Interfacial shear and matrix plasticity during fiber push-out in a metal-matrix composite

Interfacial shear during thin-slice fiber push-out of sapphre fibers bonded to a niobium matrix has been examined both experimentally and computationally. Observations indicate a failure process involving the combination of interfacial crack growth and diffuse matrix deformation at opposite ends of the fibers being displaced. The result is a stage during which 'stable' fiber displacement occurs under increasing axial loads applied to the fiber. A straightforward analysis of the extent of this stage suggests that it obeys a load instability criterion, depending on the competition between geometric softening due to interfacial crack growth and strain-hardening within the matrix near the interface.