Material Failures and Their Impact on Device Reliability

Flashcards covering the concepts of material failures including fracture types, fatigue, corrosion, and their impacts on device reliability.

Brittle Fracture

A sudden, rapid, and catastrophic failure with little or no plastic deformation before the break.

Chipping

A form of minor fracture where a small piece breaks off the cutting edge.

Fatigue Failure

A progressive, long-term crack initiation and propagation that eventually leads to total, sudden breakage.

Cyclic Loading

The repeated application and removal of stress, such as vibrations, rotation, or thermal cycling.

Localized Failure

Damage often starts at microscopic imperfections, such as inclusion, voids, grain boundaries, or geometric stress.

Sudden Failure

Fatigue failure often appears abruptly, resembling a brittle fracture without significant prior deformation.

Uniform Corrosion

Occurs evenly across the entire surface of the tool, causing a general, predictable thinning.

Pitting Corrosion

A highly destructive, localized form creating small, deep holes (pits).

Crevice Corrosion

Occurs in confined spaces where oxygen is restricted.

Galvanic Corrosion

Happens when two dissimilar metals are in contact in a moist, conductive environment, causing the more active metal to corrode faster.

Fretting Corrosion

Damage caused by the constant, minute rubbing motion between two contact surfaces.

Impact on Device Reliability

Fracture causing abrupt failures in components, leading to decreased reliability after a certain number of stress cycles.

Corrosion Impact

Significantly reduces lifespan, causing intermittent failures and complete system breakdowns.

Fatigue Impact

Significantly exhausts the device, leading to unavailability to function over time.