Dynamic optical interferometry applied to analyse out of plane displacement fields for crack propagation in brittle materials

Abstract
We propose in this paper, to analyse, the evolution of out-of-plane displacement fields for a crack propagation in brittle materials. As the crack propagation is a complex process that involves the deformation mechanisms, the out-of-plane displacement measurement gives pertinent information about the 3D effects. For investigation, we use the interferometric method. The optical device includes a laser source, a Michelson interferometer and an ultra high-speed CCD camera. To take into account the crack velocity, we dispose of a maximum frame rate of 1Mfps. The experimental tests have been carried out for a SEN (Single Edge Notch) specimen of PMMA material. The crack propagation is initiated by adding a dynamic energy given by the impact of a cutter on the initial crack. The obtained interferograms are analysed with a new phase extraction method entitled MPC [6]. This analysis, which has been developed specially for dynamic studies, gives the out-of-plane displacement with an accuracy of about 10 nm.