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An investigation is made of wear mechanisms in a suite of dental materials with a ceramic component and tooth enamel using a laboratory test that simulates clinically observable wear facets. A ball-on-3-specimen wear tester in a tetrahedral configuration with a rotating hard antagonist zirconia sphere is used to produce circular wear scars on polished surfaces of dental materials in artificial saliva. Images of the wear scars enable interpretation of wear mechanisms, and measurements of scar dimensions quantify wear rates. Rates are lowest for zirconia ceramics, highest for lithium disilicate, with feldspathic ceramic and ceramic-polymer composite intermediate. Examination of wear scars reveals surface debris, indicative of a mechanism of material removal at the microstructural level. Microplasticity and microcracking models account for mild and severe wear regions. Wear models are used to evaluate potential longevity for each dental material. It is demonstrated that controlled laboratory testing can identify and quantify wear susceptibility under conditions that reflect the essence of basic occlusal contact. In addition to causing severe material loss, wear damage can lead to premature tooth or prosthetic failure.

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The deformation and wear events that underlie microwear and macrowear signals commonly used for dietary reconstruction in fossil animals can be replicated and quantified by controlled laboratory tests on extracted tooth specimens in conjunction with fundamental micromechanics analysis. Key variables governing wear relations include angularity, stiffness (modulus), and size of the contacting particle, along with material properties of enamel. Both axial and sliding contacts can result in the removal of tooth enamel. The degree of removal, characterized by a "wear coefficient," varies strongly with particle content at the occlusal interface. Conditions leading to a transition from mild to severe wear are discussed. Measurements of wear traces can provide information about contact force and particle shape. The potential utility of the micromechanics methodology as an adjunct for investigating tooth durability and reconstructing diet is explored.

The fracture strength of polycrystalline silicon wafers has been investigated by means of twist and four‐point bending tests. Under a twisting configuration, which generates high tensile stresses within the middle of the wafers, a unimodal distribution in strength is obtained. The characteristic strength and Weibull modulus are 131.0 MPa, and 14.4, respectively. Under a four‐point bending configuration, which generates high stresses both at the surface and at the edges, an additive bimodal distribution is obtained. The first mode of the distribution has a characteristic strength of 76.0 MPa and a Weibull modulus of 1.6; the second mode has a characteristic strength of 161.2 MPa and a Weibull modulus of 11.5. Fractographic observations confirm that the first mode (lower strength) corresponds to wafers which failed from large edge chips (sizes up to 90 μm). Weibull analysis suggests that the second mode (higher strength) corresponds to wafers which failed from smaller surface chips (sizes up to 50 μm). The results obtained point to large edge chips as the most dangerous defects degrading the fracture strength of the wafers. This is of great relevance for the photovoltaic industry, as fracture of silicon wafers limits both the performance and lifetime of the solar cells, and production yields.