Taking advantage of the high lateral rigidity, high sensitivity and high stability of the Vantage™ system Micro Materials have developed a range of nanotribological modules including scratch, fretting and NanoTriboTest (reciprocating) tests and combined these with additional multi-sensing capability. As single-asperity contacts, nanotribological tests provide unique insights into the roles of test severity and type, surface topography and mechanical properties on friction and wear. They enable individual mechanisms to be isolated and studied in-depth improving fundamental understanding of friction and wear mechanisms. The full load range is available in all the tribology modules allowing tests to be performed over a wide range of contact pressures by changing the load and probe geometry. This allows lab-scale replication of the widest possible range of real-world contact scenarios.
