Something Can Come of Nothing: Surface Approaches to Quantum Fluctuations and the Casimir Force

The Casimir force provides a striking example of the effects of quantum fluctuations in a mesoscopic system. Because it arises from the objects’ electromagnetic response, the necessary calculations in quantum field theory are most naturally expressed in terms of electromagnetic scattering from each object. In this review, we illustrate a variety of such techniques, with a focus on those that can be expressed in terms of surface effects, including both idealized boundary conditions and their physical realization in terms of material properties. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Nuclear and Particle Science, Volume 72 is September 2022. Please see http://www.annualreviews.org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.