Nanometrology refers to measurement techniques that assess materials properties at the nanoscale. Laboratorybased
characterisation of nanomaterials has been the key enabler in the growth of nanotechnology and nanoenabled
products. Due to the small size involved, dimensional measurements has dominated such characterisation
underpinned by a tremendous development in stand-alone electron/ion microscopes and scanning probe
microscopes.
However, the scope of nanometrology extends far beyond off-site, laboratory-based measurements of dimensions
only, and is expected to have a tremendous impact on design of nano-enabled materials and devices.
In this article, we discuss some of the available techniques for laboratory-based characterisation of mechanical
and interfacial properties for nanometrology. We also provide a deep insight into the emerging techniques in
measuring these properties, keeping in view the need in advanced manufacturing and nanobio-interactions to
developmultifunctional instrumentation, traceable and standardizedmethods, andmodelling tools for unambiguous
data interpretation.
We also discuss the evaluation of nanomechanical properties and surface/interface response of materials, within
the purview of manufacturing processes and standardization.
History
Publication
Materials and Design;137, pp. 446-462
Publisher
Elsevier
Note
peer-reviewed
The full text of this article will not be available in ULIR until the embargo expires on the 14/10/2019
Rights
This is the author’s version of a work that was accepted for publication in Materials and Design. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. A definitive version was subsequently published in Materials and Design, 2018, 137, pp. 446-462, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matdes.2017.10.035