1-TO-1 COMPARISON OF SEM-DIC TO CP STRAIN FIELDS OF ULTRATHIN STEEL FILMS TO UNRAVEL PLASTICITY TO DAMAGE INITIATION

In advanced high strength steels, crack propagation and fracture is preceeded by damage initiation and propagation, yet, the nature of the plasticity mechanisms leading to damage are debated. To fully unravel the plasticity-to-damage mechanisms, we present a novel integrated experimental-numerical nanomechanical framework for testing ultra-thin specimens, yielding (i) full 3D reconstruction of grain/phase shapes and orientations, (ii) front&rear-sided, high-resolution, microstructure-correlated SEM-DIC strain fields, and (iii) one-to-one comparison to numerical strain fields computed with (advanced) crytal plasticity. Results on martensite ‘bridges’ show that limited plasticity results in martensite damage whereas significant plasticity prevents damage; analysis reveals the key role of ‘substructure boundary sliding’ in martensite on damage initiation.
EXTENDED ABSTRACT