[en] A Reply to the Comment by Astrid Lambrecht and Serve Renaud. (c) 2000 The American Physical Society

[en] A systematic correction for Casimir force measurements is proposed and applied to the results of an experiment that was performed more than a decade ago. This correction brings the experimental results into good agreement with the Drude model of the metallic plates' permittivity. The systematic is due to time-dependent fluctuations in the distance between the plates caused by mechanical vibrations, tilt, or position measurement uncertainty and is similar to the correction for plate roughness.

[en] Quantum key distribution (QKD) has been demonstrated over a point-to-point 1.6-km atmospheric optical path in full daylight. This record transmission distance brings QKD a step closer to surface-to-satellite and other long-distance applications. (c) 2000 The American Physical Society

[en] We propose to use ferroelectric (Eu,Ba)TiO₃ ceramics just above their magnetic ordering temperature for a sensitive electron electric-dipole-moment search. We have synthesized a number of such ceramics with various europium concentrations and measured their properties relevant for such a search: permeability, magnetization noise, and ferroelectric hysteresis loops. We also identify and estimate the likely systematics: the magnetoelectric effect, hysteresis-loop heating, and ferroelectric relaxation currents. Our measurements and estimates indicate that a search for the electron electric dipole moment with Eu_0.5Ba_0.5TiO₃ could lead to an order of magnitude improvement on the current best limit, if the systematic effects can be controlled.

[en] We report an experimental confirmation of the power-law relationship between the critical anisotropy parameter and ion number for the linear-to-zigzag phase transition in an ionic crystal. Our experiment uses laser cooled calcium ions confined in a linear radio-frequency trap. Measurements for up to ten ions are in good agreement with theoretical and numeric predictions. Implications on an upper limit to the size of data registers in ion trap quantum computers are discussed. (c) 2000 The American Physical Society

[en] A new limit for the neutron electric dipole moment has been recently reported. This new limit is obtained by combining the result from a previous experiment with the result from a more recent experiment that has much worse statistical accuracy. We show that the old result has a systematic error possibly four times greater than the new limit, and under the circumstances, averaging of the old and new results is statistically invalid. The conclusion is that it would be more appropriate to quote two independent but mutually supportive limits as obtained from each experiment separately. (c) 2000 The American Physical Society

[en] A Comment on the Letter by C. A. Baker et al., [Phys. Rev. Lett. 97, 131801 (2006)]. The authors of the Letter offer a Reply

[en] We report results of an experimental search for the permanent Electric Dipole Moment (EDM) of the electron using a solid state system. The experiment uses a paramagnetic insulator (gadolinium gallium garnet) with a large magnetic response at low temperatures. The presence of the electron EDM leads to a finite magnetization when the garnet sample is subjected to a strong electric field. The resulting magnetization can be measured using a superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) as a magnetometer. With considerable efforts made towards controlling various sources of systematic effects, the experiment is currently free of spurious signals larger than the SQUID noise. We report the value of electron EDM of (-5.57 ± 7.98 ± 0.12) x 10^-25e-cm with 120 hours of data.

[en] We present calculations of contact potential surface patch effects that simplify previous treatments. It is shown that, because of the linearity of Laplace's equation, the presence of patch potentials does not affect an electrostatic calibration of a two-plate Casimir measurement apparatus. Using models that include long-range variations in the contact potential across the plate surfaces, a number of experimental observations can be reproduced and explained. For these models, numerical calculations show that if a voltage is applied between the plates which minimizes the force, a residual electrostatic force persists, and that the minimizing potential varies with distance. The residual force can be described by a fit to a simple two-parameter function involving the minimizing potential and its variation with distance. We show the origin of this residual force by use of a simple parallel capacitor model. Finally, the implications of a residual force that varies in a manner different from 1/d on the accuracy of previous Casimir measurements is discussed.

[en] We have measured the short-range attractive force between crystalline Ge plates, and found contributions from both the Casimir force and an electrical force possibly generated by surface patch potentials. Using a model of surface patch effects that generates an additional force due to a distance dependence of the apparent contact potential, the electrical force was parametrized using data at distances where the Casimir force is relatively small. Extrapolating this model, to provide a correction to the measured force at distances less than 5 μm, shows a residual force that is in agreement, within experimental uncertainty, with five models that have been used to calculate the Casimir force.