Ermüdungsfähigkeit
Ermüdungsfähigkeit refers to the capacity of a material to withstand repeated or fluctuating stresses over time without failing. This phenomenon is distinct from static failure, which occurs under a single, sustained load. When a material is subjected to cyclic loading, microscopic damage can accumulate with each stress cycle. This damage can manifest as crack initiation and subsequent propagation. Eventually, if the number of cycles or the magnitude of stress is sufficiently high, the material can fracture, even if the applied stresses are well below its yield strength.
The concept of fatigue is crucial in engineering design, particularly for components subjected to dynamic loads,
The fatigue life of a material is often represented by an S-N curve (stress-number of cycles to