3D characterisation of indentation induced sub-surface cracking in silicon nitride using FIB tomography

In this study, a combination of 3D FIB tomography and incremental surface polishing has been used to characterize cracking beneath 0.5 kg and 1 kg Vickers indentations on silicon nitride. It is shown that a half-penny cracking regime exists even for low indentation loads with c/a ratios < 2 indicating that the c/a ratio cannot reliably be used to predict sub-surface crack morphology. For the first time, the presence of deep lateral cracks interconnected with radial cracks was also observed surrounding indentations of low loads on silicon nitride, and it is likely that these could contribute to material removal via spalling.