Papers by Author: José M. López-Cepero

Abstract: Rhombohedral r-plane fracture surfaces in sapphire are analyzed by optical microscopy and by atomic force microscopy. Features of special interest include steps, lines and angles on the surface that appear to have crystallographic origins. A classification and description of these features is given over a scale ranging from hundreds of micrometers to tens of nanometers. Preferential directions in the surface are identified and related to the crystalline orientation of the sample; an attempt is made to identify the underlying phenomenology behind the appearance of each kind of feature.

Abstract: Vitreous cylinders with compositions Bi2-xPbxSr2CaCu2Oy, (x = 0 and 0.4) were prepared and used as precursors to fabricate textured bars through a Laser Floating Zone melting method (LFZ). The resulting textured cylindrical bars were annealed and were mechanically characterized through mechanical strength, σ, Young modulus, E, Vickers hardness, H, and Weibull parameters, S0 and m. The study of the mechanisms controlling the fracture process was made by means of the fractographical analysis using Laser Scanning Confocal Microscopy (LSCM). Finally, the microstructure was determined and correlated with the mechanical properties.

Abstract: Laser scanning confocal microscopy (LSCM) is a microscopic technique which allows for height discrimination. The ability to gather 3D data, along with adequate resolution (around 400 nm), makes the technique suitable for fractography; however, its applications in this area are not sufficiently explored. In this work, LSCM and SEM are applied to the study of fracture surfaces in sapphire and ruby fibers submitted to tensile stress in high-temperature conditions. The obtained qualitative and quantitative information demonstrates the validity of LSCM as a fractographical technique, allowing for clear identification of fractographical features and providing novel insight in the phenomenon of subcritical crack growth (SCG).