Schools for studying the Casimir Effect?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around identifying suitable academic institutions for studying the Casimir Effect, focusing on both theoretical and experimental aspects. Participants explore various approaches to finding schools and researchers involved in this area of physics.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Technical explanation

Main Points Raised

  • One participant questions the feasibility of recommending schools, noting that the quality of instruction on the Casimir Effect can vary significantly depending on the instructor of the relevant course.
  • Another participant asks whether the inquiry is focused on theoretical aspects or if the individual is interested in joining an experimental research group.
  • There is a suggestion to conduct a Google Scholar search for published papers on the Casimir Effect to identify active researchers and their affiliations.
  • A participant expresses interest in both theoretical aspects and the practicality of testing those ideas, indicating a desire for a balanced approach.
  • Concerns are raised about the current state of research in the field, with one participant noting that significant theoretical advancements have not been made recently, suggesting that much of the work is now numerical in nature.
  • A reference to an article titled "Casimir Effect: Theory and Experiment" is provided, although its mainstream acceptance is questioned.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the current state of research in the Casimir Effect, with some highlighting a lack of recent theoretical developments while others suggest avenues for finding relevant academic programs. The discussion remains unresolved regarding the best approach to identifying suitable schools.

Contextual Notes

Participants note the limitations of relying on past research activity to gauge current opportunities, as well as the dependence on individual instructors' expertise in the field.

gildomar
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What would be a good school/s for studying the Casimir Effect at?
 
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Impossible to answer. This is one lecture in one course on QM, and it is impossible to know in advance who will be teaching that course.
 
Do you want study theoretical aspects of the Casimir effect, of do you want to join a research group that does experimental Casimir effect physics?
 
Is this for graduate school?
 
I'd do a google scholar search for published papers relating to the Casimir effect, read the papers, create a short list of active researchers in the field, and see where they teach at.
 
George Jones said:
Do you want study theoretical aspects of the Casimir effect, of do you want to join a research group that does experimental Casimir effect physics?

I'm interested in the theoretical aspects, but also being mindful of how easy it is to test those ideas.
 
jtbell said:
Is this for graduate school?

Yeah, sorry about not clarifying that, but I'm asking within the context of pursing it for graduate study.
 
Dr. Courtney said:
I'd do a google scholar search for published papers relating to the Casimir effect, read the papers, create a short list of active researchers in the field, and see where they teach at.

I had started by looking at the authors of some books about it, but wasn't able to readily narrow it down. Part of the reason that I asked was to see if people had an idea off the top of their head for various places.
 
I second Dr. Courtney's suggestion to look at current or recent papers on the topic. Also, if any professors at your current university work in a more or less "nearby" field, they might at least be acquainted with work on the Casimir effect and be able to suggest people or schools to investigate.
 
  • #10
gildomar said:
I'm interested in the theoretical aspects

This is going to be an issue. The last important work on this was Jaffe's, in 2005. One important paper every twelve years is not exactly a hotbed of activity. Indeed, the activity that is going on today is largely numeric: calculating with non-ideal shapes and materials. Most of the theory was worked out a half-century ago.
 
  • #11
You might want to look at the article "Casimir Effect: Theory and Experiment" (pdf on right):

https://arxiv.org/abs/1112.1301

I have no idea how mainstream or complete it is, but I think that does illustrate what Vanadium 50 wrote Are you interested in doing these types of calculations?
 

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