TY - JOUR A1 - Apel, E. A1 - Deubener, J. A1 - Bernard, A. A1 - Müller, Ralf A1 - Kappert, H. A1 - Rheinberger, V. A1 - Höland, W. T1 - Phenomena and mechanisms of crack propagation in glass-ceramics JF - Journal of the mechanical behaviour of biomedical materials N2 - Lithium disilicate, leucite and apatite glass-ceramics have become state-of-the-art framework materials in the fabrication of all-ceramic dental restorative materials. The goal of this study was to examine the crack propagation behaviour of these three known glass-ceramic materials after they have been subjected to Vickers indentation and to characterize their crack opening profiles (δmeas vs. (a-r)). For this purpose, various methods of optical examination were employed. Optical microscopy investigations were performed to examine the crack phenomena at a macroscopic level, while high-resolution techniques, such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM), were employed to investigate the crack phenomena at a microscopic level. The crack patterns of the three glass-ceramics vary from fairly straightforward to more complex, depending on the amount of residual glass matrix present in the material. The high-strength lithium disilicate crystals feature a high degree of crosslinking, thereby preventing crack propagation. In this material, the crack propagates only through the residual glass phase, which constitutes 30%–40% by volume. Having a high glass content of more than 65% by volume, the leucite and apatite glass-ceramics show far more complex crack patterns. Cracks in the leucite glass-ceramic propagate through both the glass and crystal phase. The apatite glass-ceramic shows a similar crack behaviour as an inorganic–organic composite material containing nanoscale fillers, which are pulled out in the surroundings of the crack tip. The observed crack behaviour and the calculated View the MathML source values of the three types of glass-ceramics were compared to the Kkic values determined according to the SEVNB method. KW - Glass KW - Viscosity KW - Water content PY - 2008 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmbbm.2007.11.005 SN - 1751-6161 VL - 1 IS - 4 SP - 313 EP - 325 PB - Elsevier CY - Amsterdam AN - OPUS4-18308 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -