2003/12/31 by Serge Reynaud, Astrid Lambrecht, Cyriaque Genet
Physics and Astronomy · #quant-ph
published as Quantum Field Theory Under the Influence of External Conditions, ed. K.A.Milton (Rinton Press, 2004) p.36 · Contribution to the QFEXT'03 Conference, 8 pages, Rinton style
arxiv created 2003/12/31 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01
The Casimir force between dissipative metallic mirrors at non zero temperature has recently given rise to contradictory claims which have raised doubts about the theoretical expression of the force. In order to contribute to the resolution of this difficulty, we come back to the derivation of the force from basic principles of the quantum theory of lossy optical cavities. We obtain an expression which is valid for arbitrary mirrors, including dissipative ones, characterized by frequency dependent reflection amplitudes.