Sign inversion in the lateral van der Waals force between an anisotropic particle and a plane with a hemispherical protuberance: an exact calculation

TL;DR

This paper provides an exact calculation showing that the lateral van der Waals force between an anisotropic particle and a plane with a hemispherical bump can invert its direction, depending on geometry and particle properties.

Contribution

It offers the first exact analysis of sign inversion in lateral vdW forces considering finite protuberance size, particle anisotropy, and orientation, extending beyond perturbative approaches.

Findings

Sign inversion of lateral vdW force depends on R/z0 ratio.

Exact formulas reveal geometric effects on force direction.

Particle anisotropy influences the sign inversion.

Abstract

We investigate the lateral van der Waals (vdW) force between an anisotropic polarizable particle and a perfectly conducting plane with a hemispherical protuberance with radius $R$. We predict, via an exact calculation, a sign inversion in the lateral vdW force, in the sense that, instead of pointing to the protuberance, in certain situations this force points to the opposite direction. In the literature, predictions of sign inversions in the lateral vdW force were based on perturbative solutions, valid when the height of the protuberance is very small when compared to the distance $z_0$ between the particle and the plane. Here, taking into account exact formulas, we investigate how such nontrivial geometric effect depends on the ratio $R/z_0$, and how the particle orientation and anisotropy affect this sign inversion.