Testing Gravity and Predictions Beyond the Standard Model at Short Distances: The Casimir Effect

Abstract

The Standard Model of elementary particles and their interactions does not include the gravitational interaction and faces problems in understanding of the dark matter, dark energy, strong CP violation etc. In continuing attempts to solve these problems, many predictions of new light elementary particles and hypothetical interactions beyond the Standard Model have been made. These predictions can be constrained by many means and, specifically, by measuring the Casimir force arising between two closely spaced bodies due to the zero-point and thermal fluctuations of the electromagnetic field. After a brief survey in the theory of the Casimir effect, the strongest constraints on the power-type and Yukawa-type corrections to Newtonian gravity, following from measuring the Casimir force at short distances, are considered. Next,the problems of dark matter, dark energy and their probable constituents are discussed. This is followed by an analysis of constraints on the dark matter particles, and, specifically, on axions and axionlike particles, obtained from the Casimir effect. The question of whether the Casimir effect can be used for constraining the spin-dependent interactions is also considered. Then the constraints on the dark energy particles, like chameleons and symmetrons, are examined. In all cases the subject of our treatment is not only measurements of the Casimir force but some other relevant table-top experiments as well. In conclusion, the prospects of the Casimir effect for constraining theoretical predictions beyond the Standard Model at short distances are summarized.