Strain gradient solutions of half-space and half-plane contact problems

General solutions for the problems of an elastic half-space and an elastic half-plane, respectively, subjected to a symmetrically distributed normal force of arbitrary profile are analytically derived using a simplified strain gradient elasticity theory (SSGET) that contains one material length scale parameter. Mindlin’s potential function method and Fourier transforms are employed in the formulation, and the half-space and half-plane contact problems are solved in a unified manner. The specific solutions for the problems of a half-space/plane subjected to a concentrated normal force or a uniformly distributed normal force are obtained by directly applying the general solutions, which recover the existing classical elasticity-based solutions of the Flamant and Boussinesq problems as special cases. In addition, the indentation problems of an elastic half-space indented by a flat-ended cylindrical punch, a spherical punch, and a conical punch, respectively, are solved using the general solutions, leading to hardness formulas that are indentation size- and material microstructure-dependent. Numerical results reveal that the displacement and stress fields in a half-space/plane given by the current SSGET-based solutions are smoother than those predicted by the classical elasticity-based solutions and do not exhibit the discontinuity and/or singularity displayed by the latter. Also, the indentation hardness values based on the newly obtained half-space solution are found to increase with decreasing indentation radius and increasing material length scale parameter, thereby explaining the microstructure-dependent indentation size effect.