Development of nanoindentation techniques for characterizing local mechanical properties of soft materials

Indentation has become a popular mechanical characterization technique due to the promise of high-resolution maps of material stiffness. Due to the far-reaching nature of the testing framework, indentation tests can occur on nearly any material type and on any length scale. In this dissertation, we will look at three different materials systems and demonstrate new and unique uses for the indentation framework. These results will provide information not available by other methodologies, thereby proving its universal value. Two different indentation schemes are employed, either probing the top surface of cross-section samples or by probing into the thickness of a thin film. The differences between each of the studies highlight the importance of sample geometry/orientation, contact conditions, material response, etc. First, we will use indentation to probe local regions near carbon nanotube/glass fiber hybrid composites in an epoxy matrix. Indentations were performed to determine the radial gradient of modulus enhancements from the glass fiber surface. The results from indentation demonstrated that spatial reinforcement due to the presence of nanotubes was tied to fiber morphology and not the local morphology of carbon nanotubes. Secondly, we look at rubber and filler interaction on two different levels; macroscale and nanoscale. On the nanoscale, we show that interactions at the filler/polymer interface create regions of altered polymer mobility. These regions are influenced by geometric and chemical confinement, which increase the stiffness of these small regions (< 200nm). We employ two different indentation methods to highlight how contact orientation determines the nature of our results. Ultra-soft materials, such as hydrogels and tissues, pose rather unique challenges when they are tested mechanically. However, with tissues and gels, the sensitivity of the machines is challenged and therefore protocols must be developed to produce accurate results. We validate indentation results on a variety of soft materials and demonstrate the proper corrections for these materials. Once validated, indentation is employed in a study to compare indentation against an acoustic testing method, mangetic resonance elastography (MRE). This study highlights the uniqueness of MRE as a in-vivo tool but honestly assesses its abilities compared to indentation.