  We investigate, by means of the scattering approach, the Casimir-Polder
interaction between a neutral anisotropic polarizable particle and a corrugated
surface made of a realistic material. By focusing on the lateral force (arising
from the presence of corrugation on the surface), we investigate the conditions
for the particle to be attracted to the nearest corrugation peak, valley, or to
an intermediate point between a peak and a valley, with such behaviors called
peak, valley and intermediate regimes, respectively. Such regimes of the
lateral force were recently predicted in the literature, but in the context of
the van der Waals interaction and considering the surface made of some ideal
material (a perfectly conducting or a nondispersive dielectric). Here, we
investigate how the occurrence of the mentioned regimes is affected by the
consideration of realistic dielectric properties for the surface and also of
the retardation in the interaction. In this context, we show that the
consideration of a dispersive surface, when compared to the mentioned idealized
materials, can amplify the occurrence of the valley and intermediate regimes.
Moreover, regarding the consideration of retardation, we show that it has a
small influence on the occurrence of the valley regime, but, for the
intermediate ones, can either amplify or inhibit them. Such investigation
provides a preciser description of the interaction between an anisotropic
particle and a corrugated surface, giving a better understanding of the
nontrivial aspects of the lateral Casimir-Polder force.
