Origin of Structural Stability in Cubic ZrO2 Nanocrystals Studied by EXAFS

ORAL

Abstract

Local environments surrounding Zr nanocrystalline powders and thin films of cubic zirconia prepared by sol-gel and ion beam assisted deposition (IBAD) methods were investigated by using extended x-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) technique. These materials have shown cubic long-range-order structure and high hardness without chemical stabilizers. To understand the origin of structural stability, the short-range-order local structural information obtained from EXAFS measurements is of central importance. Powder samples with different nanoparticle sizes prepared by different sol-gel processes were analyzed. Zr k-edge EXAFS, as well as N K-edge x-ray absorption near-edge structures (XANES), will also be presented to demonstrate the evolution of O vacancies and possible N impurities due to thermal annealing in the IBAD deposited films.

*This work has been supported by NSC in Taiwan.

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Authors

  • Y.L. Soo

  • S.L. Chang

    • National Tsing Hua University, Taiwan

  • C.L. Cheung

  • R. Sabirianov

  • F. Namavar

  • W.N. Mei

    • University of Nebraska

  • P. Chu

    • National Central University, Taiwan

  • J.F. Lee

    • NSRRC, Taiwan