The Deformation Mechanism at Pop-In: Monocrystalline Silicon under Nanoindentation with a Berkovich Indenter

This paper investigates the “pop-in” behavior of monocrystalline silicon under nanoindentation with a Berkovich indenter. The indentation tests were carried out under ultra-low loads, i.e. 100 μN and 300 μN, with different loading/unloading rates. It was found that with the experimentally determined area function of the indenter tip, the mechanical properties of silicon can be accurately calculated from the load-displacement data, that a pop-in event represents the onset of phase transition, and that a lower loading rate favours a sudden volume change but a rapid loading process tends to generate a gradual slope change of the load-displacement curve.