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"The big question is; is negative energy possible? (Does antimatter have negative energy?"

"The key to Alcubierre's warp drive is something called exotic matter. Exotic matter has the curious property of having a negative energy density, unlike normal matter (the stuff that makes up people, planets and stars), which has a positive energy density. Two bits of matter that have the same energy density are attracted to each other by gravity. In contrast, bits of positive and negative energy matter would be repelled by gravity. It is the negative energy density of exotic matter that powers the warp drive. A negative energy density is not the nonsensical thing it appears to be. Indeed, in 1948 the Dutch physicist Hendrik Casimir first predicted that one could observe the effects of negative energy densities. He reasoned that if negative energy densities existed, two closely spaced parallel conducting plates in a vacuum would be attracted to one another. This phenomenon, now called the Casimir effect, was measured in 1958 by M. Sparnaay, and is usually taken to be a confirmation that negative energy densities are possible. Exotic matter of a slightly different type is also invoked in the modern theory of cosmology known as inflation. According to the theory of inflation, exotic matter in the early universe (moments after the big bang) had a positive energy density, but a very large negative pressure. The negative pressure was so large that it counteracted the effects of the positive energy density. The result was an expansion of spacetime so rapid that two observers originally very close to each other would be carried apart faster than the speed of light."(Emphases mine)

While any pursuit of exotic matter is , I believe, doomed to failure, a synthesis of its properties may not be. I have heard of the experiment involving closely spaced parallel plates, and I am curious about what the formulation for them would have to be. How large the plate?; How close is close?; and primary to our discussion; What is the manner of extraction of negative energy from the phenomenon?

It would seem logical that beams of light, or even higher energy waves, could pass parallel to the parallel plates, and have some kind of effect. In this case, the image we have of the Star Trek warp nacelles emitting blue light may be prophetic.

The blue light could be an indicator frequency for ultraviolet energy, or it could be the result of Cerenkov radiation.

Early Science Fiction writers spoke of light collected and condensed until it actually had an appreciable mass. It may not be necessary to reach that level, but a high energy laser effect passing through the parallel plates might be the trigger for the development of negative energy. Lasers can be used to remove energy from a system in a refrigeration effect, if they are tuned properly. It may well be that the key to travelling faster than light involves a better understanding of parallel matter interacting with parallel light.

For ZPE (Zero Point Energy) plates, you would want millions of tiny plates hooked together in parallel stacks. These arrays could then be ramped up together in series. Trying to make big plates, just a few angstroms apart, would be a daunting task. Making ooddles of small ones should be no big trick. Standard X-ray lithography techniques should do the trick for producing the proper gap width. Use a magnetic scanner to "polarize" the plates into a self organizing structure and use a standard IC expoy to cement them in place.

After that, rack 'em and stack 'em. Vaccuum/"Negative" energy on tap. And if anyone suggests calling them a "Zed P M" or that they would at some point "run out of energy", I'll throw the beat down on 'em for an SG-1 junky. These things run for as long as the distance between the plates holds up.