The link between microscopic mechanisms and macroscopic behaviour, represented by the d a / d N − Δ K curve, plays an increasingly important role in relating the fatigue crack growth curve required for component design to the underlying physics. High-resolution digital image correlation (HR-DIC) allows for in-depth analysis of microscopic fatigue crack growth mechanisms, but is rarely used to determine the SIF of the crack tip. This paper examines the applicability of the interaction integral in HR-DIC data and identifies factors that should be considered when evaluating the integral results. A major influence is the integration near the PZ, which leads to an erroneous increase in the calculated SIF result. In addition, the large integration path gaps required in HR-DIC around the crack path significantly hinder accurate results. The effect of the crack face contact is overall small. While it slightly increases the SIF result, it does not correlate with the crack opening load K op . • Applicability of the interaction integral to high-resolution DIC data is systematically assessed. • Near-plastic-zone integration leads to systematic overestimation of stress intensity factors. • Integration path gaps significantly influence SIF results, while plastic wake effects are minor. • Crack face contact slightly increases SIFs but does not represent crack opening loads.
Paysan et al. (2026) studied this question.