Large-Separation Behavior of the Casimir–Polder Force from Real Graphene Sheet Deposited on a Dielectric Substrate

Abstract

The Casimir–Polder force between atoms or nanoparticles and graphene-coated dielectric substrates is investigated in the region of large separations. Graphene coating with any value of the energy gap and chemical potential is described in the framework of the Dirac model using the formalism of the polarization tensor. It is shown that the Casimir–Polder force from a graphene-coated substrate reaches the limit of large separations at approximately 5.6 μm distance between an atom or a nanoparticle and graphene coating independently of the values of the energy gap and chemical potential. According to our results, however, the classical limit, where the Casimir–Polder force no longer depends on the Planck constant and the speed of light, may be attained at much larger separations depending on the values of the energy gap and chemical potential. In addition, we have found a simple analytic expression for the Casimir–Polder force from a graphene-coated substrate at large separations and determined the region of its applicability. It is demonstrated that the asymptotic results for the large-separation Casimir–Polder force from a graphene-coated substrate are in better agreement with the results of numerical computations for the graphene sheets with larger chemical potential and smaller energy gap. Possible applications of the obtained results in nanotechnology and bioelectronics are discussed.