  We carried out matched experiments and molecular dynamics simulations of the
compression of nanopillars prepared from Cu$\vert$Au nanolaminates with 25 nm
layer thickness. The stress-strain behavior obtained from both techniques are
in excellent agreement. Variation of the layer thickness in simulations reveals
an increase of the strength with decreasing layer thickness. Pillars fail
through the formation of shear bands whose nucleation we trace back to the
existence of surface flaws. Our combined approach demonstrates the crucial role
of contact geometry in controlling the deformation mode and suggests that
modulus-matched nanolaminates should be able to suppress strain localization
while maintaining controllable strength.
