Niget: NanoIndentation General Evaluation Tool

About

Niget is a free, multiplatform and user-friendly software tool for evaluating data from nanoindentation measurements, consisting of independent analysis components which share a common graphical user interface.

Features

• Transparent and documented evaluation methods
• Uncluttered user interface
• Nonlinear function fitting using orthogonal regression (total least squares) to take account of measurement errors
• Uncertainty evaluation
• Import of force-distance data in plain-text formats
• Available tools:
  • Oliver-Pharr method
  • Tangent (Doerner-Nix) method
  • Hertzian elastic contact model
  • Two slopes method
  • Stiffness evaluation
  • F vs h² analysis
  • Pop-in detection
  • Calculation of elastic and plastic work

Screenshots

History

• 31 March 2021: version 0.5.9
  Changes from version 0.5:
  • improved function fitting procedures in Oliver-Pharr tool, added NLS and OEFPIL
  • improved uncertainty propagation methods in Oliver-Pharr tool, including LHS for Monte Carlo
  • add support for additional instrument/measurement parameters (uncertainty of maximum depth and load, frame compliance)
  • command line tools for indenter area calibration
  • Windows installers available again
  • various fixes
• 16 November 2018: version 0.5
  Changes from version 0.4.1:
  • new Stiffness tool with ODR
  • Set default button for Oliver-Pharr ODR
  • large internal code rework
  • various bug fixes
  • build system improvements
• 26 March 2018: version 0.4.1
  Changes from version 0.4:
  • fix loading area files
• 23 March 2018: version 0.4
  Changes from version 0.3:
  • allow to apply radial correction in OP ODR tool
  • user interface improvements
  • internal code improvements
• 7 December 2017: version 0.3
  Changes from version 0.2.1:
  • new Hertz method with ODR
  • uncertainty evaluation (including Monte Carlo) for OP ODR, Hertz ODR and Two slopes
  • internal code improvements
• 28 March 2017: version 0.2.1
  Changes from version 0.2:
  • Windows installer
  • minor bugs fixed
  • internal code improvements
  • material properties moved to the first tab and shared among the tools
• 14 March 2017: version 0.2
  Changes from version 0.1:
  • new feature: Two slopes method
  • Hertz method can be used to determine either modulus or tip radius
  • minor bugs fixed
• 20 February 2017: initial version 0.1

Download

• Source: niget-0.5.tar.gz
• Windows binaries: niget-0.5-win32.zip
• Source: niget-0.5.9.tar.gz
• Windows installer (32-bit): niget-0.5.9-win32.exe

License

Licensed under the GNU General Public License, version 2 (https://www.gnu.org/licenses/old-licenses/gpl-2.0.html)

Documentation

• HTML4 (math as images)
• HTML5 (MathML math, limited browser support)
• PDF

Authors

Anna Charvátová Campbell, Radek Šlesinger, Petr Grolich
Czech Metrology Institute

Acknowledgments

Niget development has been supported by the following projects:

• GA15-17875S “Local microstructural changes induced by static and dynamic indentation in nanostructured and nanolaminate coatings” funded by the Czech Science Foundation
• TJ02000203 “Advanced mathematical and statistical methods in evaluating instrumented indentation measurements” funded by the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic.
  This software was financed by the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic within the Zéta Programme.
  
• EMPIR 17IND01 “Multifunctional ultrafast microprobes for on-the-machine measurements” co-funded by the EU Horizon 2020 programme and the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic

Citing

If you use Niget for your scientific publication, you can refer to this article:

Anna Charvátová Campbell, Petr Grolich, Radek Šlesinger. Niget: Nanoindentation general evaluation tool, SoftwareX, Volume 9, 2019, Pages 248–254, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.softx.2019.03.001.

Direct link to the article: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352711018301353

Contact

The authors gladly welcome any comments, complaints, suggestions, and feature requests. Just send an e-mail to acharvatovacampbell or rslesinger at cmi.cz.

Further resources

Research report

The research report from the project TJ02000203 “Advanced mathematical and statistical methods in evaluating instrumented indentation measurements” funded by the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic can be downloaded at http://nanometrologie.cz/niget/TJ02000203-V2.pdf. The report is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives license version 4.0 International.

This report was financed by the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic within the Zéta Programme.