Hysitron TriboIndenter
Contact: Weinan Leng (wleng@vt.edu)
Location: ICTAS CRC room 1006
The Hysitron TriboIndenter (TI900) is an automated nanomechanical test instrument for measuring the hardness and elastic modulus of thin films and coatings using controlled indentation of surfaces. It provides quantitative nanomechanical testing capabilities with normal and lateral force loading configurations. It has an automated stage for imaging sample surfaces (in-situ imaging with the indenter tip or with optical or atomic force microscopy) and positioning indentations with submicron precision. The instrument can be used for investigating the mechanical and abrasion behavior of surfaces and ultra-thin coatings, for profilometry measurements, for measuring the moduli and mechanical properties of interfaces and individual phases, and measuring the viscoelastic properties of polymers and biological materials on size scales down to the cellular level.