In Situ Mechanical Testing of Polymer Materials Using a Scanning Electron Microscope

The structural and mechanical features of synthetic matrices are examined using the developed in situ mechanical testing setup in a scanning-electron-microscope chamber. The mechanical behavior is correlated with direct visualization of the structural changes occurring during the deformation of oriented and nonoriented sponges and nonwoven fiber polylactide-based materials, which allows a detailed characterization of the structural deformation processes in these materials.