Tripathy P., Mishra A., Ram S., Fecht H-J.
Indian Institute of Technology, IN
Keywords: gold nanoparticles, mechanical properties, nanocomposite, nanoindentaion
Free standing films of gold nanoparticles reinforced poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) nanocomposite are synthesized by a novel chemical method with selective Au-contents varied from 0.1 to 5.0 wt%. The color change in the Au-PVA nanocomposite films from violet to yellowish color is a characteristic of forming Au-nanocrystals (NCs) of varying sizes and/or morphologies embedded in the PVA molecules. In order to study the mechanical reliability of these films, the mechanical properties such as elastic modulus (E-modulus), hardness (H) and yield stress are studied using nanoindentaion technique. Both E-modulus and H show a decreasing trend followed by an increased value with the increase in the Au-content in the samples. The H-value of the films decreases first from 0.29 GPa in virgin PVA to 0.23 GPa in 0.5 wt% to value of 0.31 GPa in 2 wt% Au-PVA film. Also the E-modulus decreases from 8.19 GPa in PVA film to 6.48 GPa in 0.5 wt% Au-PVA film followed by an increase in the value upto 7.3 GPa in 2 wt% Au-PVA film. In this present paper, these results are analyzed in correlation with the microstructure and are found useful for device applications.
Journal: TechConnect Briefs
Volume: 1, Nanotechnology 2008: Materials, Fabrication, Particles, and Characterization – Technical Proceedings of the 2008 NSTI Nanotechnology Conference and Trade Show, Volume 1
Published: June 1, 2008
Pages: 308 - 311
Industry sector: Advanced Materials & Manufacturing
Topic: Composite Materials
ISBN: 978-1-4200-8503-7