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Application Notes
For decades, different techniques have been used to quantitatively measure the mechanical properties of materials. First introduced in the 1970’s, probing of surfaces with a hard indenter was later improved for study of materials at the nano scale with an instrument called nanoindenter (NI). A newer surface characterization method called scanning probe microscopy, more specifically, atomic force microscopy (AFM) provides higher-resolution imaging capability, supplemented by nanomechanical software applications. Both NI and AFM techniques, supported by Keysight Technologies’ instrumentation and software, provide quantitative elastic modulus data, which can also be used for examination of viscoelastic properties. This application note covers the advantages and limitations of these techniques related to the level of measurement of forces imposed by the AFM or NI axisymmetric probes on a sample and sample deformation.
When using NI techniques, semi-static and dynamic forces are applied electromagnetically, and the vertical probe displacement is detected with the capacitor sensors. The large dynamic force range achieved with the NI method also limits the load sensitivity by a few nano-newton (nN). The capacitor sensors can detect probe displacements very accurately (~1 nano-meter or nm), yet the deformation measurements require precise knowledge of the point-of-contact.
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