Development and application of a heated in-situ SEM micro-testing device

Understanding temperature-dependent deformation behaviour of small material volumes is a key issue in material science, especially the deformation behaviour of bcc metals at elevated temperatures is of particular interest for small-scale structural applications. Therefore, a custom-built heating device consisting of independently resistive-heated sample and indenter, and adaptable to existing micro-indenters, is presented. Key parameters of material selection, design of components and temperature control are outlined. Testing temperatures ranging from room temperature up to ∼300 °C are reached with low drift and without active cooling. To demonstrate the functionality, a variety of in-situ SEM micromechanical experiments were conducted at room temperature and 230 °C, respectively. Examples of micro-pillar compression on single crystalline and ultrafine-grained Chromium, as well as notched cantilever fracture experiments on ultrafine-grained Chromium show assets of this powerful tool, allowing more detailed insights into temperature-dependent deformation and fracture behaviour.