Exploring the van der Waals atom-surface attraction in the nanometric range

Abstract

The van der Waals atom-surface attraction, scaling as C3 z-3 for z the\natom-surface distance, is expected to be valid in the distance range 1-1000 nm,\ncovering 8-10 orders of magnitudes in the interaction energy. A Cs vapour\nnanocell allows us to analyze the spectroscopic modifications induced by the\natom-surface attraction on the 6P3/2->6D5/2 transition. The measured C3 value\nis found to be independent of the thickness in the explored range 40-130 nm,\nand is in agreement with an elementary theoretical prediction. We also discuss\nthe specific interest of exploring short distances and large interaction\nenergy.\n