The mechanical behavior of nanoscale metallic multilayers: A survey

The mechanical behavior of nanoscale metallic multilayers (NMMs) has attracted much attention from both scientific and practical views. Compared with their monolithic counterparts, the large number of interfaces existing in the NMMs dictates the unique behavior of this special class of structural composite materials. While there have been a number of reviews on the mechanical mechanism of micro-laminates, the rapid development of nanotechnology brought a pressing need for an overview focusing exclusively on a property-based definition of the NMMs, especially their size-dependent microstructure and mechanical performance. This article attempts to provide a comprehensive and up-to-date review on the microstructure, mechanical property and plastic deformation physics of NMMs. We hope this review could accomplish two purposes: (1) introducing the basic concepts of scaling and dimensional analysis to scientists and engineers working on NMM systems, and (2) providing a better understanding of interface behavior and the exceptional qualities the interfaces in NMMs display at atomic scale.