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Nature of contact deformation of TiN films on steel

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 March 2011

S. Bhowmick ,
Z-H. Xie ,
M. Hoffman ,
V. Jayaram  and
S.K. Biswas
S. Bhowmick
Affiliation:
Department of Metallurgy, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
Z-H. Xie
Affiliation:
School of Materials Science and Engineering, The University of New South Wales, Sydney NSW 2052, Australia
M. Hoffman
Affiliation:
School of Materials Science and Engineering, The University of New South Wales, Sydney NSW 2052, Australia
V. Jayaram*
Affiliation:
Department of Metallurgy, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
S.K. Biswas
Affiliation:
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
*
a)Address all correspondence to this author. e-mail: qjayaram@met.iisc.ernet.in
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Abstract

Nanoindentation experiments were carried out on a columnar ∼1.5-μm-thick TiN film on steel using a conical indenter with a 5-μm tip radius. Microstructural examination of the contact zone indicates that after initial elastic deformation, the deformation mechanism of the TiN is dominated by shear fracture at inter-columnar grain boundaries of the TiN film. A simple model is proposed whereby the applied load is partitioned between a deforming TiN annulus and a central expanding cavity in the steel substrate. It is possible to obtain a good fit to the experimental load–displacement curves with only one adjustable parameter, namely the inter-columnar shear fracture stress of the TiN film. The implication of results in the context of the performance of TiN films in service is also discussed.

Keywords

NanoindentationThin filmFracture

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Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Materials Research , Volume 19 , Issue 9 , September 2004 , pp. 2616 - 2624
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2004

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References

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