Interaction between cracking, delamination and buckling in brittle elastic thin films

A discrete lattice based model for the interaction of cracking, delamination and buckling of brittle elastic coatings is presented. The model is unique in its simultaneous incorporation of the coating and of disorder in the interface and material properties, leading to realistic 3D bending (and buckling) behavior. Results are compared to the literature. In the case of cracking, the key role of a stress transfer correlation length ξ in establishing a scaling behavior for the brittle fracture of thin films is shown to extend to all geometrical and material properties involved. In the scaling regime of crack density in uniaxial tension cracking and delamination are found to occur simultaneously. In uniaxial tension of films with an internal biaxial compressive stress, the predicted initiation of buckles above delaminated areas near crack edges in the model is remarkably similar to experimental results.