Faculty Projects
Acquisition of a Compact, Portable, and High-Precision Nanoindenter for Undergraduate Teaching and Senior Projects in Materials Science and Engineering

Yip-Wah Chung

Project Manager

Yip-Wah Chung, Professor, Materials Science and Engineering and (by courtesy) Mechanical Engineering

Amount Requested

$60,000

Summary

In the last 50 years, remarkable advancements in science and engineering have enabled precise synthesis of nanoscale materials with unique mechanical properties compared to bulk materials. While we cover these topics in lectures, students lack opportunities for live demos or hands-on experience to observe these properties. It is impractical to use the existing nanoindenter in one of the shared research facilities for lecture demonstrations due to its size and long setup time. A proposed compact, portable, and high-precision nanoindenter offers the solution, allowing practical exploration of mechanical properties of nanoscale materials in live lectures, undergraduate labs, and senior research projects. Integrating the nanoindenter into undergraduate teaching bridges the gap between theory and real-world applications. Students gain valuable hands-on experience in manipulating nanoscale materials and developing a deeper understanding of their mechanical properties. This equips them with a cutting-edge skill set for improved job opportunities or advanced studies. We will develop multiple live lecture demos and lab modules to provide the above experience. Further, we will encourage students to develop senior thesis projects based on this new tool. To assess the impact, specific questions related to the nanoindenter will be included in course evaluations, and student feedback will be gathered. Tracking its usage in senior research projects and the range of projects undertaken will provide further insight. The versatility of this new instrument allows students to create two-dimensional maps of mechanical properties, measure friction coefficients, and investigate creep, among other applications. By empowering students to develop independent research ideas, the nanoindenter nurtures critical thinking, problem-solving skills, and a passion for inquiry-driven learning, unlike pre-set experiments.

Planned Activities/Investments

In the last 50 years, remarkable scientific and engineering advancements have enabled precise synthesis of materials at the nanometer scale. Nanoscale materials exhibit unique properties, sometimes advantageous and sometimes not, compared to their bulk counterparts. For instance, thin copper interconnects used in nano/microscale electronic devices can be stronger or weaker than bulk copper, depending on their grain size. Advanced steam generators in power plants employ steels that operate at increasingly high temperatures, improving energy conversion efficiency and reducing carbon emissions per kWh electricity generated. These steels derive their high-temperature strength from thermally stable nanoscale precipitates. Nanolayer and nanocomposite coatings are used extensively for wear protection of machine tools and computer disk drives. Understanding the mechanical properties of these nanoscale materials is crucial. A modern nanoindenter is the ideal tool for these educational and research endeavors. Although we cover these topics in lectures such as MSE-201/301 (Introduction to Materials Science and Engineering, with annual enrollment of 300 students) and MSE-332 (Mechanical Properties of Materials, with annual enrollment of about 20), we lack the opportunity for live demonstrations or hands-on experience for students to observe the unique mechanical properties of nanoscale materials. The existing nanoindenter (TriboIndenter 950) in a shared research facility is impractical for lecture demonstrations due to its bulky size. Additionally, it takes over 30 minutes to set up a sample, making it challenging to conduct multiple experiments within the limited two-hour timeframe of an undergraduate lab session. Conversely, the proposed nanoindenter is compact, portable, and offers "plug-and-play" functionality, requiring only a few minutes for setup. Moreover, each indentation can be completed in 0.5 seconds, 200 times faster than the TriboIndenter. These advantages enable us to deliver practical educational experience to our students in exploring the mechanical properties of nanoscale materials through live lectures, undergraduate labs, and senior research projects.

Impact

Integrating a nanoindenter into undergraduate teaching presents a unique opportunity for practical, experiential learning. Students gain hands-on experience in exploring and manipulating nanoscale materials, effectively bridging the gap between theory and real-world applications. This fosters a deeper understanding of mechanical properties and equips them with a cutting-edge skill set for improved job opportunities or advanced studies. To assess the impact, we will include specific questions on the nanoindenter in our CTEC evaluation of MSE-201/301 and MSE-332 and gather student feedback. Tracking its use in senior research projects and the range of projects will provide additional insights. The versatility of this instrument allows students to create two-dimensional maps of yield strength or fracture toughness for multi-phase materials, measure friction properties, quantify creep properties of metals and polymers, and more. Unlike canned or pre-set experiments, this tool empowers students to develop independent research ideas, nurturing critical thinking and problem-solving skills, and fostering a passion for inquiry-driven learning.

Sustainability

The nanoindenter includes a one-year warranty. Our experience with the instrument in the shared user facility indicates that the primary maintenance items after the expiration of the one-year warranty are software update and replacement of the diamond indenter, which should be done annually at an approximate cost of $1000. This expense will be covered by our department's operating budget. In fact, we plan to engage in negotiations with the vendor, KLA, to secure free software and hardware updates in future years. Given KLA's interest in strengthening its presence at Northwestern, we are optimistic about the prospects of a successful negotiation.

Deliverables

There will be three major deliverables for the project:

  1. Commissioning of a fully functional nanoindenter in our undergraduate teaching laboratory
  2. Three or four live demos to illustrate the utility and versatility of this instrument
  3. Three or four laboratory modules as part of our undergraduate teaching laboratory

With contributions from faculty members and senior undergraduates over time, we hope to build a substantial portfolio of lecture demos and laboratory modules for a broader range of phenomena and materials classes.

Previous Projects

Our department did not make the same or similar request last year.

Budget Overview

The price of the instrument along with software for data acquisition and analysis is $75K. The Department of Materials Science and Engineering will provide $15K for cost-sharing. Therefore, the request from the Murphy Fund is $60K. As a footnote, we have solicited quotations from two leading manufacturers of nanoindenters, Bruker and KLA. Based on considerations of price concessions and suitability for undergraduate teaching and senior projects, we narrowed the choice to the one by KLA. The instrument from KLA has a list price of $126K. KLA is very much interested to get into the Northwestern research enterprise and is willing to provide this instrument with a 40% education discount, for a price of $75K. It is a compact, portable, and high-precision instrument with easy setup and fast data acquisition. Although one of our shared facilities does have an excellent nanoindenter (TriboIndenter 950 from Bruker), its extended setup time (half an hour versus minutes for KLA), slower data acquisition time (100 seconds versus 0.5 seconds per indent for KLA), and bulky form factor make it impractical to serve the needs of lecture demonstrations, undergraduate experiments, and senior projects.

Total: $60,000

Matching Funds

As noted in the preceding section, the Department of Materials Science and Engineering will provide $15K as matching funds for this instrument, which is originally priced at $126K. The Department considers this to be an excellent investment for the money to acquire a state-of-the-art instrument to enhance our undergraduate education.