量
Searching for the Casimir Energy
摘要：
在这篇文章中，我们提出了一个纳米机电系统（NEMS），旨在检测卡西米尔能量的变化。卡西米尔效应是电磁真空中出现量子涨落的结果。以前的实验使用纳米或微米级平行板电容器，通过测量这些波动在两个表面之间施加的微小吸引力来检测卡西米尔力。在这组新的实验中，我们的目标是直接检测真空中由于金属平行板（其中之一是超导体）的存在而导致的Casimir $\textit{energy}$的位移。这种结构的卡西米尔能量的变化被预测为改变超导转变温度（T $_\textrm{c}$），因为它和超导凝聚能之间的相互作用。我们讨论的实验包括取一个超导薄膜，仔细测量它的转变温度，把一个导电板靠近薄膜，创造一个卡西米尔腔，然后再次测量转变温度。预期的偏移将很小，与在循环超导薄膜到低温温度时看到的正常偏移相当，因此使用NEMS谐振器并在原位进行此操作是获得准确，可重复数据的唯一实用方法。使用薄的Pb膜和相对的Au表面，我们观察到T $_\textrm{c}$的偏移不大于12 $μ$ K，最小间距约为70 nm。
英文摘要：
In this article, we present a nano-electromechanical system (NEMS) designed to detect changes in the Casimir Energy. The Casimir effect is a result of the appearance of quantum fluctuations in the electromagnetic vacuum. Previous experiments have used nano- or micro- scale parallel plate capacitors to detect the Casimir force by measuring the small attractive force these fluctuations exert between the two surfaces. In this new set of experiments, we aim to directly detect shifts in the Casimir $\textit{energy}$ in the vacuum due to the presence of metallic parallel plates, one of which is a superconductor. A change in the Casimir energy of this configuration is predicted to shift the superconducting transition temperature (T$_\textrm{c}$) because of an interaction between it and the superconducting condensation energy. The experiment we discuss consists of taking a superconducting film, carefully measuring its transition temperature, bringing a conducting plate close to the film, creating a Casimir cavity, and then measuring the transition temperature again. The expected shifts will be small, comparable to the normal shifts one sees in cycling superconducting films to cryogenic temperatures and so using a NEMS resonator and doing this in situ is the only practical way to obtain accurate, reproducible data. Using a thin Pb film and opposing Au surface, we observe no shift in T$_\textrm{c}$ greater than 12 $μ$K down to a minimum spacing of approximately 70 nm.
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