Dynamic mechanical characterization of magnetic tapes using nanoindentation techniques

The continuous stiffness measurement (CSM) technique was used to study the contact stiffness, elastic modulus, hardness, and creep behavior of a metal-particle (MP) tape, metal evaporated (ME) tapes with and without diamond like carbon (DLC) coating and a PET substrate. Nanoscratch and wear experiments were conducted using a nanoindenter with a nanoscratch attachment and a ball-on-flat tribometer, respectively. A good correlation between mechanical properties and scratch/wear damage was found. The relationship between tape structures and mechanical/tribological properties is discussed.