The Edge Delamination Test: Measuring the Critical Adhesion Energy of Thin-Film Coatings, Part II: Mode Mixity & Application

Abstract

ABSTRACTThe edge delamination test (EDT) is being developed to measure the critical energy required to cause a thin film, under biaxial tensile stress, to debond from a rigid substrate[1]. The test uses circular features etched through biaxially stressed films adhered to a rigid substrate. If the stress is large enough, a stable debond ring grows radially about the feature. We use a finite element analysis to model the test, solving for the applied strain energy release rate as a function of crack length, feature hole radius and other geometrical parameters. The model identifies both mode I and mode II components of the strain energy release rate, and agrees with previous analytical solutions for the total debond energy. However, the model predicts, with a very refined mesh at the crack tip, the fracture process is pure mode I. To explore this result, critical strain energy release rates from the EDT and the island blister test (IBT) are compared. This agreement supports the model prediction that the failure process in the EDT is modeI peeling.