Modified-creep experiment of an elastomer film on a rigid substrate using nanoindentation with a flat-ended cylindrical tip

Abstract

We have developed a modified-creep experiment with nanoindenter to measure the viscoelastic properties of elastomer films. Load-controlled experiments on PDMS (polydimethylsiloxane) films were performed using the Nano Indenter (R) XP with a flat-ended tip. By adapting the force-depth relation obtained by Choi et al. [S.T. Choi, S.R. Lee, Y.Y. Earmme, Acta Mater. (submitted for publication)], the indentation results were analyzed to obtain the relaxation modulus of the PDMS film as a function of time. Residual deformation on the indented PDMS film after unloading was measured with an atomic force microscope. (c) 2007 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.