In this study, a series of nanoindentations was made on NiTi shape memory alloy thin films
at millinewton loads with a Berkovich indenter. Mapping of the indentation topography using
atomic force microscopy reveals direct evidence that the thermally induced martensitic
transformation of these films allows for partial indent recovery on the nanoscale. Indeed,
recovery is nearly complete at indentation depths of less than 100 nm. A hemispherical
cavity model is presented to predict an upper limit to shape memory recovery of sharp …