Accuracy analysis of plane-strain bulge test for determining mechanical properties of thin films
(1. Key Laboratory of Low Dimensional Materials & Application Technology of Ministry of Education,
Xiangtan University, Xiangtan 411105, China;
2. School of Materials Science and Engineering, Xiangtan University, Xiangtan 411105, China)
Xiangtan University, Xiangtan 411105, China;
2. School of Materials Science and Engineering, Xiangtan University, Xiangtan 411105, China)
Abstract: The effect of a variety of geometrics, initial conditions and material properties on the deformation behavior of thin films in the plane-strain bulge test was systematically scrutinized by performing the finite element analysis, and then the accuracy of the plane-strain bulge test in determining the mechanical properties of thin films in terms of our finite element results was analyzed. The results indicate that although the determination of the plane-strain modulus in the light of the plane-strain bulge equation is fairly accurate, the calculation of the residual stress is not satisfied as expected, especially for low residual stress. Finally, an approach is proposed for analyzing bulge test data, which will improve the accuracy and reliability of this bulge test technique.
Key words: thin films; mechanical properties; bulge test; accuracy; finite element analysis