Microscopy and microindentation mechanics of single crystal Fe−3 wt. % Si: Part I. Atomic force microscopy of a small indentation

Atomic force microscope measurements of elastic-plastic indentation into an Fe−3 wt. % Si single crystal showed that the volume displaced to the surface is nearly equal to the volume of the cavity. The surface displacement profiles and plastic zone size caused by a 69 nm penetration of a Vickers diamond tip are reasonably represented by an elastic-plastic continuum model. Invoking conservation of volume, estimates of the number of dislocations emanating from the free surface are reasonably consistent with the number of dislocations that have formed in the plastic zone to represent an average calculated plastic strain of 0.044.