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Single crystal pillars with diameters below 1um are frequently compressed to
investigate their mechanical behavior under homogeneous
loading. These tests are usually performed by the Nanoindenter, which allows for obtaining a stress vs. strain relationship, and subsequent observation in SEM shows the postmortem state of the pillar. While this approach is useful, it does not provide any visibility into the homogeneity of the deformation, nor into the order and extent of the characteristic discrete slip events.
We have developed an in-situ mechanical deformation instrument, SEMentor, which offers the advantage of measuring mechanical response of nano-scale materials while capturing video frames throughout the deformation process. We correlate stress vs. strain data with real-time slip step formation on the surface of the deforming specimens.
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