The more likely route is the same as that used in quantum cascade lasers. In these systems, electrons tunnel from one location to another with almost the same energy. But in their new location, they quickly lose energy (via an acoustic wave generated by the crystalline material that holds the electrons), which traps them there. This is an actual mechanism based on well-established physics. It does, however, rely on very specific material properties and precise structural engineering. Given that, it’s probably not what would happen in the proposed device, either.
If you measure, you get numbers
Nevertheless, the company claims to have made a device and measured a drop in voltage between the plates and pillars. The company also claims this voltage is predicted in a paper that doesn’t appear to have any predictions, which is necessary for success.
I would be shocked if Casimir, Inc. had not measured a potential difference. For a decade, surfaces of materials were the bane of my existence. Surfaces are not simple and can exhibit all sorts of weird properties due to missing atoms, crystalline boundaries, and impurities from fabrication techniques. If Casimir, Inc.’s team chose the right metal and the pillars were thin enough, they might even have fully oxidized on exposure to air, making them very different from the plates next to them. All of these material properties play a role in generating the potential measured by a probe, independent of any special Casimir forces or vacuum fluctuations.
But let’s give the company the benefit of the doubt and assume it will observe (or already has observed) an electron flow from the plates to the pillars due to the Casimir force—it’s not impossible. These electrons still need to be coaxed through a load where they can give up their energy. That means connecting the pillars and plates to wires, each of which will introduce a potential difference due to the point of contact between different metals. To overcome that potential difference, charge will have to accumulate in the pillars. This will reduce the potential difference between the pillars and the plates and slow the flow of the tunneling current.
Eventually, the whole charge pump will grind to a halt, leaving no current flow. In other words, I expect that no useful energy will be extracted. But I do value the company’s service in burning through a bunch of VC money.
Supposedly related paper: Physical Review Research, 2026: 10.1103/l8y7-r3rm