EXISTING CHALLENGES IN INVESTIGATING THE WEAR BEHAVIOR OF NANOSTRUCTURED INTERMETALLIC COATINGS
As thin layer processing and nanotechnology progress, so does the need to test the surface properties of bulk or coated nanomaterials increase. For example, in Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS), surface tribological effects are dominant [2]. Stiction, adhesion and localized wear between contacting components can result in rapid degradation of the functionality. Wear phenomena are highly dependent on the mechanical contact conditions; high loads are not relevant in the case of MEMS. However, a lot of research is conducted using macroscopic tribometers in the Newton load range. On the other hand, Lateral Force Microscopy (LFM) in the nano-Newton load range is common in the investigation of localized contacts. But the main drawback of this technique is that it correspond predominantly to a poorly defined single-asperity contact.