Hardness of thin Films of Nanocrystalline Silver and Nickel Composites Studied by Nanoindentation and Finite Element Analysis

Abstract

AbstractWhile gas condensation and mechanical alloying have been used to produce nano-phase powders, an effective method of applying these powders as coatings is still lacking. Furthermore, fundamental studies of the mechanical properties of nano-phase powders may be complicated by the porosity associated with consolidation processes. Recently, we have made nano-crystalline composite thin films of Ag-Mo and Ag-Ni by depositing two immiscible elements simultaneous onto substrates. We found, using XRD and TEM, that the average grain size varies from 10 to 100 nm by choosing an appropriate substrate temperature. Nanoindentation measurements showed the hardness of the composite is increased four times by reducing the grain-size of both phases from 100 to 10 nm. The load vs. displacement curves were simulated using a finite element method (ABAQUS). A relationship between the hardness of the two-phase composite and the yield strength of each phase is obtained.