The van der Waals interaction in one, two and three dimensions
Quantum Physics
2015-01-22 v2 Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics
Abstract
The van der Waals interaction between two polarizable atoms is considered. In three dimensions the standard form with an attractive potential is obtained from second-order quantum perturbation theory. When the electron motion is restricted to lower dimensions (but the Coulomb potential is retained), new terms in the expansion appear and alter both the sign and the dependence of the interaction.
Cite
@article{arxiv.1401.8141,
title = {The van der Waals interaction in one, two and three dimensions},
author = {A. C. Ipsen and K. Splittorff},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1401.8141},
year = {2015}
}
Comments
15 pages, 3 figures. Intended for educational purposes. V2: References and appendix added, figures edited. Version to appear in AJP