Revealing short-range non-Newtonian gravity through Casimir-Polder shielding
Abstract
We carry out a realistic, yet simple, calculation of the Casimir-Polder
interaction in the presence of a metallic shield in order to aid the design of
experiments to test non-Newtonian gravity. In particular, we consider a
rubidium atom near a movable silicon slab with a gold film in between. We show
that by moving the slab to various distances and making precise measurements of
the force exerted on the atom, one could in principle discern the existence of
short-range modifications to Newtonian gravity. This avoids the need for a
patterned surface where calculations are much harder and for which the probe
must be moved laterally at a fixed distance. We also briefly discuss the case
where an atomic cloud undergoes Bloch oscillations within an optical lattice
created by reflecting a laser off the shield. We find that our scheme has the
potential to improve current constraints if relatively modest improvements in
atom localisation in optical lattices are made.