Nanoindentation Tips & Probes
Hysitron offers a wide array of probes designed to assist the user with any type of sample testing. Common probe selections include Berkovich, cube corner (90°), and cono-spherical in a range of available radii. Contact Hysitron to speak with an applications engineer for guidance in choosing a probe type from our library or ask us about having a custom geometry probe manufactured specifically for your testing needs.
Measuring the Radius of Curvature of a Probe PDF
Nanoindentation Probe Selection Guide PDF
Three-Sided Pyramidal Probes | Request Pricing or Tell us Your Challenge | ||||
Probe | Included Angle / Aspect Ratio | Radius of Curvature | Coefficients | Applications |
Berkovich | 142.35° / 1:8 | ~150nm | C0 = 24.5 C1-C5 = fitted parameters | Bulk ceramics, glasses and metals Thin, hard films and coatings greater than 100nm thick Hard, smooth biomaterials (polished bone) Hard polymers (modulus greater than 1GPa) in-situ imaging |
Cube Corner | 35.26° / 1:1 | ~150nm | C0 = 2.598 C1-C5 = fitted parameters | Ultra-thin coatings less than 100nm thick Micro/nano-composites Fracture of samples Higher resolution in-situ imaging |
NorthStarTM | 35.26° / 1:1 | < 40nm | C0 = 2.598 C1-C5 = fitted parameters | Similar to cube corner with a smaller radius of curvature |
Cono-Spherical Probes | Request Pricing or Tell us Your Challenge | ||||
Probe | Included Angle | Radius | Coefficients | Applications |
Imaging | 60°, 90° & 120° | < 10µm | C0 = -p C1 = 2[p]R C2-C5 = fitted parameters | Harder polymers (modulus greater than 0.5GPa) Hard biomaterials Nanoscratch testing Measuring coefficient of friction in-situ imaging of tested region |
Non-Imaging | 60°, 90° & 120° | > 10µm | C0 = -p C1 = 2(p)R C2-C5 = fitted parameters | Soft polymers (modulus less than 0.5GPa) Soft biomaterials (tissue, skin, contact lenses, etc...) Nanoscratch testing Measuring coefficient of friction |
Specialty Probes | Request Pricing or Tell us Your Challenge | ||||
Probe | Description | |||
Fluid Cell | Most probe geometries are available in a fluid cell configuration. The fluid cell probes have an extended shaft (approximately 4 mm in length), which allows the end of the probe to be completely immersed in a fluid while the probe holder and transducer remain in the air. The diameter of the extended shaft is approximately 700 µm to minimize meniscus forces that will be present when the probe penetrates the fluid. The fluid cell probe is useful for biomaterials and electrochemical testing. | |||
Flat End | Two different types of flat ended probes are available. The first is a flat punch, which is a cylindrical shaped probe with a flat end. The second is a 60 degree cone with a flat end. The flat ended probes are typically only used with very soft samples, as it is very difficult to get the probe perfectly parallel to the sample. With soft samples, it is possible to load the probe enough to get the full contact area. Flat ended probes can also be used to test structure materials, such as nano-dots or pedestal samples to find the stiffness. | |||
High Temperature | Most probe geometries are available in a high temperature configuration to be used with the Temperature Control Stages. The high temperature probes are mounted in a slightly longer, ceramic holder assembly with a heat-resistant epoxy. The use of these materials limit the amount of heat transfer to the transducer and allow the temperature control stage to be used at higher temperatures. | |||
nanoECR | The nanoECR probes are constructed to be used with the nanoECR (Electrical Contact Resistance) upgrade. The nanoECR probes are constructed using a boron doped diamond and a low-resistance conductive path through the probe holder into the transducer so that the electrical signals from the sample stage can be transmitted. | |||
Wedge | A few different geometries of wedge probes are available. The smaller wedge probes are used when there is a directional dependence in a sample, or for testing specific geometries of samples. One example is for performing bend tests on a suspended wire or beam. Wedge probes are sometimes used to cause delamination by indenting directly at the interface between a substrate and thin film. The radius of the end of the probe is about 1 µm, which limits the types of systems that can be tested in this manner. | |||
Knoop | The Knoop probe is a four-sided pyramidal probe. The cross sectional of the probe is rhomboidal, so that one axis is much more elongated than the other. This probe was developed for microindentation. Smaller indents with a Knoop probe are too small to image optically. Because it is four sided, the probe radius is often much larger than three sided pyramidal probes, limiting this probe to higher load applications. One area where this probe has been used for nanoindentation is for samples that have a directional dependence. | |||
Vickers | The Vickers probe is a four-sided pyramidal probe. The depth to area ratio and area function is the same as a Berkovich probe. When four planes are cut into the diamond to create the probe, they will intersect in a line rather than a point, so the radius of curvature is typically much larger than a Berkovich probe, typically greater than 500 nm. This limits how much work can be performed at lower forces; therefore Vickers probes are more commonly used with higher force options. The main purpose of the Vickers probe is to find scale connectivity between the nanoindentation and microindentation regimes. Vickers indentation is typically performed with a microindenter with the size of the indent measured optically. At nanoscale, depth sensing indentation is used, so this probe is not as useful for lowload quantitative studies. | |||
For All Nanoindenter Tips & Probes | Request Pricing or Tell us Your Challenge | ||||