Abstract Scope |
Metals fabricated at the microscale (e.g. sputter deposited films) differ substantially in both properties and microstructure from their macroscale counterparts. For this reason, if the enticing properties of multi-principal element alloys (MPEAs) are to be realized for microscale applications (e.g. coatings, MEMS devices) specimens must be fabricated, characterized, and qualified at the microscale rather than extrapolating macroscale properties. Efficiently characterizing the vast and mostly experimentally unexplored compositional space of MPEAs to identify promising alloys is challenging with current test specimen fabrication techniques. In this work, freestanding, thin-film micro-mechanical testing specimens of combinatorially variable compositions and different loading modalities (tensile, compression, fatigue, indentation) were fabricated on a single wafer using a novel micro-fabrication process. In-situ micro-mechanical testing of these specimens was performed in combination with SEM characterization. Through the use of this procedure, candidate alloys for microscale applications can be verified and tested more efficiently. |