…including Bulk Plastics, Paints, Magnetic Tapes, Thin Films, Contact Lenses….

The mechanical properties of thin films and coatings cannot be measured accurately using techniques such as microhardness and tensile testing which were designed for bulk samples, so nanoindentation is fast becoming a popular choice. The NanoTest indentation module is used to measure elastic and plastic properties at the sub-micron level. The NanoTest data are then used to optimize the mechanical properties of thin polymer films, clearcoats, magnetic tapes without results being influenced by the mechanical properties of sub-layers. For accurate results it is important to consider time-dependent effects (e.g. viscoelasticity and creep) so Micro Materials use a procedure based on that in the recent successful European coatings project “INDICOAT”. Ultra-low thermal drift allows tests to be performed over a wide range of experimental conditions.

Polymer Application Notes

Contact Fatigue Adhesion Testing of Polymer Coatings

Spherical Indentation

NanoTesting of Automobile Paint

Scratch Mechanisms for Automobile Paint

Scientific Papers

Nanoindentation and Nanoscratch testing of uniaxially and biaxially drawn poly(ethylene terephthalate) – BD Beake and GJ Leggett, Polymer 2002, free reprints available on request.

Testing the hardness, modulus and creep resistance of new polymer materials Traditional polymers are not hard or stiff enough for many applications from thin coatings to car parts. A novel method has produced a new class of materials that can have improved mechanical properties – nanocomposite polymer-silicates – the NanoTest indentation test results are being used to optimize the process. For further details see:-

Nanoindentation Behaviour of Polyethylene Oxide/Clay Nanocomposites  BD Beake, S Chen, JB Hull and F Gao, Journal of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, 2, pp73-79 (2002)