Identification of the intrinsic material length in gradient plasticity theory from micro-indentation tests (Q5955221)

The authors deal with a gradient plasticity model which possesses an intrinsic micro-material length and may describe strength variations with the specimen size; this model is suitable to simulate micro-indentation hardness tests and provides the depth-dependent hardness which has been observed in micro- and nano-indentations. Comparisons with published experiments display that computational results can accurately capture size effects in micro-indentation tests. Numerical results are plotted in diagrams.