High strength-ductility of thin nanocrystalline palladium films with nanoscale twins: On-chip testing and grain aggregate model

The mechanical behaviour of thin nanocrystalline palladium films with an similar to 30 nm in plane grain size has been characterized on chip under uniaxial tension. The films exhibit a large strain hardening capacity and a significant increase in the strength with decreasing thickness. Transmission electron microscopy has revealed the presence of a moderate density of growth nanotwins interacting with dislocations. A semi-analytical grain aggregate model is proposed to investigate the impact of different contributions to the flow behaviour, involving the effect of twins, of grain size and of the presence of a thin surface layer. This model provides guidelines to optimizing the strength/ductility ratio of the films. (C) 2011 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.