Study on the viscoelastic properties of the epoxy surface by means of nanodynamic mechanical analysis

The viscoelastic properties of the epoxy surface have been investigated by nanodynamic mechanical analysis (nano‐DMA). Both a Berkovich tip and a conospherical tip were used under the condition of different forces (i.e., different penetration depths) in the frequency range of 10–200 Hz. Loss tangent and storage modulus are characteristics that describe the viscoelastic properties. The effect of force frequency, penetration depth, and tip shape on the viscoelastic properties is studied and discussed according to the features of microstructures and mobility of molecular chains. The experimental results show important variations when the penetration depth is shallow (<30 nm). As the depth becomes deeper, the results tend to be stable and become almost constant over 120 nm. The two kinds of indenter tip can cause a slight difference of the storage modulus. A “master curve” of the storage modulus as a function of force frequency is established. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 46: 281–288, 2008