Classical Casimir effect for beads on a string
Abstract
Two small beads are situated at distance a apart on an otherwise uniform taut string. A transverse wave of angular frequency ω is incident from one side, exerting longitudinal forces F1 and F2, respectively, on the beads. The effective "force of attraction" between the beads, FC=(F1-F2)/2, is the simplest classical analog to the Casimir effect. We find that FC can be positive or negative, depending on the values of a and ω. For a broad spectrum of incident "noise," however, the net "Casimir" force is zero.
- Publication:
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American Journal of Physics
- Pub Date:
- November 2001
- DOI:
- Bibcode:
- 2001AmJPh..69.1173G
- Keywords:
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- 01.50.-i;
- 45.05.+x;
- 45.40.-f;
- Educational aids;
- General theory of classical mechanics of discrete systems;
- Dynamics and kinematics of rigid bodies