AFM nanoindentation to determine Young's modulus for different EPDM elastomers

AFM nanoindentation was investigated as a method for determining the micromechanical properties of polymer materials. It is generally accepted that the shape of the tip of the cantilever undergoes a change in a standard AFM setup. The shape defines the projected contact area, so it is a parameter directly proportional to the elastic modulus; any change in the shape thus affects the accuracy of the results. The method suggested in this paper relies on the introduction of an experimentally determined tip-area function. Values for Young's modulus were calculated for EPDM samples with different degrees of cure and crystallinity. The degree of crystallinity has a greater impact on the mechanical properties of the material than the degree of cure. Depending on the amplitude of the indentation, the E-moduli determined by AFM are systematically higher. When studying different regions of polymer materials, the values of the E-modulus determined by AFM become identical to those measured by means of DMA on extrapolation of the modulus at zero indentation. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.