Electrical conductivity enhancement in nanocrystalline (RE_(2)O_(3))_(0.08)(ZrO_(2))_(0.92) (RE=Sc, Y) thin films

摘要

Dense, crack-free, uniform, and homogeneous (RE_(2)O_(3))_(0.08)(ZrO_(2))_(0.92) (RE=Sc, Y) nanocrystalline thin films were fabricated by a simple sol-gel method and characterized by impedance studies. At temperatures beyond 600℃, the electrical conductivity of (Sc_(2)O_(3))_(0.08)(ZrO_(2))_(0.92) and (Y_(2)O_(3))_(0.08)(ZrO_(2))_(0.92) nanocrystals in pure cubic phase was ten times higher than that of the corresponding bulk materials. The decrease of grain boundary resistance related to interfacial effect is predominately responsible for the electrical conductivity enhancement.