Tabletop Nano Hardness Tester (NHT)

Nano Hardness Tester is used for measuring hardness and elastic modulus of thin films and thick coatings. The conventional nano indenter systems in general requires prolonged times for attaining thermal stability while the NHT system being equipped with a reference ring around the indenter such that the thermal vibrations are balanced, and the measurements could be started almost instantaneously. By means of employing low loads, it is possible to eliminate substrate effects while measuring hardness / modulus of thin samples (films). Knowing the shape of the indenter used (Vickers, Berkovich, spherical, etc.) and the depth to which the indenter has penetrated the sample, the area of the indent is calculated and hardness is calculated. Also, since load-displacement curves are measured, the elastic modulus can also be calculated. The system is equipped with a continuous stiffness measurement (CSM) module and can give the hardness / modulus as a function of penetration depth.