In the present paper, strain measurements based on second harmonic generation (SHG) and electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) is demonstrated via two illustrative applications. While SHG gains access to strains in buried interfaces, EBSD can be used to measure strains in crystalline thin films with high spatial resolution on the order of tens of nanometers and high surface sensitivity. In addition, target preparation using low-voltage ion beam milling is demonstrated, gaining access to unstrained sample positions in strained silicon on insulator (sSOI) systems which are necessary for common “pattern-shift” methodologies.

Nanoindentation test is known as instrumented indentation test (IIT) in the nano range for hardness and material parameters (ISO14577). It is a simple and effective method for evaluating the mechanical properties such as elasticity/stiffness, hardness and adhesion. Generally IIT is the method that doesn’t have to observe the residual impression. However, it is necessary to observe the residual impression and surface of test piece to obtain the material behavior such as pile-up/sink-in, crack. In past work, the phase shifting interferometric scanning confocal microscope (PSISCM)-nanoindenataion combined system was developed to obtain the tilt of surface and the geometrical shape of residual impression that are deeper than one micron. This system is useful to obtain the geometrical shape of the surface of test piece in macro and micro range. However, it is well known that the results of nanoindentation test become unstable in the nano range.

In this work, authors focused the geometry observation system for nanoindentation system. Confirmation the capability of PSISCM system and development of objective type atomic force microscopy to obtain the geometrical shape in nano range are examined. The AFM that has an excellent performance is developed by SII nanotechnology Inc. Japan, and it built into system. In many cases, it performs enough to observe the residual impression and the surface of the test piece. This system uses three methods to obtain the geometrical shape of surface in each range. Generally, AFM has the observation range at about several microns. It is difficult to search the small residual impression by only AFM. Before the observation of AFM, the observation area should be selected by using PSISCM. New measurement tool using PSISCM and AFM to obtain the surface geometry from macro range to nano range is proposed. This tool is very simple, quick and useful tool.

A setup is described where an individual electrospun polyamide fiber is attached to an atomic force microscope (AFM) tip and structural information collected with synchrotron micro Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (μFT-IR). The combination of AFM and synchrotron μFT-IR therefore highlights the potential for recording structure-mechanical property relationships simultaneously in materials with sub-micron dimensions.

The mechanical properties of individual electrospun polystyrene fibers with sub-micron diameters were measured using a combination of atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The strain to failure of the electrospun fibers was observed to increase as the fiber diameter decreased. This size dependent mechanical behavior in individual electrospun polystyrene fibers indicates a suppression of localized failure and a shift away from crazing that is dominant in bulk samples.

Due to environmental concerns traditional eutectic tin-lead solder is gradually being replaced in electronic assemblies by “lead-free” solders. During this transition, nanoparticle technology is also being investigated to see whether improvements in joint reliability for high temperature applications can be made. Nanoparticles can be used to harden the solder via Zener pinning of the grain boundaries and reduce fatigue failure. This paper explores the effects of adding Silica nanoparticles to SnAgCu solder, and how the mechanical properties induced in the solder vary with temperature. It is found that above 100 °C the mechanical response and microstructure of the normal and nanoparticle enhanced solders converge.