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Experimental Mechanics of MEMS and Thin Films

Direct and Local Sub-Micron Strain Measurements

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Book cover Micromechanics and Nanoscale Effects

Part of the book series: ICASE/LaRC Interdisciplinary Series in Science and Engineering ((ICAS,volume 10))

Abstract

The novel thin film materials manufactured for MEMS sensors, actuators, and multifunctional coatings demand the development of novel methodologies for the characterization of their anisotropic mechanical properties, which dominate as submicron sized devices become technologically feasible. While the limitations of continuum mechanics are experimentally still unexplored, material anisotropy and scale-dependence of deformations require a combined experimental, analytical, and numerical approach with the development of novel instrumentation being at the forefront of this effort. The local character of many phenomena at the nanoscale imposes the challenge to employ methodologies that can specifically and directly address the scale limitations and requirements. This limits our current inventory to techniques and methodologies that provide resolution beyond the optical diffraction limit and include either probe or electron microscopes. The high resolution imaging capabilities of these tools provide the basis for new developments but their ability to furnish quantitative information remains largely unexplored. While such instruments may replace macroscopic cameras employed to conduct full- field measurements, the large-scale test apparatuses need to be also adapted to the new scale demands. These direct approaches and their potential to succeed in the nanoscale mechanics arena are discussed in this chapter. The methodologies of global (average) property measurements and local, nanometer-level, measurements of local constitutive properties are discussed with reference to typical MEMS materials. Special emphasis is given to the full-field methodology with an update to the most recent developments. Finally, the scale-related failure properties of brittle MEMS materials and their implication to thin film material and device design and implementation are discussed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of Virginia, Charllottesville, Virginia, USA

    Ioannis Chasiotis

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  1. ICASE Institute, NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA, USA

    Vasyl Michael Harik (Senior Staff Scientist) & Li-Shi Luo (Senior Staff Scientist) (Senior Staff Scientist) &  (Senior Staff Scientist)

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Chasiotis, I. (2004). Experimental Mechanics of MEMS and Thin Films. In: Harik, V.M., Luo, LS. (eds) Micromechanics and Nanoscale Effects. ICASE/LaRC Interdisciplinary Series in Science and Engineering, vol 10. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-1013-9_1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-1013-9_1

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