Small-scale multiaxial setup for damage detection into the very high cycle fatigue regime

Micro electro mechanical systems, coatings, and thin films contain materials that are often subjected to complex loading conditions and high frequencies. Therefore, the implementation of a resonant multiaxial fatigue setup for small-scale samples is of high interest. Finite Element simulations have been used to design small-scale samples which possess very close bending and torsional resonant frequencies. The bending and torsional modes are excited by two piezo actuators working either in or out of phase with one another. The bending and torsional amplitudes are measured independently by a laser and the actuator amplitudes are controlled by a Field Programmable Gate Array. The fatigue setup can be used with a varying range of sample sizes from centimeters down to tens of micrometers. The novel multiaxial resonant micro fatigue setup as well as results (fatigue damage for Ni and lifetime for Cu) from bending small-scale fatigue tests are shown and discussed.