Switching Casimir forces with phase-change materials

We demonstrate here a controllable variation in the Casimir force. Changes in the force of up to 20% at separations of similar to 100 nm between Au and Ag-In-Sb-Te (AIST) surfaces were achieved on crystallization of an amorphous sample of AIST. This material is well known for its structural transformation, which produces a significant change in the optical properties and is exploited in optical data storage systems. The finding paves the way to the control of forces in nanosystems, such as micro- or nanoswitches, by stimulating the phase-change transition via localized heat sources.