The optical force on a dielectric slab

Abstract

Radiation-pressure forces on transmissive optics, including dynamical backaction, are usually computed from the momentum flux of the external fields. For a dielectric of finite thickness, this omits the time dependence of the electromagnetic momentum stored inside. We compute the force on a lossless dielectric slab of arbitrary thickness $L_s$ submerged in a dielectric fluid, proceeding from both Lorentz force on its bound charges and from the external momentum fluxes for arbitrary carrier and sideband fields. We treat the surrounding medium through a prescribed linear dielectric response and do not model the accompanying mechanical response of the fluid, including pressure and electrostriction. These two methods both recover the expected force in the limit of a thin reflector, but differ in the more general case by the rate of change of the field momentum stored in the slab. This storage term vanishes for static fields and at low frequencies reduces to $(L_s/c^2)\,dP/dt$, where $P$ is the net power through the slab. In a cavity, where $P$ depends on the slab position, the storage term produces a velocity-dependent force. The Abraham and Minkowski momentum formulations applied to the storage term are reconciled to give an unambiguous force on the dielectric in the case of an exterior vacuum environment, where there is no fluid response to model.