Zero Point Energy doc

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Not that it was a big surprise to those in the New Energy field, but it is wonderful that the existence of zero point energy -- the potential source of limitless energy for civilization -- has now been confirmed in a seminal experiment -- one that has already been acclaimed by the scientific mainstream. Of course, the mainstream talks of its implications for cosmology and for its proof of the theory of Quantum Electrodynamics (QED) -- not for technological applications. Physicist Steven K. Lamoreaux, now of Los Alamos National Laboratory, performed an exacting, elegant experiment (while at the University of Washington in Seattle, which confirms within 5% the theoretical formula for the
Casimir force, which was proposed in 1948. This is the force that is said to be due to virtual photons popping in and out of existence in the vacuum of space. Specifically, it is the force that appears prominently when physical objects are in very close proximity. Then, the tiny region between two objects- such as two closely spaced flat plates-excludes the longer wavelength spectrum of electromagnetic radiation that pervades space. So there is an inward pressure that creates the Casimir force. (see R.L. Forward’s tutorial article on ZPE in IE #9 pp) The Lamoreaux paper, Demonstration of the Casimir Force in the 0.6 to 6 pm Range appeared in Physical Review Letters, 6 January 1997, Vol, No, pp. 5-8. The abstract is succinct The vacuum stress between closely spaced conducting surfaces, due to the modification of the zero-point fluctuations of the electromagnetic field, has been conclusively demonstrated. The measurement employed an electromechanical system based on a torsion pendulum. Agreement with theory at the level of 5% is obtained The actual experiment employed a spherical-shaped gold-coated plate in near-contact with a flat plate-facilitating precise electromechanical adjustments to measure the forces, which would have been more difficult with two flat plates. The Casimir force formula was verified down to a separation distance of
0.6 um. The response to this experiment has been noteworthy. Writing in Nature, science writer Charles Seife began There is no such thing as a free lunch- except in quantum mechanics. Classical physics -- and commonsense-

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