Nano and microhardness testing of heterogeneous structures

Abstract

The objective of the paper is to compare different hardness measuring methods for the evaluation of mechanical properties in a wide load range (7-250 mN) for heterogeneous structures. Vickers nano and microindentation hardness test was used for mechanical properties assay of chosen samples. Relationships between nanohardness and microhardness were obtained for heat affected zones and fusion zone of the welds and the copper coatings on steel substrates. The experimental results of nano and microindentation tests show correlation with indentation size effect for heterogeneous structures.