Bond stress development at a surface coating-substrate interface due to the action of a nucleus of thermo-elastic strain

The class of problems dealing with surface reinforced elastic media is encountered in many areas of materials engineering, notably in connection with surface layers that are used to provide protection to an otherwise softer substrate. These problems are of particular importance to the assessment of the mechanical behaviour of thin films and other forms of industrial coatings. This paper examines the problem related to the flexure of a plate-like surface layer that is bonded to an elastic halfspace region, and where the flexure of the coating is induced by a nucleus of thermo-elastic strain acting within the halfspace region.