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Overview
The next best thing to having a Nano Indenter® system in your laboratory is using Nano Instruments Analytical Services!
Our scientists and Nano Indenter technology stand ready to serve you at two locations:
Oak Ridge
Anthony Knowles
Analytical Laboratory
Nano Instruments Innovation Center
701 Scarboro Road Suite 100
Oak Ridge, TN 37830
USA
Tel: 1-865-481-8451
Fax: 1-865-481-8455
Contact us to discuss your needs, get cost and time estimates, or gather more information about our services.
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Services
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At the Nano Instruments Analytical Services Laboratory, we strive to be the premiere providers of testing and educational services in the field of small-scale mechanical testing. The techniques utilized in our laboratory are ideally suited for evaluating the mechanical properties and performance of thin films, coatings, MEMS devices, and other small volumes of material.
Our dedicated staff of scientists and engineers possesses over 70 years of combined experience in the fields of mechanical testing, modeling, instrumentation, and materials science. Since 1984, we have honed our ability to deliver the most accurate and precise results in conjunction with expert data analysis that ultimately helps our customers better understand and improve the products they make.
Our customer base runs the full gamut of industry, and includes academic institutions and government labs as well.
Contract Services
The next best thing to a customer having his or her own instrument and a staff of materials scientists is using the Nano Instruments Analytical Services Laboratory. When it comes to developing the most appropriate test methods, obtaining the most accurate and precise results, and arriving at meaningful conclusions, our lab offers over 70 years of combined experience in the fields of mechanical testing, modeling, instrumentation, and materials science.
Here is an introduction to our approach to contract services:
Personnel in our laboratory utilize the suite of Nano Indenter instruments to characterize the mechanical properties of a wide variety of material systems. From low-k materials to consumer products, we offer more than just numbers, we explore the meaning behind them. We also employ a number of techniques that deliver benefits to our customers by saving them time and money. For example, standard depth-sensing or instrumented indentation yields both hardness and Young’s modulus at a specific depth or load. Using our patented Continuous Stiffness Measurement (CSM) technique, we can determine these mechanical properties continuously as a function of the indenter’s displacement into the sample. Use of this technique provides quantitative data at multiple depths from a single indentation test. Obtaining the same data would require tens or even hundreds of tests using the conventional method.
When applications call for specific measurements, we also offer various techniques to evaluate scratch behavior (coefficient of friction, identification of wear mechanisms, scratch profilometry), creep (strain rate sensitivities and stress exponent for creep), viscoelastic properties (storage modulus, loss modulus, and tan delta), and fracture toughness. In addition to employing a spectrum of techniques, we also offer finite element analysis to simulate the indentation of bulk materials and thin films. FEA is a robust means of estimating the effect of pile-up or substrate on experimentally measured properties. The analysis is conducted through Virtual Indenter™, an MTS software package that acts as a user-friendly interface to the finite-element analysis engine, COSMOS® (COSMOS is a registered trademark of Structural Research and Analysis Corporation).
We always encourage our customers to visit our laboratory. It provides an opportunity for them to learn more about what we do and how we do it, but moreover, it helps develop relationships that often lead to unique testing ideas and methods that translate into a competitive advantage for the customer.
Educational Services
While we offer a variety of training courses, our most popular course is Mechanical Testing by Indentation. Mechanical Testing by Indentation is a three-day course designed for students, engineers, scientists, and technicians who are interested in learning about the science of indentation. Lectures focus on models used to determine mechanical properties from measurements of load, displacement, time, etc. Many practical exercises supplement the lecture material. Principles of contact mechanics are illustrated with finite element simulations that students set up and run on site. Class size is limited to allow discussion of individual applications.
For more information on the Nano Instruments Analytical Services Laboratory, contact: Anthony Knowles at (865) 481-8451 or anthony.knowles@mts.com.
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