Selective reflection Casimir-Polder spectroscopy in vapor cells: the influence of the thermal velocity distribution

Abstract: Selective reflection is a high-resolution spectroscopic method that allows the probing of atomic and molecular gases in the near field of dielectric cell windows. It is a sensitive technique for measuring interactions between excited atoms and surfaces, thus providing a unique tool to probe resonant effects in Casimir-Polder physics. The theoretical modelling of selective reflection spectra has thus far employed the infinite Doppler approximation which assumes that the Doppler shift dominates over the atom-surface interactions as well as the homogeneous transition linewidth. Here we extend the theoretical treatment of selective reflection spectra to include the effects of finite Doppler width. This allows us to analyse the regime of very large Casimir-Polder interactions, relevant for Rydberg atom spectroscopy, and revisit previous analyses of experiments with low-lying excited states. Further, this will aid in determining the signatures of quantum friction in vapor cell spectroscopy.