Femtosecond laser machining for characterization of local mechanical properties of biomaterials: a case study on wood

Abstract

The standard preparation technique for micro-sized samples is focused ion beam milling, most frequently using Ga⁺ ions. The main drawbacks are the required processing time and the possibility and risks of ion implantation. In contrast, ultrashort pulsed laser ablation can process any type of material with ideally negligible damage to the surrounding volume and provides 4 to 6 orders of magnitude higher ablation rates than the ion beam technique. In this work, a femtosecond laser was used to prepare wood samples from spruce for mechanical testing at the micrometre level. After optimization of the different laser parameters, tensile and compressive specimens were produced from microtomed radial-tangential and longitudinal-tangential sections. Additionally, laser-processed samples were exposed to an electron beam prior to testing to study possible beam damage. The specimens originating from these different preparation conditions were mechanically tested. Advantages and limitations of the femtosecond laser preparation technique and the deformation and fracture behaviour of the samples are discussed. The results prove that femtosecond laser processing is a fast and precise preparation technique, which enables the fabrication of pristine biological samples with dimensions at the microscale.     

Magnetic field sensitivity of variable thickness microbridges inTBCCO, BSCCO, and YBCO

We describe results of a study comparing the magnetic field sensitivities of variable thickness bridge (VTB) arrays fabricated in TBCCO, BSCCO, and YBCO thin films. Identical structures were patterned in a variety of films, and the bridges were thinned by four different methods. Analysis of the data yields experimental evidence as to the suitability of these types of films for devices such as the superconducting flux flow transistor (SFFT) which is based on this geometry. The volt-ampere characteristics of the arrays were measured in low uniform magnetic fields (⩽130 G) and in nonuniform fields (⩽5 G) produced by a nearby control line. For these films in this geometry, no measurable effect of the control line magnetic field was observed. Large values of transresistance and current gain could only be attained through a thermal mechanism when the control line was driven normal. Upper bounds for (magnetically generated) transresistance (⩽5 mΩ) and current gains (⩽0.005) have been inferred from the uniform field data assuming a standard best-case device geometry. All volt-ampere curves followed closely a power law relationship (V~I ⁿ), with exponent n ~1.2-10. We suggest materials considerations that may yield improved device performance     

Kevlar®对位芳纶浆粕增强橡胶的研究

研究Kevlar对位芳纶浆粕和精切短纤维对天然橡胶胶料的补强效果。结果表明:随着纤维用量的增大,Kevlar对位芳纶浆粕补强的胶料储能模量增加幅度大于损耗模量增加幅度,损耗角和损耗因子随着浆粕用量的增大而降低,这种效果有利于低滚动阻力轮胎或其他轮胎部件的胶料配方设计,在提高胶料定伸模量的同时不会增加滞后生热;Kevlar对位芳纶浆粕表现出的一种独特手风琴效应可能是低滞后生热的原因。     

Fatigue crack closure: a review of the physical phenomena

Plasticity‐induced, roughness‐induced and oxide‐induced crack closures are reviewed. Special attention is devoted to the physical origin, the consequences for the experimental determination and the prediction of the effective crack driving force for fatigue crack propagation. Plasticity‐induced crack closure under plane stress and plane strain conditions require, in principle, a different explanation; however, both types are predictable. This is even the case in the transition region from the plane strain to the plane stress state and all types of loading conditions including constant and variable amplitude loading, the short crack case or the transition from small‐scale to large‐scale yielding. In contrast, the prediction of roughness‐induced and oxide‐induced closures is not as straightforward.     

Effect of Large Shear Deformations on the Fracture Behavior of a Fully Pearlitic Steel

High-pressure torsion (HPT) has been used for investigating the influence of predeformation on the fracture toughness of a fully pearlitic rail steel. The use of HPT enables one to investigate changes in fracture toughness as a function of predeformation over a wide range of strain while simultaneously studying the influence of the crack plane orientation on the fracture toughness. With increasing prestrain, besides a strong increase in hardness, a pronounced anisotropy in the fracture toughness was found. Both the increase in hardness and the anisotropic fracture behavior can be attributed to the shear deformation process leading to an anisotropic composite structure on the nanometer scale.