Nonlocal properties of dynamical three-body Casimir-Polder forces.
We consider the three-body Casimir-Polder interaction between three atoms during their dynamical self-dressing. We show that the time-dependent three-body Casimir-Polder interaction energy displays nonlocal features related to quantum properties of the electromagnetic field and to the nonlocality of spatial field correlations. We discuss the measurability of this intriguing phenomenon and its relation with the usual concept of stationary three-body forces.
Dipartimento di Scienze Fisiche ed Astronomiche dell'Università degli Studi di Palermo and CNISM, Via Archirafi 36, I-90123 Palermo, Italy.
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