Van der Waals interaction between mica surfaces: comparison of theory and experiment

Abstract

Published experimental results for the interaction of crossed mica cylinders are compared with theoretical predictions based on a simple London–Hamaker approach, using only one dispersion frequency in the ultraviolet. Empirical expressions of Overbeek are used to calculate the retarded interaction. Over the whole range of separation distances (2–130 nm), satisfactory agreement between theory and experiment is found.