Variable thermal loading analysis on (111) plane of single crystal gold

The temperature response on the properties of single crystal gold (111) plane at elevated temperatures was considered in this work. The ability to perform nanoindentation experiments at elevated temperatures opens up significant new possibilities in nanotechnology. The experiments are performed at various temperatures of 373 K, 473 K and 573 K with tailor made Berkovitch tip of radius 100 nm to study the behavior of single crystal gold. The new phenomenon of material bouncing back under the indenter at the end of unloading was clearly noted, due to the accumulation of high energy. The results for different temperatures were compared. Our experiments clearly show the onset of the first burst of dislocation glide, which is indicated by a sudden increase of displacement with no increase of loading, the onset of plastic deformation in connection with the periodic bursts, and the strain hardening, softening and release effects. Pile up was also observed. The complete elastic range was found. There was significant drop in the hardness, elastic modulus and the increase in depth with increasing temperature. The elastic recovery was reduced at higher temperatures.