Research in a Vacuum: DARPA Tries to Tap Elusive Casmir Effect for Breakthrough Technology
Monday, October 12, 2009 - 09:07
in Physics & Chemistry
Named for a Dutch physicist, the Casimir effect governs interactions of matter with the energy that is present in a vacuum. Success in harnessing this force could someday help researchers develop low-friction ballistics and even levitating objects that defy gravity. For now, the U.S. Defense Department's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has launched a two-year, $10-million project encouraging scientists to work on ways to manipulate this quirk of quantum electrodynamics. [More] ...