Developing useful products with extremely thin films (less than 500nm) requires precise measurement of their mechanical properties. However, existing guidelines for testing these delicate layers become unreliable, especially for films thinner than 200nm.
The good news is that nanoindentation and nanoscratch testing offer a solution. These techniques allow direct and continuous measurement of critical properties like stiffness, strength, and wear resistance. They can even detect subtle damage in these ultra-thin films under various conditions (temperature, environment).
Nano technologies provide the necessary precision and control to measure these properties accurately, even for films just a few atomic layers thick. This allows researchers and engineers to develop reliable ultra-thin films for future products.