Abstract
An ultracold narrow atomic beam of metastable neon in the state is used to study specular reflection of atoms from a solid surface at extremely slow incident velocity. The reflectivity on a silicon (1,0,0) surface and a BK7 glass surface is measured at the normal incident velocity between and . The reflectivity above is observed at about . The observed velocity dependence is explained semiquantitatively by the quantum reflection that is caused by the attractive Casimir–van der Waals potential of the atom-surface interaction.
- Received 7 July 2000
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.86.987
©2001 American Physical Society