An ECI Conference Series
October 6-11, 2024
Sicily, Italy
About This Conference
This conference will bring together people working in the field of nano- and micromechanical testing in materials research and innovation. The mechanical behavior of materials is typically controlled by processes that span several length, temperature and time scales. There has been a rapid expansion of available testing strategies in recent years to examine elastic, plastic, fracture and fatigue properties at multiple length scales, with control of loading mode, temperature and atmosphere, including imaging during deformation and using a multitude of available signals. This conference brings together the research community working in the field of experimental mechanics with a focus on nano- and micro-mechanical testing and a special emphasis on bridging observations across multiple length scales, coupling them with modelling and using new methods from data science. In particular, this includes:
- Observing phenomena at different length scales, from processes occurring at the atomic scale (i.e., dislocation nucleation and propagation in single crystals or at individual interfaces) to the mesoscale (from oligocrystals to polycrystals); in this sense, contributions bridging observations across multiple length scales are especially welcome;
- The use of in-situ deformation studies in SEM, TEM, AFM, optical microscopy, X-Ray, neutron and electron characterization (both imaging and diffraction);
- The use of different spectroscopy techniques (photon, phonon, electron, ion, or combinations), i.e., correlated microscopy, to understand deformation processes in advanced structural materials;
- The implementation of nano- and micromechanical tests in extreme environments (e.g., high temperature, cryogenic, etc.) or non-conventional loading conditions (e.g., nano-tribology), including testing under service conditions (operando);
- The post processing of the data, including full field measurements by image and volume correlation, as well as time-resolved experiments to unravel dynamic processes far from equilibrium;
- Integration with modeling for mechanistic discovery, experimental interpretation, parameter calibration, or model validation.
- Application of artificial intelligence, data-driven methods and materials informatics in materials science in the context of materials’ deformation at the nano- and microscale.
- Application of novel micro-nanoscale mechanical testing methods to emerging and/or industrially relevant materials (energy materials, advanced composites and polymers, advanced coatings, biomedical and bio-mimetic materials, 3D printed materials)
Besides hardness, time dependent properties, phase transformations, fracture phenomena and toughness can be quantitatively evaluated with the new test methods. For many applications, the temperature and rate dependence and other environmental parameters, such as exposure to aggressive atmosphere or radiation, are of great interest. These nano- and micromechanical testing techniques will help in the development of design concepts for materials based on their local mechanical properties and underlying deformation mechanisms.
This conference will bring together scientists and industrial stakeholders working in the field of nano- and micromechanical testing in materials research. It will provide a forum for discussion of the latest activities in application of nano- and micromechanical testing methods.
Conference Organization
Conference Chair
Marco Sebastiani, Universita degli studi Roma Tre, Italy
Steering Committee
Gerhard Dehm, Planck Institute for Iron Research, Germany
Karsten Durst, Technical University Darmstadt, Germany
Mathias Göken, University Erlangen-Nurnberg, Germany
Sandra Korte-Kerzel, RWTH Aachen University, Germany
Marc Legros, CEMES-CNRS, France
Carl McHargue, University of Tennessee, USA
Johann Michler, EMPA, Switzerland
Jon Molina-Aldareguia, IMDEA Materials Institute, Spain
George M. Pharr, Texas A&M University, USA
Call for Abstracts
Coming in 2023
Venue Information
Coming Soon
Previous Conferences in this Series
Instrumented Indentation Testing in Materials Research & Development
October 9 – 15, 2005 – Crete, Greece
Conference Chairs:
George M. Pharr, University of Tennessee, USA
Carl McHargue, University of Tennessee, USA
Nanomechanical Testing in Materials Research & Development II
October 11 – 16, 2009 – Barga, Italy
Conference Chair:
Mathias Göken, University Erlangen-Nurnberg, Germany
Nanomechanical Testing in Materials Research & Development III
October 9 – 14, 2011 – Lanzarote, Canary Islands, Spain
Conference Chair: Gerhard Dehm, University of Leoben, Austria
Nanomechanical Testing in Materials Research & Development IV
October 6 – 11, 2013 – Albufeira, Portugal
Conference Chair: Johann Michler, EMPA, Switzerland
Nanomechanical Testing in Materials Research & Development V
October 4-9, 2015 – Albufeira, Portugal
Conference Chair: Marc Legros, CEMES-CNRS, France
Nanomechanical Testing in Materials Research & Development VI
October 1-6, 2017 – Dubrovnik, Croatia
Conference Chair: Karsten Durst, Technical University of Darmstadt, Germany
Nanomechanical Testing in Materials Research & Development VII
September 29-October 4, 2019 – Torremolinos/Malaga, Spain
Conference Chair: Jon Molina-Adlareguia, IMDEA Materials Institute, Spain
Nanomechanical Testing in Materials Research & Development VIII
October 2-7, 2022 – Split, Croatia
Conference Chair: Sandra Korte-Kerzel, RWTH Aachen University, Germany
General Information about ECI
Engineering Conferences International (ECI) is a not-for-profit, global engineering conferences program, originally established in 1962 that provides opportunities for the exploration of problems and issues of concern to engineers and scientists from many disciplines.
The format of the conference provides morning and late afternoon or evening sessions in which major presentations are made. Poster sessions will be scheduled for evening discussion as well. Available time is included during the afternoons for ad hoc meetings, informal discussions, and/or recreation. This format is designed to enhance rapport among participants and promote dialogue on the development of the meeting. We believe the conferences have been instrumental in generating ideas and disseminating information to a greater extent than is possible through more conventional forums.
All participants are expected both to attend the entire conference and to contribute actively to the discussions. The recording/photographing of lectures and presentations is forbidden. As ECI conferences take place in an informal atmosphere, casual clothing is the usual attire.
Smoking is prohibited at ECI conferences and conference functions.