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The contribution from quantum vacuum fluctuations of a real massless scalarfield to the motion of a test particle that interacts with the field in thepresence of a perfectly reflecting flat boundary is here investigated. There isno quantum induced dispersions on the motion of the particle when it is alonein the empty space. However, when a reflecting wall is introduced, dispersionsoccur with magnitude dependent on how fast the system evolves between the twoscenarios. A possible way of implementing this process would be by means of anidealized sudden switching, for which the transition occurs instantaneously.Although the sudden process is a simple and mathematically convenientidealization it brings some divergences to the results, particularly at a timecorresponding to a round trip of a light signal between the particle and thewall. It is shown that the use of smooth switching functions, besidesregularizing such divergences, enables us to better understand the behavior ofthe quantum dispersions induced on the motion of the particle. Furthermore, theaction of modifying the vacuum state of the system leads to a change in theparticle energy that depends on how fast the transition between these states isimplemented. Possible implications of these results to the similar case of anelectric charge near a perfectly conducting wall are discussed.

Vacuum fluctuations of a scalar field near a reflecting boundary and their effects on the motion of a test particle