Electric dipole image forces in three-layer systems: The classical electrostatic model

General exact analytical expressions have been derived for the image force energy W-i(Z, phi) of a point dipole in a classical three-layer system composed of dispersionless media with arbitrary constant dielectric permittivities epsilon(i). Here, i = 1-3 is the layer number, and Z and phi are the dipole coordinate and orientation angle, respectively. It was found that the long-range asymptotics W-i(vertical bar Z vertical bar -> infinity, phi) in both covers (i = 1, 3) are reached unexpectedly far from the interlayer (i = 2). Another specific feature of the solution consists in that the interference of the fields created by polarization charges emerging at both interfaces leads to the appearance of a constant contribution inside the interlayer with a nonstandard dependence on the dipole orientation angle phi. It was shown that by changing the dielectric constants of the structure components, one can realize two peculiar regimes of theW(i)(Z, phi) behavior in the covers; namely, there arises either a potential barrier preventing adsorption or a well far from the interface, both being of a totally electrostatic origin, i.e., without involving the Pauli exchange repulsion, which is taken into account in the conventional theories of physical adsorption. The results obtained provide a fresh insight into the physics of adsorption in physical electronics, chemical physics, and electrochemistry. Published under license by AIP Publishing.